Molise · Campobasso
Sepino
A hilltop borgo at 698 meters at the foot of the Matese, two kilometers above the Roman Saepinum, the open-air city the sheep tracks built.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Sepino is on our list
It holds Borghi più belli d'Italia.
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Visiting
- Best time
- May–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 57 min from Naples
- Population
- 1,804
- J8°
- F10°
- M10°
- A14°
- M19°
- J25°
- J29°
- A28°
- S23°
- O18°
- N13°
- D9°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Sepino sits at 698 meters on a slope of the Matese in southern Molise, the modern village two kilometers above the Roman Saepinum-Altilia on the plain. Saepinum was Samnite first, captured by Rome in 293 BC, and given its surviving walls by Tiberius between 2 BC and 4 AD. Twelve hectares of forum, basilica, baths, theater and four monumental gates are still standing, immersed in the open countryside at the foot of the Matese; recent excavations in 2023 uncovered a monumental domus on the decumanus maximus.
The Pescasseroli-Candela tratturo, the 211-kilometer transhumance route that once moved sheep flocks from Abruzzo to Puglia, ran through the Roman town and shaped its street grid. The modern Sepino, above on the hillside, is a Borghi più belli; the archaeological park below is one of the best-preserved Roman cities in central Italy and one of the few in continuous open-air access.
How to get there
From Naples (NAP), about 1 h 53 min by car.
Bari (BRI) is about 3 h away.
By car from the center of Naples 1 h 57 min, Salerno 1 h 57 min or Pescara 2 h 39 min.
Coming from Naples?
Every town within reach of Naples airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Saepinum-Altilia
Twelve-hectare Roman city on the plain below the modern village, with walls built by Tiberius and forum, basilica, baths and theater still standing.
Teatro di Saepinum
Roman theater at the south end of the archaeological park, partly absorbed into a later farm complex that grew up around its arc.
Tratturo Pescasseroli-Candela
Ancient sheep-track from Abruzzo to Puglia that ran straight through Saepinum and shaped its street grid; still walkable across the site.
Sepino centro storico
Modern hilltop village two kilometers above the Roman ruins, a Borghi più belli with stone streets stepped up the Matese slope.
Massiccio del Matese
Limestone range rising south of the village, the high country of the Parco Naturale Regionale del Matese and a summer walking ground.
Living here
Could you live here?
Sepino is at the end of the road.
- A village of 1,804. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Bojano, is 22 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Campobasso, a city of 47,547, is 31 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 1,804, down 7.9% since 2015
- Nearest city Campobasso, 31 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Campobasso, 18 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €380 to €570 per m² to buy, €1.80 to €2.70 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Commuter belt
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 74% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 1, Italy's highest hazard
- Naples airport (NAP), 1 h 53 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Campobasso, 31 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
6% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Bangladesh, Ukraine and Guinea, against 9% across Italy. There are 252 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 47% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Campobasso province ranks 73rd of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Campobasso, 18 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Benevento, 32 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Benevento, 32 km away. The nearest IB school is St. Stephen's School, 185 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Teodoro Monticelli International School, 71 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.01% 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 Molise spends about €2,050 a month, €570 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €274 a year for water, on the Molise 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. 6% 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
SAEPINUM
Roman city on the plain below the village, walls built by Tiberius, twelve hectares of open-air ruins one of the best preserved in central Italy.
THE TRATTURO
Pescasseroli-Candela transhumance route, 211 km from Abruzzo to Puglia, ran straight through Saepinum and shaped its streets.
MATESE
Limestone range south of the village, the high country of the regional park and the geographic anchor of southern Molise.
Common questions
- What is Sepino known for?
- Sepino is a hilltop borgo at 698 meters at the foot of the Matese, two kilometers above the Roman Saepinum, the open-air city the sheep tracks built.
- Where is Sepino?
- Sepino is a comune in the province of Campobasso, in Molise.
- What is the nearest airport to Sepino?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Naples (NAP), about 1 h 53 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Naples to Sepino?
- About 1 h 57 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Sepino?
- Best in May–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and November the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Sepino?
- Oratino, Summonte and Greccio.
- How many people live in Sepino?
- 1,804 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Sepino a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Sepino is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Bojano, is 22 min away. The nearest city, Campobasso, is 31 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Campobasso, 18 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 74% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 698 m
- Population: 1,804
- Surface area: 61.37 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 Sepino appears in
Similar
Towns like Sepino
What all six share with Sepino: mountain-valley towns · under 3,000 people · high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
The letter
Sepino 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 Sepino comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.
The nearest town we have written up is Scheggino, 207 km away. Read its letter →
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.