Get to know Orvieto
There are stories written on paper and others written on the rock, this is the case of Orvieto. Italy is a country where one often thinks that a village is magical, and Orvieto is one of those places. Suspended between heaven and earth, Orvieto is perched on a tuff cliff that dominates the entire surrounding plain and boasts a network of tunnels below, an almost parallel city, excavated by its inhabitants over the centuries. A network served to work, used as a defensive system and for the supply of water. But to get to know it better it is preferable to participate in an Orvieto Walking Tour. Orvieto is an extraordinary place, you can find everything, art, culture, tradition, excellent cuisine, and it is a city to live slow. In reality, Orvieto is one of the founding cities of this movement that was born in 1999. But what does Slow city mean? It means slowing down, going slowly and applying the principles of food and wine to modernity. So slow down in front of a food, enjoy it, but also in front of a work of art having the ability to admire it while waiting for it to slowly reveal itself. There is the Orvieto of heaven, of earth, but also the hidden Orvieto, made up of labyrinths, tunnels, passages, wells, cellars, all designed to represent the memory of ancient civilizations. A subsoil used for the solution of problems that over the centuries the city itself presented due to its position: the search for water or the preservation of food. Orvieto is an exceptional example of integration between nature and the work of man. Here everything is close at hand, from the religious spirit that shows itself through its Cathedral, to the historical one represented by the palaces and the Torre del Moro. Places that tell of an important and ever-present past.
What to see in Orvieto
The attractions that the city has to offer are many, testimony of a long and complicated history that winds through the streets of the historic center. Here are some of them:
- Orvieto Cathedral, a magnificent Roman-style basilica built in 1290 by Pope Niccolò IV;
- Well of San Patrizio, the ancient historic well of the city, dug into the tuff, built in 1530;
- Moro Tower, or Clock Tower, from which you can enjoy a 360 ° view of this beautiful town;
- Etruscan necropolis of the tuff crucifix, an ancient necropolis of chamber tombs excavated in blocks of tuff from the Etruscan period, around the sixth century BC;
- Palazzo del Popolo, built and modified on several occasions, was the home of the Podestà and the Seven Lords;
- Orvieto underground, the ancient underground city that winds through tunnels, wells, cisterns, artificial cavities and work environments used in the Etruscan, Medieval and Renaissance periods;
- Fortezza Albornoz, the ancient fortress of the city of Orvieto, from which the entire territory was dominated and controlled.
Things to know about Orvieto
Participating in the aforementioned tour means understanding, studying, and above all getting to the heart of the city of Orvieto. The Orvieto Walking Tour, will offer the opportunity, in the company of a local tour guide, to visit the major attractions, stroll through the streets of the center, marvel in front of its magnificent Cathedral, listen to its legends and above all enjoy the views enviable.
