Marche · Ancona
Genga
A small Sentino-valley commune whose territory holds the Frasassi caves, the largest karst show cave in Italy.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Genga is on our list
It holds Bandiera Arancione.
The nearest town with a letter is Gubbio, No. 91, 30 km away.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 2 min from Ancona
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 1,648
- J10°
- F12°
- M13°
- A16°
- M22°
- J27°
- J31°
- A31°
- S25°
- O20°
- N14°
- D11°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Genga sits on the Sentino river in the Apennine foothills of the Marche, seven kilometers downstream from Sassoferrato and twelve north of Fabriano. The commune is the ancestral seat of the della Genga, the noble family that gave the Catholic Church Pope Leo XII, born at the Castello della Genga in 1760. The territory is best known for the Grotte di Frasassi, a thirteen-kilometer karst system whose entrance was found in 1971 and opened to visitors in 1974.
The Abisso Ancona, a single chamber roughly 180 by 120 meters and nearly 200 tall, is large enough to hold the Milan cathedral. Above the cave entrance, the Tempio del Valadier, an octagonal neoclassical chapel set into a cliff wall, was commissioned by Leo XII from Giuseppe Valadier in 1828. The Abbazia di San Vittore alle Chiuse, a Romanesque Benedictine church on a Greek-cross plan, stands at the gorge mouth and dates to before 1080.
How to get there
From Ancona (AOI), about 50 min by car.
Rimini (RMI) is about 1 h 56 min away.
By car from the center of Ancona 1 h 2 min or Perugia 1 h 10 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming by train into Perugia? Genga is about 1 h 9 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Ancona airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Grotte di Frasassi
Thirteen kilometers of karst passageways found in 1971 and opened in 1974, with the Abisso Ancona chamber 180 by 120 meters wide and 200 meters tall.
Tempio del Valadier
Octagonal neoclassical chapel commissioned by Pope Leo XII from Giuseppe Valadier in 1828, built of travertine and set into the cliff above the gorge.
Abbazia di San Vittore alle Chiuse
Romanesque Benedictine church on a Greek-cross plan with four columns, built of local limestone, attested before 1080 at the mouth of the Frasassi gorge.
Parco Naturale Regionale della Gola della Rossa e di Frasassi
Regional natural park of 9,167 hectares covering the limestone ridges and gorges that hold the cave system and the abbey.
Castello della Genga
Hilltop family seat of the della Genga, where Annibale della Genga, the future Pope Leo XII, was born in 1760.
Living here
Could you live here?
Genga is at the end of the road.
- A village of 1,648. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Sassoferrato, is 16 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Ancona, a city of 99,533, is 1 h 2 min by car. Further than our 30 to 60 minutes, a long way for the hospital visit or the monthly shopping.
- 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 1,648, down 9.9% since 2015
- Nearest city Ancona, 1 h 2 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest national health service hospital Fabriano, 11 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €390 to €560 per m² to buy, €1.30 to €1.90 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), 50 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Ancona, 1 h 2 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
7% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, Tunisia and Albania, against 9% across Italy. 10 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe. There are 345 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 59% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Ancona province ranks 30th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Fabriano, 11 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Ancona, 48 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Ancona, 48 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Rimini, 76 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Assisi International School, 50 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 0.9% 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 0.2% 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. In Ancona, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.30, a meal in a pizzeria €12.69 and a man's haircut €20.60.
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. 4% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate medium for floods. 2% 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.
Thermal baths in town: Hotel Terme San Vittore.
Known for
FRASASSI CAVES
The largest karst show-cave system in Italy, with the Abisso Ancona chamber large enough to hold the Milan cathedral inside it.
VALADIER TEMPLE
Octagonal neoclassical chapel cut into the cliff face above the gorge, commissioned by Pope Leo XII from Valadier in 1828.
POPE LEO XII
Annibale della Genga, born at the family castello in 1760 and elected pope in 1823, came from the family named after this Marche commune.
Common questions
- What is Genga known for?
- Genga is a small Sentino-valley commune at 322 meters whose territory holds the Frasassi caves, the largest karst show cave in Italy.
- Where is Genga?
- Genga is a comune in the province of Ancona, in Marche.
- What is the nearest airport to Genga?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Ancona (AOI), about 50 min by car.
- Can you get to Genga without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Ancona to Genga?
- About 1 h 2 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Genga?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 31 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 13 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Genga?
- Fossato di Vico, Murlo and Campo Ligure.
- How many people live in Genga?
- 1,648 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Genga a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Genga is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Sassoferrato, is 16 min away. The nearest city, Ancona, is 1 h 2 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Fabriano, 11 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 87% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 322 m
- Population: 1,648
- Surface area: 73.16 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 Genga appears in
- The 6 best towns inside a nature park in the province of AnconaAncona provinceinside a park6 towns · smallest 1,648 residents
- The best hidden hill towns you can reach by train in MarcheMarchehill townby trainhidden7 towns · smallest 1,648 residents
- The best hill towns you can reach by train within 90 minutes of AnconaNear Anconahill townby trainwithin 90 min7 towns · smallest 1,648 residents · closest 46 min away
- The best hot-spring towns within 90 minutes of PerugiaNear Perugiahot springswithin 90 min7 towns · smallest 1,396 residents · closest 54 min away
- The best hot-spring towns within two hours of RiminiNear Riminihot springswithin 2 hours7 towns · smallest 1,648 residents · closest 34 min away
- The 9 best hill towns in the province of AnconaAncona provincehill town9 towns · smallest 1,648 residents
Near here, with a letter
Similar
Towns like Genga
What all six share with Genga: inland, away from the coast · under 3,000 people · have a railway station in the comune
Our guide
Our nearest guide, 67 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.
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