Quaint, Characteristic, Charming.... Vignanello Italy

Vignanello, is a small town in Italy, in the province of Viterbo. It is situated an hour and a half away from Fiumicino airport in Rome.  

As soon as we arrived at Vignanello, the Ruspoli Castle was sitting there prominently overlooking the beautiful views that surround Vignanello..  We immediately felt the small town that Vignanello is, as we could see people calling each other by name while exiting shops or walking on the streets, all the time.  Everyone knows everyone.  Because of that, we were immediately spotted as the foreigners.  That turned out to be a positive aspect, as everyone was ready to chat with us or help in what ever we needed.

TIP: Since Vignanello is not a touristic place, locals aren't used to speaking English so communication might be an issue if you do not know Italian.

Since we speak Italian we had no problem in communicating with others. Locals were actually very nice to us and helpful. We once needed some matches and when we were asking at a mini-market if they had, a lady actually asked us to follow her to her house and let us in to give us a box of matches

The beautiful views surrounding Vignanello

More beautiful views of Vignanello

The old town of Vignanello is what struck both my husband and myself the most. It is as if it came out from a medieval movie.  The way it is built is so unique and charming. The old town has a lot of entrances where you can start criss-crossing the winding roads. While walking you will notice the way the houses are built one on-top of the other. The photos won't do justice.

Note: Since it is a very old town, houses are built with extremely thick walls, so you will not have any mobile reception/service inside

Vignanello old town

While walking through the roads of Vignanello we came across this really tiny, narrow alley, which one needs to go sideways to actually make it through.  We had seen one in Mykonos which was a tight alleyway but this was definitely narrower.

Super narrow alleyway

Feast of new oil and wine

Vignanello is known for the yearly feast where locals from all over Italy celebrate together new olive oil and wine. During this feast Vignanello is transformed into a showcase through re-enactment of the elder days. During this feast old tiny houses (probably built around the 16th century) are opened up and transformed into a show of what the old craftsman used to do. During the celebrations there are also parades where a lot of different people participate. The Ruspoli castle also opens its doors for people to view it and also serves dinner in its chamber cells. This feast is usually celebrated during the first weekend in November.

Ruspoli Castle

The castle was built around 1574 on the cliffs of Vignanello. The castle was first used as a monastery of the Benedictine monks and was later given by the pope to Beatrice Farnese Baglioni. At the time her daughter Ortensia got engaged to Ercole Sforza and the castle was part of her dowry. The castles garden is one of the most important gardens in Italy as it is known as one of the most preserved gardens of that time, was created back in 1611.

The ruspoli castle holds a lot of events such as weddings, guided tours, lunches and  dinners for special occasions

The surroundings of Ruspoli Castle

Ruspoli Castle from the outside

Suggestions: 

• If you are in the region of Lazio this place is a MUST visit
• Try to learn some basic Italian before going there
• Make sure to get the tour of Ruspoli gardens
• If you go during the festival weekend expect a lot of people