Abruzzo · L'Aquila
Capistrello
At 734 meters where the upper Liri valley meets the Marsica, the village where an emperor's tunnel emptied a lake into a river.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Capistrello is on our list
It holds Borghi Autentici.
Subscribe and you get Capistrello's letter the day it comes out.
Visiting
- Best time
- May–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 20 min from Rome
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 4,649
- J8°
- F12°
- M12°
- A15°
- M20°
- J25°
- J30°
- A29°
- S24°
- O19°
- N13°
- D10°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
The first settlements on the site date to the Neolithic, and the modern town grew up around the tunnel mouth rather than the other way around. Capistrello borders Avezzano and Tagliacozzo along with five other communes, sitting at the corner where Abruzzo meets Lazio, with Filettino just across the regional line. The population is around 4,650.
The old village sits above the river on the valley's upper lip, stone houses stepped toward a small piazza, while the tunnel outflow lies below at the level of the water itself. Behind the rooftops the Simbruini slopes rise into chestnut wood, the same high ground that feeds the river its cold, constant flow before it turns south for Lazio. The town reads as a hinge point: plateau above, valley below, and underground, still doing the job it was built for, the channel that connects them.
How to get there
From Rome Fiumicino (FCO), about 1 h 34 min by car.
Naples (NAP) is about 2 h 6 min away.
By car from the center of Pescara 1 h 24 min or Naples 2 h 10 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming by train into Roma Termini? Capistrello is about 1 h 19 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Rome Fiumicino airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Cunicoli di Claudio
The tunnel runs six kilometers underground with a drop of about eight meters, an average gradient of 1.5 meters per kilometer, still traceable beneath the town.
Borgo storico
Old village above the river, with stone houses stepped up the slope and a small piazza at the upper edge.
Fiume Liri
Cold river that emerges from the Simbruini springs and runs south through the valley, picking up the Fucino outflow at Capistrello.
Monti Simbruini
Forested range of the central Apennines forming the western horizon, with chestnut woods and trails toward Filettino in Lazio.
Living here
Could you live here?
Capistrello is a village with a town close by.
- A village of 4,649, with Avezzano (40,948 people) 15 min away for the shopping and a meal out. Our rule is a town within 15 minutes.
- L'Aquila, a city of 70,425, is 45 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
- A station of its own. Trains are the overlooked way to get around Italy: no parking, straight into the center.
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 4,649, down 11.7% since 2015 (Italy's emptying towns)
- Nearest city L'Aquila, 45 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest national health service hospital Avezzano, 8 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €390 to €580 per m² to buy, €1.50 to €2.20 per m² a month to rent
Weighing a move here? See the moving year.
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Commuter belt
- Pharmacy: none mapped
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 1, Italy's highest hazard
- Rome Ciampino airport (CIA), 1 h 18 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital L'Aquila, 45 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
5% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Albania, Romania and Bangladesh, against 9% across Italy. There are 323 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 48% 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 Avezzano, 8 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Latina, 71 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in L'Aquila, 47 km away. The nearest IB school is St. Stephen's School, 76 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Little Genius International, 63 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 0.85% 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 0.6% to your income tax. 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 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. Under 1% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods. 19% 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
CLAUDIUS TUNNELS
Eastern mouth of the 52 AD imperial drainage tunnel from Lake Fucino, one of the largest hydraulic projects in the Roman world.
LIRI HEADWATERS
Where the Liri river takes on the Fucino outflow before running south into the Roveto valley toward Lazio.
MARSICA EDGE
Border between the Marsica plateau and the Liri valley, with the Simbruini range rising west toward Filettino in Lazio.
Common questions
- What is Capistrello known for?
- At 734 meters where the upper Liri valley meets the Marsica, the village where an emperor's tunnel emptied a lake into a river.
- Where is Capistrello?
- Capistrello is a comune in the province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo.
- What is the nearest airport to Capistrello?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Rome Ciampino (CIA), about 1 h 18 min by car.
- Can you get to Capistrello without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Pescara to Capistrello?
- About 1 h 24 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Capistrello?
- Best in May–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 30 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 13 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Capistrello?
- Pescina, Tagliacozzo and Teglio.
- How many people live in Capistrello?
- 4,649 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Capistrello a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Capistrello is a village with a town of 5,000 people within 15 minutes (Avezzano, 15 min). The nearest city, L'Aquila, is 45 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Avezzano, 8 km as the crow flies.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 734 m
- Population: 4,649
- Surface area: 60.97 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 Capistrello appears in
- The best mountain towns you can reach by train within 90 minutes of RomeNear Romemountainby trainwithin 90 min6 towns · smallest 1,059 residents · closest 60 min away
- The 7 best small mountain towns you can reach by train in the province of L'AquilaL'Aquila provincemountainby trainsmall7 towns · smallest 512 residents
- The best hidden mountain towns within 90 minutes of RomeNear Romemountainwithin 90 minhidden10 towns · smallest 325 residents · closest 57 min away
Similar
Towns like Capistrello
What all six share with Capistrello: mountain-valley towns · high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
Pescina
Province: L'Aquila
both between 3,000 and 10,000 people · both have a railway station in the comune
Tagliacozzo
Province: L'Aquila
both between 3,000 and 10,000 people · both have a railway station in the comune
Teglio
Province: Sondrio
both between 3,000 and 10,000 people · both have a railway station in the comune
Carsoli
Province: L'Aquila
both between 3,000 and 10,000 people · both have a railway station in the comune
Scurcola Marsicana
Province: L'Aquila
both have a railway station in the comune
Brentonico
Province: Trento
both between 3,000 and 10,000 people
The letter
Capistrello 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: the photo, what is worth eating, and when to turn up. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Capistrello comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.
The nearest town we have written up is Terni, 91 km away. Read its letter →
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.