After a quick lunch in Pitigliano we drove hastily through the beautiful valley of Tuscany. There are many hilltop villages and town in this region and we are heading to Civita del Bagnoregio, nickname “The Dying Town”. Don’t let the name fool you though, the town is not really “dying”, in fact it is full with tourist if we arrived late in the day.

Civita di Bagnoregio is a surreal and spectacular town located on the top of a hill that can only be reached by crossing a narrow pedestrian bridge. Even though I have seen pictures of the town from the web, I still could not believe this ancient town really exist. It seems to come straight out of hollywood movies that have many special effects.

Civita di Bagnoregio was founded by Etruscans some 2500 years ago. It is a medieval city left relatively isolated and unaltered. Nick-named “Dying town” is due to the constant erosion of the volcanic tuff rocks where it is built. Severe erosion over the last few centuries has resulted in buildings falling into the valley. This town also has very few full-time residents. If I remember correctly, I was told there were only 12 full-time residents in summer, the rest were overnight guests.

The only way to reach the town is by a new pedestrian bridge that was built for the few citizens that remain here and for tourists coming from all over the world. As you could see from the photos above, the walk on the bridge is quite tough for those who have mobility issues.

The crossing will take around 15-20 mins. It’s not as tough as it looks as the walkway is quite comfortable comparatively to hiking in nature. The main entrance is a 12th century Romanesque arch. Passing through this arch, you will feel like you have just time travelled to the Middle Ages.

The wonderful village of Civita di Bagnoregio is a very small town where time seems to have stopped. The town’s few narrow streets, flanked by stone houses, are meticulously maintained despite all the erosion happening outside. There are a couple of hostel to host those who want to stay the night, while the majority of the properties have been turned into holiday homes, cafes, souvenir shops and restaurant.

The main piazza contains a bell tower and a 13th-century Romanesque church of San Donato. This church has a simple interior but the charm is located outside of the church. The view here is magnificent and there is also an excellent home-made iced tea at the taverna.

The views of the valleys below are awesome. From the vantage point at the top of the stairs leading down to the ticket office, the town sits stark in eroded hillside. You can see the severity of the erosion on the surrounding valley and hills. Surprisingly you also see some newer houses being build on top of the hill.

These 2 lovely towns Pitigliano and Civita di Bagnoregio in South Tuscany are really worth visiting if you are in Rome. We have been to many old towns in Italy and these 2 picture postcard towns are definitely on the top of our list. Thanks to a stranger who helps us to take the picture below, we finally manage to take a picture perfect family with a picture perfect town as the background!

Checkout our other travel blog in South Tuscany – Hidden Natural Wonders in South Tuscany and Pitigliano.