Marche · Macerata
Macerata
The provincial capital between the Chienti and Potenza, home to Italy's oldest university and the Sferisterio open-air opera arena.
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 58 min from Ancona
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 40,496
Known for
SFERISTERIO
The 100-meter neoclassical open-air arena built in 1823, the only such structure in Italy and the seat of the Macerata Opera Festival every July and August.
UNIVERSITY 1290
Founded in 1290 and recognized by Niccolò IV, one of the oldest continuously operating universities in Europe, with roughly 11,000 students today.
CRIVELLI AND LOTTO
Works by Carlo Crivelli and Lorenzo Lotto hang in the Musei Civici and in churches across the centro storico, from a strong fifteenth and sixteenth-century Marche school.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J10°
- F13°
- M14°
- A17°
- M22°
- J28°
- J31°
- A31°
- S25°
- O21°
- N15°
- D11°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
The festa: Giuliano l'ospitaliere, 31 August
Why come
Macerata sits on a hilltop between the Chienti and Potenza valleys, thirty-five kilometers south of Ancona. The Roman Helvia Recina stood on the plain below; after the city was destroyed by the Goths the survivors moved up to the present site, where the town grew into the provincial capital. The University, founded in 1290, is one of the oldest in continuous operation in Europe.
The Sferisterio, the city's signature monument, is a 100-meter neoclassical arena designed by Ireneo Aleandri in 1823, originally built for pallone col bracciale, the bracelet-ball game once played across central Italy. From 1921, when Verdi's Aida was first staged there, it became one of Italy's principal open-air opera venues. The Macerata Opera Festival runs through July and August.
The provincial museum holds works by Carlo Crivelli, Lorenzo Lotto and Antonio Canova. The 2016 earthquakes damaged outlying frazioni but the centro storico held.
The Sunday letter
Macerata 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 Macerata comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Macerata in our articles
The best towns that eat well in the province of Macerata6 towns, Macerata among them.
The 7 best towns with a medieval festival in Marche7 towns, Macerata among them.
The best hill towns you can reach by train within 90 minutes of Ancona7 towns, Macerata among them.
The 8 best towns you can reach by train that eat well within 90 minutes of Ancona8 towns, Macerata among them.
How to get there
From Ancona / Pescara (AOI), about 1 hour by car.
Rimini (RMI) is about 2 hours away.
By car from the centre of Ancona 58 minutes, Pescara 1h 45m or Perugia 1h 47m.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
What to see
Sferisterio
Neoclassical 100-meter open-air arena designed by Ireneo Aleandri in 1823, originally built for pallone col bracciale, now seat of the Macerata Opera Festival since 1921.
Università di Macerata
Founded in 1290, one of the oldest continuously operating universities in Europe, with its main rectorate on Piazza della Libertà.
Piazza della Libertà
Main square of the centro storico, holds the Loggia dei Mercanti, the Palazzo del Comune and the Torre dei Tempi with its astronomical clock.
Musei Civici di Palazzo Buonaccorsi
Civic museums in an eighteenth-century palazzo, with the Pinacoteca, the Museo della Carrozza and the Galleria Eneide of Persio Flacco.
Duomo di Macerata
Eighteenth-century cathedral with an unfinished brick facade, holds the relics of San Giuliano, patron saint of the city.
Helvia Recina
Remains of the Roman city on the plain below the centro storico, with the foundations of a theater destroyed by the Goths and abandoned in the sixth century.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Macerata 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.
We recommend
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.
Signore te ne ringraziRistorante
Signore te ne ringrazi carries two Gambero Rosso forks (85/100), a place in L'Espresso's Top 300, plus a spot in the Michelin Guide.
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.
Rievocazione storica della Trebbiatura - Degustazione dell'ocahistorical re-enactment
usually held across June and July. itinerarinelgusto.it
Il Barattolo - Fiera di San Giulianomarket
usually held across August and September. Viaggi e Sagre
Sagra Fagioli E Cotichefood festival
usually held in September. lemarche.it
Living here
- Population 40,496
- A local hubi
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest airport Ancona / Pescara, 1 h 1 min drive
- Market day Wednesday
- Regional capital Ancona, 58 min drive
Common questions
- What is Macerata known for?
- Macerata is the provincial capital at 315 meters between the Chienti and Potenza, home to Italy's oldest university and the Sferisterio open-air opera arena.
- Where is Macerata?
- Macerata is a comune in the province of Macerata, in Marche.
- What is the nearest airport to Macerata?
- Ancona / Pescara (AOI), about 1 hour by car.
- Can you get to Macerata 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 Macerata?
- About 58 minutes by car.
- When is the best time to visit Macerata?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 31 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 11 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Macerata?
- Yes. Rievocazione storica della Trebbiatura - Degustazione dell'oca, Il Barattolo - Fiera di San Giuliano and Sagra Fagioli E Cotiche. June is when the first of them falls.
- Which other towns are like Macerata?
- Spoleto, Foligno and Siena.
- How many people live in Macerata?
- 40,496 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
- Città della Terra Cruda
The numbers
- Elevation: 315 m
- Population: 40,496
- Surface area: 92.53 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.
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