The municipality of Ariccia is characterised by its monumental bridge and Palazzo Chigi. In the narrow streets are the fraschette, the taverns with the flavours of the Castelli Romani, the churches and the fountains gushing in Piazza di Corte.
Under the impressive bridge is Vallericcia, the ancient evidence of volcanic activity in the area. Ariccia offers natural beauty combined with an invaluable historical and cultural heritage. A large dome characterises the church of Santa Maria dell’Assunzione, one of the last masterpieces of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who designed every detail of the church, including the furnishings.
In the medieval village of Ariccia, narrow alleys and arcades frame craft shops and bakeries. Walking along the main street, you can cross the historic town centre and reach the belvedere, a panoramic terrace overlooking the Castelli Romani countryside.
Palazzo Chigi
Visit Palazzo Chigi. Standing on one end of Ariccia’s monumental bridge, it houses an important collection of paintings, sculptures and furnishings. Inside the complex is the ‘Parco Chigi’. Some scenes from ‘Il Gattopardo’ ( The Leopard), Luchino Visconti’s 1963 film starring Burt Lancaster, Claudia Cardinale and Alain Delon, were filmed inside Palazzo Chigi.
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Local specialities include coppiette and wild boar sausages served with good wine, the typical appetiser of Ariccia’s ‘fraschette’. Porchetta is the star of the table. Making porchetta is an art: crispy crust on the outside, tender and flavoured meat inside. Perhaps it originates from the ancient sacrifices of pigs at the temple of Jupiter on Mount Cavo, but what is certain is that since 2011 Porchetta di Ariccia has been PGI, spiced with rosemary, garlic and black pepper.
Its special taste has made it famous. For over 70 years, the ‘Sagra della Porchetta’ (Porchetta Festival) has celebrated this excellence of Italian gastronomy on the first Sunday in September. The Sagra was born in 1950, when Ariccia wanted to make known to everyone the custom of the ‘porchettari’, the stall sellers in traditional dress. Thus it was that every year the history and taste of the porchetta PGI is savoured. The most eagerly awaited moment is the traditional ‘lancio dei panini’ (launching of the sandwiches)!