Pescocostanzo is a mountain village of 1,100 inhabitants at 1,395 metres altitude in the Majella national park in Abruzzo, 50km south of L'Aquila. It has a perfectly preserved medieval center, the most complete in the Abruzzo plateau region, with Baroque churches, aristocratic palazzi, a tradition of two exceptional crafts (handmade bobbin lace and decorative wrought iron), and excellent cross-country skiing directly accessible from the village center. It receives a fraction of the visitors that comparable mountain villages in northern Italy attract. The reason is purely geographical: Abruzzo isn't on the way to anywhere international tourists routinely go. This is their loss and the village's quiet fortune.
How do you want to see it?
Abruzzo, ItalyCompare the same experience on GetYourGuide and Viator, save what you like to My Trip, share it, and book when you’re sure. Nearest to this page first.
The Village Center
The main piazza of Pescocostanzo (Piazza Municipio) is framed by the Palazzo Fanzago (17th century, attributed to Cosimo Fanzago, the Neapolitan Baroque architect who worked throughout southern Italy), the Collegiata di Santa Maria del Colle (an extraordinary Baroque interior with an intricate carved wooden ceiling, one of the finest in Abruzzo), and the Palazzo dell'Orologio. The streets radiating from the piazza are stone-paved, flanked by stone houses with elaborate wrought-iron window grilles and balconies, the iron craft that Pescocostanzo has practiced for centuries. The village is compact enough to walk completely in 45 minutes. It rewards a full day for those who look carefully.
Crafts: Lace and Wrought Iron
The two traditional crafts of Pescocostanzo are both alive and both purchasable. The tombolo lace (bobbin lace made on a cylindrical cushion with wooden bobbins, similar to the Offida tradition in the Marche) has been practiced here for at least four centuries. The Scuola del Merletto (Lace School) in the village continues to teach the craft and its work is sold directly. The wrought iron (ferro battuto) tradition produces decorative gates, window grilles, lanterns, and furniture in styles that follow centuries-old local patterns, several craftsmen's workshops are open to visitors and sell directly. Both crafts are IGP-quality: unique to the place, produced by people who learned from people who learned from people, and impossible to replicate industrially without losing the point entirely.
Skiing and the Altopiano delle Cinque Miglia
The Altopiano delle Cinque Miglia surrounding Pescocostanzo is the highest plateau in the Apennines (averaging 1,400m) and offers excellent cross-country skiing from December to March in good snow years. The downhill ski area of Pescocostanzo-Rivisondoli is immediately below the village. 40km of runs, mix of beginner and intermediate terrain, nothing challenging enough for expert skiers but excellent for families and intermediate skiers who want an uncrowded, inexpensive alternative to Alpine resorts. Ski pass prices are approximately half of equivalent Alpine resorts. Accommodation costs are a third.
Questions About Pescocostanzo
How do I get to Pescocostanzo?
By car: 50km from L'Aquila (SS17 south, 55 minutes), 170km from Rome (A25 motorway, exit Pratola Peligna, then SS17 north. 2h). By bus: SASA and TUA buses connect Sulmona (nearest rail junction, reachable from Rome) to Pescocostanzo, infrequent but functional. A car is recommended for flexibility.
What is the food of Pescocostanzo?
Mountain Abruzzo cooking at high altitude: agnello (lamb, the dominant protein, roasted with rosmarino and local herbs), sagne 'ntorzate (twisted pasta with walnut sauce, a Pescocostanzo specialty), zuppe di legumi (bean soups with local legumes grown on the plateau), the local sheep's cheese (pecorino abruzzese), and the mortadella di Campotosto (a salumi from the nearby area, made with lard inclusion, different from Bologna's mortadella in every way except the name). The local trattorie serve this food in the same way it has been served for generations: abundant, honest, inexpensive by any Italian standard.
Curiosità e Cenni Storici
Pescocostanzo raggiunse la sua massima prosperità nel XVI-XVII secolo come centro di produzione e commercio della lana sul Regio Tratturo, la via della transumanza che collegava i pascoli estivi dell'Appennino a quelli invernali del Tavoliere pugliese. Il merletto a tombolo fu probabilmente introdotto da commercianti fiamminghi (le Fiandre erano famose per il tombolo) che transitavano lungo queste rotte commerciali nel medioevo, la connessione è documentata nelle fonti mercantili del XV secolo. La prosperità commerciale della lana finanziò le chiese e i palazzi del centro storico (historic center): il Palazzo Fanzago fu commissionato da una famiglia di mercanti di lana che volevano una residenza degna della loro posizione. Quando la transumanza industriale declino con le ferrovie e poi con i camion, Pescocostanzo perse il motore economico ma mantenne il patrimonio costruito. Vedi anche: Abruzzo · Santo Stefano di Sessanio · borghi (historic villages) italiani.
