Marche · Pesaro e Urbino
Acqualagna
The Italian truffle capital in the Metauro valley, supplying two-thirds of the country's white truffle harvest from the surrounding limestone woods.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Acqualagna is on our list
It holds Cittaslow and Città del Tartufo.
Subscribe and you get Acqualagna's letter the day it comes out.
Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 22 min from Rimini
- Population
- 4,162
- J10°
- F13°
- M14°
- A17°
- M22°
- J28°
- J32°
- A31°
- S26°
- O21°
- N15°
- D12°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Acqualagna sits in the Metauro valley, twelve kilometers from Urbino, on the plain just downstream from the gorge cut by the Candigliano river. The Roman city of Pitinum Mergens stood nearby until Alaric's Goths destroyed it; the survivors founded Montefalcone, the castle from which today's village grew. The name Acqualagna comes from Aqua Lanea, water of slaughter, after the sixth-century battle fought on that same plain.
Three fairs anchor the year: black truffle on the last Sunday of February, summer black on the last Sunday of July, white truffle across the last weekend of October and the two that follow. The town below and the gorge above read as one unit, a river valley that has carried Roman road traffic, monastic settlement and truffle trade in turn, each leaving its mark on the ground without erasing what came before.
How to get there
From Ancona (AOI), about 1 h 21 min by car.
Rimini (RMI) is about 1 h 36 min away.
By car from the center of Perugia 1 h 30 min or Ancona 1 h 33 min.
Coming from Florence or Bologna?
Coming by train into Rimini? Acqualagna is about 1 h 20 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Ancona airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Gola del Furlo
The gorge narrows between Monte Paganuccio (977 m) and Monte Pietralata (888 m); the 38-meter Roman tunnel, cut in 76 AD, is still driven through by the Via Flaminia today.
Abbazia di San Vincenzo al Furlo
Medieval Benedictine monastery set into the slopes above the gorge, counted among the oldest religious foundations in the Metauro valley.
Riserva Naturale Statale Gola del Furlo
Nature reserve established in 2001, covering 3,600 hectares of woodland, grazing land and ridgeline above the river.
Fiera Nazionale del Tartufo Bianco
Held the last weekend of October and the two following, the central event in the Italian white truffle trade.
From the guides
Where to eat
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
AnticofurloRistorante
Anticofurlo has a spot in the Michelin Guide to its name.
Before you sit down: how to order at a restaurant, how to spot a tourist trap, what aperitivo is and how the Italian bar works.
Living here
Could you live here?
Acqualagna is at the end of the road.
- A village of 4,162. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Cagli, is 18 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Urbino, a city of 13,827, is 23 min by car. Closer than our 30 to 60 minutes: handy for everything, so check the town still keeps a life of its own.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
- Population 4,162, down 6.8% since 2015
- Nearest city Urbino, 23 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Urbino, 13 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €840 to €1,200 per m² to buy, €3.00 to €4.20 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- In-between
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 87% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 2, medium hazard
- Ancona airport (AOI), 1 h 21 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Ancona, 1 h 33 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
7% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from China, Romania and Morocco, against 9% across Italy. 13 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe. There are 212 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 29% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Pesaro e Urbino province ranks 31st of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Urbino, 13 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Rimini, 47 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Rimini, 49 km as the crow flies.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.06% a year in property tax, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. The town adds 0.8% to your income tax. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Marche spends about €2,480 a month, €620 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €643 a year for water, on the Marche average.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone E, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from October 15 to April 15, up to 14 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. 8% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate medium for floods. 3% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
WHITE TRUFFLE
Roughly two-thirds of Italy's white truffle production passes through Acqualagna, traded across three annual fairs from February through November.
GOLA DEL FURLO
Limestone gorge upstream of town, cut by the Candigliano river, where Vespasian's Roman tunnel still carries the old Via Flaminia.
AQUA LANEA
Sixth-century battle between Totila's Ostrogoths and Narses's Byzantines on the plain below the gorge, which gave the town its name.
Common questions
- What is Acqualagna known for?
- Acqualagna is the Italian truffle capital at 204 meters in the Metauro valley, supplying two-thirds of the country's white truffle harvest from the surrounding limestone woods.
- Where is Acqualagna?
- Acqualagna is a comune in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, in Marche.
- What is the nearest airport to Acqualagna?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Ancona (AOI), about 1 h 21 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Perugia to Acqualagna?
- About 1 h 30 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Acqualagna?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 32 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 12 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Acqualagna?
- Mondavio, Arcevia and Giano dell'Umbria.
- How many people live in Acqualagna?
- 4,162 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Acqualagna a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Acqualagna is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Cagli, is 18 min away. The nearest city, Urbino, is 23 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Urbino, 13 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 87% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 204 m
- Population: 4,162
- Surface area: 50.69 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
The ranked lists
Lists Acqualagna appears in
- The 6 best hidden hill towns with a serious restaurant in MarcheMarchehill townserious restauranthidden6 towns · smallest 4,162 residents
- The 6 best small hill towns that eat well in MarcheMarchehill towneats wellsmall6 towns · smallest 1,385 residents
- The best hill towns that eat well within 90 minutes of RiminiNear Riminihill townwithin 90 mineats well6 towns · smallest 996 residents · closest 30 min away
- The best towns with a serious restaurant in the province of Pesaro e UrbinoPesaro e Urbino provinceserious restaurant6 towns · smallest 4,162 residents
- The best small hill towns in the province of Pesaro e UrbinoPesaro e Urbino provincehill townsmall7 towns · smallest 1,132 residents
- The best small hill towns within 90 minutes of RiminiNear Riminihill townwithin 90 minsmall9 towns · smallest 996 residents · closest 35 min away
Similar
Towns like Acqualagna
What all six share with Acqualagna: inland, away from the coast · between 3,000 and 10,000 people · hill towns
Our guide
Our nearest guide, 66 km away
Umbria: the towns, when to go, how to get there
The Umbria guide came out of the letter. Letters from the towns we visit. Free.
Read the guide: Two banks, no sea. 21 towns, the drive and train times, the months, where to eat and sleep.
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.