Getty Images/Moment RF

Abruzzo

Neither part of fashion conscious, Ferrari-producing northern Italy, nor the siesta-loving, anarchic world of the south, Abruzzo is something of an enigma. Despite its proximity to Rome and its long history of tribalism and pre-Roman civilisation, it sits well down the pecking order of Italian regions in terms of touristic allure.

Notwithstanding, this gritty mountainous domain, rocked sporadically by earthquakes, remains refreshingly unique. Herein lies a higher concentration of protected land than anywhere else in Italy, some of the last vestiges of large wild fauna on the continent, and a patchwork of individualistic towns and villages whose folkloric traditions go back as far as the Italic tribes who founded them.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Abruzzo.

Museum
Museo Archeologico Nazionale d'Abruzzo – Villa Frigerj
Housed in a neoclassical villa in the Villa Comunale park, Abruzzo's best archaeological museum displays a comprehensive collection of local finds, illuminating Chieti's three millennia of existence. While the primary focus is on the vanished worlds of the Marrucini, Aequi, Marsi, Sabini and other tribes that inhabited central Italy prior to Roman expansion, there are also plenty of Roman artefacts. Of particular note are impressive coin hoards and classical sculpture – including a colossal seated Hercules from the 1st century BC.
Christian Site
Eremo di Sant’Onofrio al Morrone
This cliff-clinging hermitage with its 15th-century ceiling, 13th-century frescoes, narrow oratory and arched porticoes cowers under a massive rock face in the Morrone mountains. It was here in a grotto beneath the present church that Pietro da Morrone was apparently told he was to become pope in 1294. It’s a steep 20-minute walk from a car park just outside Badia to reach the hermitage. The views of Sulmona and the Valle Peligna below are superb.
Archaeological Site
Santuario di Ercole Curino
Sitting below the Sant’Onofrio hermitage, this sanctuary was originally thought to be the house of Sulmona-born poet Ovid when it was first uncovered in the 1950s, but statues later found confirmed it as a Roman-era shrine to Hercules. The sanctuary's former foundations cover a couple of mountainside terraces and include a preserved mosaic floor sheltered in a wooden hut. Precious votive offerings found here are kept at Chieti's Museo Archeologico Nazionale – Villa Frigerj.
Basilica
Basilica di Santa Maria di Collemaggio
With its distinctive chequerboard facade and strong links to Italy’s much admired hermit-pope Celestino V (whose remains are interred inside), the 12th-century Collemaggio is the church for which Aquilinos reserve most affection. Structurally damaged in the 2009 earthquake, its lengthy renovation project (initiated in 2012) took five years to complete. The details of how it was done are chronicled inside and provide an interesting coda to the church’s roller-coaster history.
Piazza
Piazza Garibaldi
The large town square is home to Sulmona's extensive Wednesday and Saturday morning market : you'll find fresh fish, veg, fruit and flowers, as well as the ubiquitous porchetta van, selling pork in a roll. Along Corso Ovidio is a striking series of arches, all that remains of a 13th-century aqueduct. In the centre of the piazza, the Renaissance Fontana del Vecchio (Fountain of the Old One) is said by some to depict Solimo, the founder of Sulmona.
Museum
Palazzo d'Avalos
The Renaissance Palazzo d’Avalos houses a quartet of museums: the Museo Archeologico, with its eclectic collection of ancient bronzes, glasswork and paintings; the Pinacoteca Comunale, featuring paintings by the Palizzi brothers and other 19th-century artists; the Galleria d'Arte Contemporanea, with 80 works by contemporary Italian and Spanish artists; and the Museo del Costume, with donated Abruzzese folk outfits dating back to the early 19th century.
Abbey
Abbazia di Santo Spirito Al Morrone
It’s hard to miss this massive 13th-century Celestine abbey in Badia, close to the sheer western slopes of the Morrone mountains. Notable for its monumental staircase, religious frescoes and old pharmacy, its main sights can be seen on English- and Italian-language tours. Damaged in an earthquake in 1706, it has been restored several times, done time as a prison and now houses local government offices, the HQ of Majella national park, and regular art expos and music concerts.
Museum
Museo Casa Natale Gabriele D'Annunzio
The birthplace of controversial proto-fascist poet Gabriele D'Annunzio is small but excellently curated, with nine rooms displaying furniture, documents, photos and his death mask resting in a polished glass case. A short film (in Italian) is given as an introduction.
Historic Building
Hotel Campo Imperatore
Built in the 1930s, the Campo Imperatore is the hotel where Mussolini was briefly imprisoned in 1943, before his dramatic rescue by German paratroopers. The large art-deco structure (re-branded as a rifugio, mountain refuge, in more recent times) had become a little rough around the edges by the early 21st century (being located on a windswept plateau didn't help), though it was still functioning as a hotel as recently as 2017.