Viterbo (the capital of the province of Viterbo. 90km northwest of Rome, 60km south of Orvieto, accessible by COTRAL bus from Roma Saxa Rubra (the FL3 line) in approximately 1.5 hours or by train from Roma Ostiense on the FR3 regional line): the "City of Popes" (the medieval city that served as the official papal seat from 1257 to 1281 and that consequently produced the specific papal architecture (the Palazzo dei Papi, the papal palace on Piazza San Lorenzo) and the specific church-and-palazzo urban fabric that makes the Viterbo San Pellegrino quarter the most completely preserved medieval urban quarter in Lazio).
The longest conclave in history: the Viterbo conclave (the 1268-1271 election of Pope Gregory X, the conclave that lasted 2 years, 9 months, and 2 days, the longest papal election in the history of the Catholic Church): the specific conclave history (the 18 cardinals who convened in the Viterbo palazzo to elect a successor to Clement IV (who died in 1268) and who, unable to reach agreement after 18 months, were locked in by the Viterbo civic authorities (the specific medieval practice of "locking in" the cardinals, "conclave" derives from the Latin "cum clavis" (with a key), the specific origin of the term in the Viterbo intervention of 1270): the civic authorities removed the roof of the conclave hall to expose the cardinals to the weather, reduced their food rations to bread and water, and eventually, after 2 years and 9 months, the exhausted cardinals elected the Archbishop of Liège (Tebaldo Visconti, who became Gregory X) on September 1, 1271): the specific Viterbo conclave produced the formal Ubi periculum decree of Gregory X (1274) that established the current conclave rules (the sealed-in process with no external communication) and has governed every next papal election.
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Viterbo: San Pellegrino, Palazzo dei Papi, and Thermal Baths
The San Pellegrino Quarter
Quartiere San Pellegrino (the medieval quarter of Viterbo, the specific urban area west of the city center whose 12th-14th century building fabric (the profferli (the external stone staircases that characterize the Viterbo medieval house type), the arched lanes, and the loggie that connect the medieval buildings across the narrow streets) has been preserved more completely than any comparable medieval urban district in Lazio or Umbria): the San Pellegrino walk (the 30-40 minute circuit of the quarter from Piazza San Pellegrino through Via San Pellegrino and the adjacent lanes): the most completely medieval urban atmosphere available within 100km of Rome, the quarter that the UNESCO World Heritage designation (not yet obtained, though under periodic candidacy review) would acknowledge if Viterbo's institutional momentum matched the heritage quality.
Viterbo: tours & tickets
Compare guided tours, skip-the-line tickets and day trips for Viterbo.
See availability & prices →Compare tours on Viator →We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.Palazzo dei Papi
Palazzo dei Papi di Viterbo (the Papal Palace on Piazza San Lorenzo, the 13th-century Gothic palace where the popes resided during the Viterbo period (1257-1281)): the specific Palazzo dei Papi elements (the Loggia delle Benedizioni, the open Gothic loggia on the palace façade from which the popes addressed the Viterbo population, the most architecturally complete example of the Gothic papal loggia tradition in Italy): the Palazzo dei Papi is open for guided visits (check the Viterbo tourism office for the current visit schedule, approximately €5-8 for the guided tour).
Terme dei Papi
Terme dei Papi (the papal thermal baths, the major thermal spa complex 3km from the Viterbo historic center, using the sulphurous spring water (the Bulicame, the specific volcanic spring that Dante mentioned in the Inferno (Canto XIV: "com' a Bulicame traggon le peccatrici", "as sinners are drawn to the Bulicame")) that the popes used as their private thermal establishment): the modern Terme dei Papi complex provides the full thermal spa experience using the Bulicame sulphurous water: check termedpapi.it for the 2026 day-pass pricing (approximately €25-35 for the standard day access).
Q&A: Viterbo Day Trip From Rome
Is one day enough for Viterbo?
Yes, the Viterbo one-day visit covers the primary elements in 6-7 hours: the San Pellegrino quarter walk (45 minutes), the Palazzo dei Papi guided tour (1 hour), the Duomo of San Lorenzo (30 minutes), the lunch at a Viterbo trattoria (the specific Viterbese cuisine, the lombrichelli (the thick handmade pasta with the local lamb ragù), the acquacotta (the Maremma bread soup that the Viterbo tradition claims as its own), and the local Canino DOP olive oil): approximately 1.5 hours for lunch). The Bagnaia Villa Lante afternoon (10km from Viterbo, the Renaissance garden that Vignola designed for Cardinal Gianfrancesco Gambara in 1568, the most completely preserved Italian formal garden in Lazio): 1.5 hours: the day ends with the return to Rome by the 17:30 or 18:30 COTRAL bus from the Viterbo bus terminal.
Internal Links
- Lazio Nord: Viterbo nel Circuito Regionale
- Viterbo: La Città dei Papi Sconosciuta
- Fotografare Viterbo: Il San Pellegrino Medievale
- Viterbo Fuori Stagione: Il Medioevo in Autunno
- Cucina Viterbese: Lombrichelli e Acquacotta
- Terme Laziali: Viterbo e Saturnia nel Confronto
- Viterbo da Roma: COTRAL da Saxa Rubra
