Abruzzo · L'Aquila
Barrea
A 1,066-meter spur above an artificial lake at the heart of the Abruzzo National Park, with a Samnite necropolis and an 11th-century di Sangro castle.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Barrea is on our list
It holds Borghi Autentici.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Jun–Sep, Dec–Mar
- By car
- 2 h 2 min from Pescara
- Population
- 688
- J6°
- F9°
- M9°
- A12°
- M17°
- J22°
- J26°
- A25°
- S20°
- O16°
- N11°
- D8°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Barrea sits at 1,066 meters on a spur at the heart of the Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise, looking down on Lago di Barrea, the lake created in 1951 by damming the Sangro river. The lake is 5 kilometers long, 980 meters above sea level, and the most photographed body of water in inland Abruzzo. The village descends from the pre-Roman Samnites, whose Colleciglio necropolis just outside the town has produced funeral artifacts from the 6th-7th century BC, now in a small museum opened in 2007.
The medieval centro storico is a fortified knot of stone houses and narrow streets. The Chiesa di San Tommaso Apostolo was first built in the 13th century, repeatedly destroyed by earthquakes, fires, and war, and rebuilt with a baroque-stuccoed interior. The original castle, built in the 11th century by the di Sangro family who held the fief, stands just outside the village with towers and walls intact.
Roughly 700 people remain. The park around them holds the largest population of Marsican brown bear and Apennine wolf in Italy.
How to get there
From Naples (NAP), about 2 h 12 min by car.
Rome Fiumicino (FCO) is about 2 h 39 min away.
By car from the center of Pescara 2 h 2 min or Naples 2 h 16 min.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Castello dei di Sangro
11th-century fortress built by the di Sangro family, first feudal lords of Barrea, with towers and connecting walls now used for cultural events.
Chiesa di San Tommaso Apostolo
13th-century parish church, repeatedly damaged by earthquake, fire, and war, with baroque stucco and gilding from the 1600s and 18th-century paintings.
Chiesa della Madonna delle Grazie
14th-century church, one of the oldest standing buildings of medieval Barrea, with a small portal of carved local stone.
Lago di Barrea
Artificial lake created in 1951 by damming the Sangro river, 5 km long at 980 meters, with kayak rental, walking trails, and bird hides.
Necropoli di Colleciglio
Pre-Roman Samnite necropolis on the slopes outside the village, with funeral artifacts from the 6th-7th century BC displayed in the town museum.
Living here
Could you live here?
Barrea is at the end of the road.
- A village of 688. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Castel di Sangro, is 31 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Isernia, a city of 20,529, is 55 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
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 688, down 3.5% since 2015
- Nearest city Isernia, 55 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Castel di Sangro, 11 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €760 to €1,100 per m² to buy, €2.20 to €3.00 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Very remote
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 100% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 1, Italy's highest hazard
- Pescara airport (PSR), 2 h 10 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital L'Aquila, 1 h 48 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
4% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Peru and Romania, against 9% across Italy. There are 403 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 68% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. L'Aquila province ranks 69th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Castel di Sangro, 11 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Caserta, 81 km away. The nearest IB school is St. Stephen's School, 125 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Canadian College Italy, 62 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 0.86% a year in property tax at the 2025 rate, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. 7% pensioner tax: this town qualifies, for someone with a foreign pension who has lived abroad for five years: 7% on foreign income, for ten years.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Abruzzo spends about €2,120 a month, €540 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €533 a year for water, on the Abruzzo average.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone F, the coldest of Italy's six, with no national limit on when the heating runs. The national maps show no residents in a high or medium flood zone. Under 1% 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
LAGO DI BARREA
Artificial lake formed in 1951 by damming the Sangro river, 5 km long at 980 meters, with the medieval village above it.
MARSICAN BEAR
The park around Barrea holds the largest remaining population of the Marsican brown bear, the endangered Apennine subspecies.
SAMNITE ROOTS
The Colleciglio necropolis outside the village holds funeral artifacts from the pre-Roman Samnite population, 6th-7th century BC.
Common questions
- What is Barrea known for?
- Barrea is a 1,066-meter spur above an artificial lake at the heart of the Abruzzo National Park, with a Samnite necropolis and an 11th-century di Sangro castle.
- Where is Barrea?
- Barrea is a comune in the province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo, at 1066 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Barrea?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Pescara (PSR), about 2 h 10 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Pescara to Barrea?
- About 2 h 2 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Barrea?
- Best in Jun–Sep, Dec–Mar. July is the warmest month, averaging 26 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 17 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Barrea?
- Scontrone, Rivisondoli and Capracotta.
- How many people live in Barrea?
- 688 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Barrea a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Barrea is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Castel di Sangro, is 31 min away. The nearest city, Isernia, is 55 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Castel di Sangro, 11 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 100% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 1066 m
- Population: 688
- Surface area: 87.11 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 Barrea appears in
Similar
Towns like Barrea
What all six share with Barrea: high in the mountains · under 1,000 people · mountain towns above 1,000 metres
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