Tolfa: A long, windy drive up to a holy village with a view
To reach Tolfa, you head north of Rome and get off the main SS1 road and head east. Into a deep forest you go. You wind through trees and greenery and little else. No villages. No restaurants. No structures.
Well, we passed one lonely house in the half hour between the main road and the charming town of Tolfa. The village of 4,700 residents comes out of nowhere. It sits on a hill with a beautiful piazza anchored by a historic town hall fronting one of the prettiest parks in the area. Tolfa is home to a big convent and a holy sanctuary from 1504 with a town museum.
It was 88 degrees when we left Rome; it was 82 when we arrived in Tolfa and at 1,600-elevation with huge trees shading the streets and parks, it was a much needed respite from the growing heat in the capital.
Things to do
1 • Comune. Usually I don’t include a town hall as a thing to do. After all, every small town in Italy has one. But the one in Tolfa is special. It’s a beautiful yellow and beige building anchoring Piazza Vittorio Veneto.
It was built in 1860 as a seminary for the Diocese of Civitavecchia, the major port town 10 miles (17 kilometers) away but it was never used as such. Instead, the French army used it as barracks when French troops occupied Rome to protect papal rule. During that time, a French soldier started a small botanical garden behind the building.
Today, Villa Comunale is the place to chill in Tolfa. Walk through the town hall’s stone archway into the comune and through the corridor. Outside is a huge park with massive trees shading stone walkways and plenty of benches to sit and relax. There’s an old wooden well, big fountains and an outdoor theater with 10 rows of stone steps.
The town still holds theatrical productions here. Trees line the back of the stage. Behind the trees is a beautiful panoramic view of the countryside, the same view you get from the piazza in front of the comune.
2 • Sanctuario Agostiniano. The church is a beautiful stone structure with a bell tower built in 1504 by Agostino Chigi. Behind the altar is a 16th century copy of a miraculous image of the Virgin Mary and child.
According to legend, in 1501 two hunters discovered the image on a cork oak tree. Chigi built a small temple to preserve it. Inside the sanctuary are two crypts: One has the remains of the Augustinian fathers and the other those of the Buttaoni family. Domenico Buttaoni, who was born in Tolfa, became bishop of Fabriano and Matelica.
On one side is the town cemetery, built on the ground of the former 16th Augustinian convent. On the other side is the city museum displaying various artifacts from the Etruscan Era and Bronze Age.
Info: Largo XV Marzo 1799, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., 3-6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., 3-6 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday.
3. Frangipane Fortress.The town of Tolfa grew around the castle when it was built in 1000. It protected the town against Napoleon’s troops in 1778 before it was mostly destroyed in 1799, along with many medieval houses in the area.
Today what is left is the cylinder-like turret and part of the three-story building. To reach the castle, it’s a 10-minute walk uphill and while little remains of the castle, the view from the top is superb. Unfortunately, the castle is temporarily closed.
The City of Horses
Anyone who has been to Siena, Italy, knows it is most famous for the Palio. Twice every summer, special horses bred on the outskirts of town race around Piazza del Campo by bareback riders specifically trained for this event.
Every neighborhood in Siena is represented and the results lead victors and losers to break down in tears. Tolfa also has a palio. It’s less known but every Sept. 1, horses race in Monti della Tolfa, the low hills surrounding the town. For centuries, the area around Tolfa has been famous for its horse breeding of wild and semi-wild horses which have grazed in area pastures.
The Butteri is a group of skilled horseback cattle herders who have historically worked in the area. Horses around Tolfa have been used for herding, agriculture, transport and managing grazing land. You can see a beautiful giant mural of a horse on tiny Via Nazario Sauro from the patio of La Terrazza bar.
Where is it:
40 miles (75 kilometers) northwest of Rome.
How to get there: It’s better to drive. One Cotral bus a day leaves San Paolo Del Brasile in Rome at 5:05 a.m. It arrives at 8:45 a.m. with a change at La Storta. The 3 ½-hour journey is €7-€15.
For more information:
Pro Loco Tolfa, Piazza Vittorio Veneto 12, 39-07-669-3624.
Where to eat:
Sublime, Via Roma 133, 39-07-037-674/39-347-322-4421, tatankasris@gmail.com,
8 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5-10 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m., 5-9:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 8 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-9 p.m. Wednesday.
Have a drink at an outside table of homey Bianco e Rosso bar then dine next door at Sublime’s tiny collection of tables. This is old-school Italian.
No menus. There’s a QR code but the owner prefers coming to your table and telling you what they’re serving. My pasta amatriciana was as good as I had in Rome. Dinner for two including appetizers and wine was only €45.50.
