Cerveteri, roughly 20 miles north of the airport in Fiumicino and less than 40 miles from Rome proper, is ignored by mass tourism. Sure, most visitors will pass by it en route to their cruise in Civitavecchia, but very few people actually know that this small town, perched on a tufa rock, is synonymous with Etruscans.

Etruscans, obviously, are the population which pre-dated the Roman civilization.

According to legend, three of Rome’s kings, way before the Republic was established, were actually Etruscans. For reasons still unknown to archaeologists, settlements like Cerveteri or Veio were more important than actual Rome, but when Etruscans were eventually vanquished by their neighbors, all memory of their culture and history disappeared. Until the work of scholars brought them back, that is.

The biggest Etruscan necropolis in Europe

Cerveteri, particularly, is one of the few places in the Lazio region where you can appreciate their mysterious traditions, especially when it comes to their burial customs. We don’t know much about the way the Etruscans lived, but their necropolises remain more or less intact despite having been built, in a few instances, more than 3000 years ago.

The Banditaccia (from the name of the area where it stands) necropolis is the biggest one found in the Mediterranean with its almost 1000 acres, and can be visited daily, except for Mondays, from 9:30 to 6:30 PM.

The necropolis is spread over an uneven terrain, is completely outdoors and part of the itinerary includes going up and down an uneven terrain, so we cannot possibly recommend it to people with walking disabilities or prone to getting easily tired. Hiking shoes and bug repellent are of the essence!

For those who feel like doing something different with their time in Rome, we encourage you to take a walk among these bizarre rock mounds, appreciating the untouched natural settings in a rural community as well as the devotion Etruscans had for their loved ones.

How to get to Cerveteri and La Banditaccia

The closest train station to Cerveteri is Ladispoli-Cerveteri, comfortably reachable from Roma Termini (as well as Roma Trastevere or Roma San Pietro, among other stops) on the FL5 line. Any of the above stops will be easily reachable from some of our managed accommodations, such asSan Pietro Lovely Apartment, Casa di Fenizio, Al Vicolo and many others.

Once in Ladispoli, a few companies operate a bus service to the main square in Cerveteri, which houses a small but extremely well maintained museum on local findings. The Banditaccia necropolis can be reached with one more, very short bus ride.

A car rental from Rome is another possibility, as is a private transfer: for the latter, please get in touch with us for our partners at Gianni Conti Car Service’s best quote.

What else to do in Cerveteri

The old town in Cerveteri is a must visit for family-run eateries and wine shops, and as a matter of fact there are several wineries around these parts, producing a sparkling white wine and full-bodied reds which we recommend you try!

Nearby Cerveteri, if you’re traveling by car, you can also visit the ancient medieval hamlet of Ceri or the monumental castle Santa Severa, further north on the coast and actually built on the water, on what used to be (no surprises there!) an Etruscan port-cum-sanctuary.

For those interested, tours such as this one can blend a wine tasting experience with sightseeing: the perfect combination!