Abruzzo · L'Aquila
Rocca di Botte
At 750 meters on the Carseolani slopes between Abruzzo and Lazio, the birthplace of an eleventh-century hermit and a fief of the Colonna.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Rocca di Botte is on our list
It holds Borghi Autentici.
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Visiting
- Best time
- May–Oct
- By car
- 1 h from Rome
- Population
- 865
- J9°
- F11°
- M12°
- A15°
- M19°
- J25°
- J29°
- A29°
- S23°
- O19°
- N14°
- D10°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Rocca di Botte sits at 750 meters on the north-western flank of the Carseolani mountains, where Abruzzo meets the Simbruini range across the Lazio border. The village formed around an eleventh-century Basilian monastery, and the Romanesque church of San Pietro Eremita, built in the twelfth century, is dedicated to the hermit Pietro of Trevi who was born here in the early 1000s and chose the contemplative life over an arranged marriage. In medieval documents the place appears as Rocca de Bucte.
In 1496 Ferdinand II of Naples gave it as a fief to the Colonna of Rome, and Colonna rule lasted into the modern period. Today the commune has 865 residents and lies on the Cammino di San Pietro Eremita, a walking route that climbs from the village toward the saint's mountain above. The closer big city is Roma, fifty-five kilometers west.
How to get there
From Rome Fiumicino (FCO), about 1 h 11 min by car.
Naples (NAP) is about 2 h 41 min away.
By car from the center of Pescara 1 h 47 min or Perugia 2 h 37 min.
Coming by train into Roma Termini? Rocca di Botte is about 59 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Rome Fiumicino airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Chiesa di San Pietro Eremita
Twelfth-century Romanesque parish church dedicated to the village's hermit-saint, with an austere stone façade and a single-nave interior.
Centro storico
Mountain village core grown around the Basilian monastery of the eleventh century, with stone houses tight along the slope.
Monti Carseolani and Monte San Pietro Eremita
Forested limestone range rising above the village to around 1,400 meters, walked on the Cammino di San Pietro Eremita.
Cammino di San Pietro Eremita
Walking route linking Rocca di Botte to the saint's mountain hermitage and onward across the Lazio border.
Living here
Could you live here?
Rocca di Botte is at the end of the road.
- A village of 865. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Castel Madama, is 31 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Tivoli, a city of 55,115, is 43 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 865, up 0.5% since 2015
- Nearest city Tivoli, 43 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Subiaco, 11 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €540 to €770 per m² to buy, €2.00 to €2.60 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- In-between
- Pharmacy: none mapped
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 84% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 2, medium hazard
- Rome Ciampino airport (CIA), 54 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital L'Aquila, 50 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
9% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, Moldova and Pakistan, against 9% across Italy. There are 278 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 64% 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 Subiaco, 11 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Rome, 53 km away. The nearest IB school is St. Stephen's School, 51 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Little Genius International, 40 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.09% 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 0.4% 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. The national maps show no residents in a high or medium flood zone. 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
SAN PIETRO EREMITA
Birthplace of the eleventh-century hermit Pietro of Trevi, who refused an arranged marriage and died near Trevi nel Lazio in 1052.
COLONNA FIEF
Granted to the Roman Colonna family in 1496 by Ferdinand II of Naples, the village stayed under their lordship for centuries.
CARSEOLANI
Sits on the wooded northern flank of the Carseolani range at the Lazio-Abruzzo border, on the edge of the Simbruini mountains.
Common questions
- What is Rocca di Botte known for?
- At 750 meters on the Carseolani slopes between Abruzzo and Lazio, the birthplace of an eleventh-century hermit and a fief of the Colonna.
- Where is Rocca di Botte?
- Rocca di Botte is a comune in the province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo.
- What is the nearest airport to Rocca di Botte?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Rome Ciampino (CIA), about 54 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Pescara to Rocca di Botte?
- About 1 h 47 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Rocca di Botte?
- Best in May–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Rocca di Botte?
- Anversa degli Abruzzi, Castel San Pietro Romano and Capranica Prenestina.
- How many people live in Rocca di Botte?
- 865 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Rocca di Botte a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Rocca di Botte is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Castel Madama, is 31 min away. The nearest city, Tivoli, is 43 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Subiaco, 11 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 84% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 750 m
- Population: 865
- Surface area: 31.11 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 Rocca di Botte appears in
Similar
Towns like Rocca di Botte
What all six share with Rocca di Botte: mountain-valley towns · under 1,000 people · high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
Our guide
Our nearest guide, 76 km away
Tuscia: the towns, when to go, how to get there
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