The Bridge and the Village

What it is

Civita di Bagnoregio is a village founded by the Etruscans some 2,500 years ago on an outcrop of tuff and clay that erosion is slowly eating away. Earthquakes and landslides have carried palaces, towers and gates down into the valley, which is why it is called "the dying city". Today about ten residents live there. You can only reach it on foot, by a footbridge built in 1965 that links it to Bagnoregio, over the valley of the calanchi, the bare clay gullies that surround it.

The route step by step

1. The bridge. From the Bagnoregio side you cross the footbridge. The first stretch is gentle; the last is a very steep ramp that climbs to the village gate.
2. Porta Santa Maria. It is the only one of the five old gates that remains, cut into the tuff in Etruscan times and with a Gothic arch added in the Middle Ages. On either side, two basalt lions hold human heads in their claws: they recall the villagers' revolt of 1457 against the Monaldeschi of Orvieto.
3. Piazza San Donato. The central square, of earth, with the church of San Donato opposite the old town hall. The church is Romanesque in origin with a Renaissance façade; it was the cathedral until the earthquake of 1695 forced the see to move to Bagnoregio. Inside is its main piece, a wooden crucifix from the school of Donatello: seen from the left, Christ seems to be in agony; from the right, asleep in death.
4. Museum and houses. In the same square, the Palazzo Alemanni holds the Geological and Landslide Museum. Along the side streets you reach the house of Saint Bonaventure and the chapel of the Madonna del Carcere.
5. The edges of the outcrop. At the end of the streets the village is cut off abruptly: look out to see the calanchi and what erosion has taken away. The Etruscan tunnel of Bucaione, which crossed the outcrop to the valley, is closed for now.

Entry and opening hours

To enter you pay €5, online, in the official app or at the ticket office. Children under 6, people with a 100% disability and one companion, residents of Bagnoregio and guests of accommodation inside the village, among others, do not pay. The Piazzale Battaglini ticket office opens on the busiest days (Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays); on quiet days the Mercatello one, next to the bridge, opens. It is detailed under Civita ticket.

Getting there and parking

The car stays in Bagnoregio. From the Piazzale Battaglini car park you cross the town on foot in about 15 minutes or take the Italviaggi shuttle to the Belvedere park, with the ticket bought on board. There are car parks closer to the bridge, but not for motorhomes. Without a car, take the train to Orvieto or Viterbo and continue on the COTRAL bus.

How long and when to go

Allow about two hours for the bridge, the village and the museum. Arrive before ten or late in the afternoon: mid-morning the groups arrive and the bridge fills up. At sunset the light on the calanchi is very beautiful. In autumn and spring, first thing, mist sometimes fills the valley and only the outcrop peeks out. On the first Sunday of June and the second Sunday of September the Palio della Tonna, with donkeys, is run in the square.

With children, pushchairs and accessibility

Children like crossing the bridge and exploring the village, which is small and car-free. With a pushchair it can be done, with effort: the final ramp is very steep and inside there is cobbling. A baby carrier is better. If you have reduced mobility, the slope of the last stretch is the main obstacle.

Eating and sleeping

Inside the village you can eat at the Osteria al Forno di Agnese, the Trattoria Antico Forno or Alma Civita. To stay once the day trippers have gone, Corte della Maestà or the Antico Forno rooms.