Umbria · Perugia
Bettona
A hill town between the Topino and Chiascio rivers, the only Etruscan settlement ever built east of the Tiber.
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 25 min from Perugia
- Population
- 4,224
Known for
ETRUSCAN OUTLIER
The only known Etruscan settlement east of the Tiber, with polygonal walls and tular boundary stones from the seventh century BC.
PERUGINO
Two paintings by Pietro Vannucci in the Pinacoteca: Sant'Antonio da Padova and the Madonna della Misericordia with Saints.
OLIVE OIL
Carries the Città dell'Olio designation; the Bettonese olive groves cover the hills sloping down toward the Chiascio valley.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J9°
- F12°
- M14°
- A17°
- M23°
- J28°
- J32°
- A32°
- S26°
- O21°
- N14°
- D10°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Bettona sits on a hill north of the Colli Martani, looking across the cultivated plain toward Perugia. The Etruscans built here in the seventh century BC, and Bettona remains the only known Etruscan settlement east of the Tiber. Stretches of polygonal walls from that period are still visible at the base of the medieval circuit, mixed with later Roman blocks.
The town became a municipium under Augustus, declined during the barbarian invasions, was sacked by Totila in 548, and rebuilt as a self-governing commune by the late twelfth century. Papal rule held from 1648 to unification. The Pinacoteca Civica, housed in the Palazzetto del Podestà on Piazza Cavour, keeps two paintings by Pietro Perugino (Sant'Antonio da Padova and Madonna della Misericordia), tabernacle panels attributed to El Greco, and Etruscan funerary stones and architectural terracottas from the territory. The olive groves below town carry the Città dell'Olio designation.
The Sunday letter
Bettona is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Bettona comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Bettona in our articles
The best small olive oil towns in the province of Perugia6 towns, Bettona among them.
The best hidden towns with a food festival in the province of Perugia8 towns, Bettona among them.
The 9 best small olive oil towns in Umbria9 towns, Bettona among them.
The prettiest villages inside a nature park within 90 minutes of Perugia9 towns, Bettona among them.
How to get there
From Ancona / Pescara (AOI), about 1h 50m by car.
Rome (FCO) is about 2h 47m away.
By car from the centre of Perugia 25 minutes, Siena 1h 47m or Ancona 2 hours.
Coming by train into Perugia? Bettona is about 25 minutes away by road.
What to see
Mura etrusche
Stretches of polygonal Etruscan walls visible at the base of the medieval circuit, from the seventh and sixth centuries BC.
Pinacoteca Civica
Civic art gallery in the Palazzetto del Podestà holding two Perugino paintings, tablets attributed to El Greco and Etruscan finds.
Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore
Main parish church on Piazza Cavour, with a reordered interior holding altarpieces and a Crocifissione fresco.
Piazza Cavour
Small central square framed by the Palazzetto del Podestà and the parish church, the social heart of the borgo.
Chiesa di San Crispolto
Romanesque church on the edge of the centro storico, dedicated to the first bishop and patron of the town.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Bettona fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
Through the year
What happens here
Feasts and festivals that come back year after year. We give the month rather than the date, because the date moves and the month rarely does. Check with the source before you plan a journey around one.
Sagra dell'Ocafood festival
usually held in July. Stasera Sagra
Living here
- Population 4,224
- Commuter belti
- Pharmacy: none mapped
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Ancona / Pescara, 1 h 50 min drive
- Regional capital Perugia, 25 min drive
Common questions
- What is Bettona known for?
- Bettona is a hill town at 353 meters between the Topino and Chiascio rivers, the only Etruscan settlement ever built east of the Tiber.
- Where is Bettona?
- Bettona is a comune in the province of Perugia, in Umbria.
- What is the nearest airport to Bettona?
- Ancona / Pescara (AOI), about 1h 50m by car.
- How long is the drive from Perugia to Bettona?
- About 25 minutes by car.
- When is the best time to visit Bettona?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 32 degrees, and December the wettest, with about 13 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Bettona?
- Yes. Sagra dell'Oca. July is when the first of them falls.
- Which other towns are like Bettona?
- Bevagna, Montefalco and Nocera Umbra.
- How many people live in Bettona?
- 4,224 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
The numbers
- Elevation: 353 m
- Population: 4,224
- Surface area: 45.08 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.
Similar
Towns like Bettona
Bevagna
Province: Perugia
both inland, away from the coast · both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
Montefalco
Province: Perugia
both inland, away from the coast · both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
Nocera Umbra
Province: Perugia
both inland, away from the coast · both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
Trevi
Province: Perugia
both inland, away from the coast · both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
Acquaviva Picena
Province: Ascoli Piceno
both inland, away from the coast · both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
Offida
Province: Ascoli Piceno
both inland, away from the coast · both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
🎨 Borghi più belli d'Italia
More Borghi più belli d'Italia towns in Umbria
Acquasparta
Province: Terni
A hill town at 350 meters above the Naia valley, where a Renaissance duchy briefly became the seat of Europe's first scientific academy.
Allerona
Province: Terni
A stone borgo at 472 meters between the Paglia valley and the Valdichiana, an Orvieto outpost whose Monaldeschi castle fell to Charles V.
Arrone
Province: Terni
Medieval castle village on the left bank of the Nera at 243 meters, upstream from the largest man-made waterfall in the world.
Bevagna
Province: Perugia
Roman Mevania on the Umbrian plain at 225 meters, four medieval quarters that compete every June in a reconstructed market of the 13th century.
Castiglione del Lago
Province: Perugia
Trasimeno's western promontory, once the lake's fourth island, fortified in 1247 and later frescoed for a marquis of Corgna.