Explore the Valley

Every town in Val di Comino has something to offer. Take your time and visit, to meet the locals and to decide for yourself. here are some suggestions of the things we like to see and do.

Académie Vitti, Atina Inferiore

Explore the story of the Parisian Art School founded by migrants from Val di Comino and the connection and tradition of artists’models and the Valley.

Archaeological Museum, Atina

Discover the Samnite and Roman periods of this area with a dedicated local tour guide and expert.

Monte la Meta

Climb the impressive Monte la Meta with an expert guide and mountaineer. On a clear day, you can see both the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian Seas from the summit.

Santuario of the Madonna di Canneto

A pilgrimage to the Sanctuary of the Madonna of Canneto, whether by foot past Grotta Campanaro (it takes around 2-3 hours to reach it by foot) or by car past Settefrati, is an essential part of a visit to this ancient land.

Cantina I Ciacca

A state of the art Winery located in the historic restored Borgo I Ciacca. Prior appointment necessary.

Botanical Garden, (Private - by appointment only), Villa Latina

Learn about organic gardening, cultivation and plant uses whilst discovering the local wildlife in the independent gardens in Villa Latina.

Erborista Caira, Villa Latina - an award winning Herbalist

The easiest way to learn about the reality of plants used in natural remedies is to take a guided tour on the farms, where botanical and medicinal plants grow accompanied by a leading herbalist. This is an exclusive experience in the heart of the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise, before visiting the nearby laboratory and shop. This is an extraordinary opportunity to discover how much man and nature can be in harmony.

Feast Days & Festivals in Picinisco

Every town in the Valley and nearby hold various traditional feasts and festivals throughout the year. For example, Atina hosts Atina Jazz and Cantina Atina every year as well as many others.

WE have chosen only this for Picinisco to give you a flavour of what can be found at different times.

Click here to get a flavour of the variety of celebrations to be experienced and enjoyed in Picinisco every year

Many of the towns and villages celebrate their patron saint throughout the year with enthusiasm. At Christmas there is a tradition in many of the towns, including Picinisco, of holding a Living Crib - ie the Nativity is played out in public by local people in costume; in Holy week the Way of the Cross again remembered with locals in costume; and other celebrations of Easter; the decoration of the streets with flowers for Corpus Christi; not to mention the Feasts of the Patron Saints of each Town and Village - all celebrated with enthusiasm.

In Picinisco, various festivals held throughout the year. Come and join us in celebrating these (and other smaller impromptu feste):

Festa degli Orapi (normally mid June); Enjoy a morning walk in the hills followed by a village party with traditional food, wine and music.

Pastorizia in Festival (9/10 August) coinciding with the Feast of San Lorenzo, Picinisco's Patron Saint. 2 days of education, entertainment and enjoyment celebrating the art and craft of the shepherd and cheesemakers;

"Le Feste" (18/20 August). These celebrations are a mixture of pious religious processions (both for the local community and by groups of pilgrims on their way from their homes 20-30 miles away to the Basicilca of the Madonna di Canneto) and music, eating and dancing reminiscent of medieval pilgrimages. The culmination is a fabulous Firework Display as you have never seen before. A riot of fireworks explode from the valley below to burst more or less at eye level with the sound echoing from the buildings behind.

Fesitval delle Storie (end August/beginning September). This is an itinerant arts and literature festival which moves from town to town in Val di Comino

Soavita d'Autunno (end September/ beginning of October)

Lago di Posta Fibreno

Mentioned by Pliny, who spoke of its 'floating islands' and flat bottomed boats, little has changed in this peaceful Nature Reserve.

Cycle, Horseback, Trek or Walk in the Park

Ask for details or a copy of our map of Sentieri

Parco Avventura Indiana Park, Picinisco

Great fun for the whole family. All safety equipment provided - but bring stout shoes.

Splendid Bike Rides

Picinisco and the surrounding Comino Valley offer unlimited and unrivalled road cycling with the benefit of outstanding scenery, excellent smooth road surfaces and without the menace of many cycling locations – busy traffic . One can often cycle for hours seeing only a few cars and confident in the knowledge that cyclists are respected on the roads in this region .

As one would expect given that Picinisco is situated at 720m half way up a mountain, cycling is challenging whether one sets off heading up or down. Renowned for the quality of it’s air and the hospitality of the locals: rediscover this forgotten Valley.

Request our booklet where our cycling friends recommend possible routes from 50 to 105km - but there are obviously many other options which may involve much shorter routes.

Many challenging mountain bike routes are also available.

Excellent Bike Hire (including electric bikes) can be arranged, on request and storage is available.

But whatever you do on a bike from Picinisco you will have worked hard and (on reflection!) enjoyed it thoroughly deserving a visit to one of the bars in the Piazza to recover without guilt!

Visit a Local Cheesemaker

Picinisco is renowned for its fresh air, mountain pastures, fresh water and the quality of its cheese. Pecorino di Picinisco (still made in the traditional way with raw, unpasteurised sheep's milk) is recognised with the qualification DOP.

Goat's milk (like marzolino) and cow's milk cheeses (like caciacavalo) are also made locally and worth searching out. Some local cheesemakers have been awarded national prizes for their cheeses. You can meet and taste most local cheeses during the august celebration La Pastorizia.

We can arrange a visit to a local cheesemaker so you can see and hear at first hand the process and care which goes into making our local cheeses. Naturally you will have to taste the cheese at their various stages of maturity and the famous ricotta! If you are really interested we can also arrange that you spend a day in the mountains with a shepherd and his flock.

For information on other Tours