One of our favorite and unique towns in all of Italy is the precious northern Lazio village of the Civita Bagnoregio.
We always wanted to stay overnight in this magical place and finally had the opportunity to do so last month during our most recent stay in Bella Italia. As you can see from the photos and video, it’s not difficult to understand why the Civita is known as the dying or floating city. As I explain in my book Italy’s Shrines and Wonders, it is built on a hill that sits in the middle of a valley filled with crumbling rock. The Civita is in quite the precarious position as due to the ongoing erosion the town is slowly shrinking. And when there is cloud cover in the valley, the Civita appears to be floating above them.
All the more reason to make it a bucket list item for your visit to central Italy. It maintains its medieval charm, and has a number of lovely shops with local specialty items and a handful of very good restaurants. Each June they even have their own version of the palio (palio della tona,) only instead of horses they race several donkeys around the main piazza. Donkeys are still used by some in the area to transport various goods over the rough terrain.
Last but not least, it holds significance for Catholics as it is strongly connected to St. Bonaventure whose feast day is today, July 15th. Bonaventure is said to have been cured of a dangerous illness by St. Francis of Assisi, and he went on to join the Franciscan order in the mid 13th century. The Bishop, called the Seraphic Doctor of the Church, is known for his great philosophical and theological contributions. His relics can be found in a church in the larger and main town of the area, Bagnoregio.
The Civita is featured in my Saints in Italy series from EWTN and is not far from the popular towns of Bolsena and Orvieto.
St. Bonaventure, pray for us.
Photos: Andrea Sirri/Shutterstock, Teresa Tomeo