Is it reasonable to leave Rome (with rental car) drive to Civita di Bagnoregio (quick visit), head to Orvieto and then drive to Siena (where we will be staying 3 nights).
Also, is the drive pretty easy? Parking easy?
If this is a doable option, how long should we stay at Civita di Bagnoregio and Orvieto?
Thanks for the advice in advance!!!
Sounds like a long day with very little time to see (especially Orvieto) much, but the roads are mainly major highways. Don't know Civita but parking in Orvieto is easy (down at the bottom of the mountain). Siena - you're fine if your hotel has parking or even parking recommendations. There basically isn't any parking in the very walkable medieval city center.
I believe that Rick Steves has led people seriously astray on the subject of Civita da Bagnoregio. In no way should it be bracketed with Orvieto. It is a tiny village of no particular interest, other than that the rock on which it is built is being eroded away. Orvieto, on the other hand, has a splendid cathedral with important art, Etruscan remains with a small museum of artifacts, and several other interesting buildings. I'd even take a day away from Siena, so as to stay overnight in Orvieto. As I recall, parking is easy. You leave your car in the lower town and take a funicular up to the historic section. I think we didn't even have to pay, but that is the kind of thing that is subject to change.
I believe that Rick Steves has led people seriously astray on the
subject of Civita da Bagnoregio. In no way should it be bracketed with
Orvieto. It is a tiny village of no particular interest, other than
that the rock on which it is built is being eroded away.
Rosalyn- Thank you for this.
I've been fiddling with our itinerary trying to make Civita di Bagnoreggio fit in some way and every time I read about the town fail to see the interest there other than the novelty of it. Your post just helped me make up my mind.
I don't want to hijack this thread but would Orvieto be worth a 2 nite stay? We would arrive late afternoon and had planned just the evening and a few hours in am before taking train to Rome. Now I wonder if 2 nites- giving us a full day in Orvieto would be a good choice?
To answer your question, I would take the train to Orvieto and rent the car there as you leave town. Civita is maybe 25-30 minutes southwest. From Bagnoregio, you can go west, turn north and go around the east side of Lago di Bolsena. SS 22 takes you straight north into Siena. Or, you can go back to Orvieto and get on the toll motorway and have controlled access and 4 lane all the way to Siena. It's maybe 90 minutes from Orvieto to Siena--not far.
Most all of Tuscany is easy to navigate. We found our way from town to town without maps or GPS, as road directions are well marked. Paving is good and traffic is often pretty sparse, but some back roads do get pretty curvy.
"Is it reasonable to leave Rome (with rental car) drive to Civita di Bagnoregio (quick visit), head to Orvieto and then drive to Siena (where we will be staying 3 nights)."
Yes it is. It will be a long day so start early. We did basically that itinerary, and our hotel was past Siena.
I would not skip Bagnoregio. True there is no cathedral or art there, but I don't think you will see another town like it anywhere in the world.
I love Orvieto and find lots to do there. There's an interesting underground tour, in addition to the other sights. The Museum across the street from the Duomo gives geat views of the mosaic and marble facade form its upper floors.
I usually spend a few nights there, but two would be fine. I've never been to Civita di Bagnoreggio.
We are actually doing something similar in two weeks (mid-February). I am almost to the point of scratching Civita from my itinerary to save some time to enjoy Orvieto more fully. We are only doing the one overnight in Orvieto and taking off again in the morning. Based on February weather and the abundance of things to enjoy in Orvieto I want to do it justice... But my heart was really set on enjoying the panorama and ambience of Civita.
I couldn't disagree more about skipping Civita -- we thought it was worth the detour (granted, its all subjective!). You can drive up and park next to the pedestrian bridge. We weren't there for more than an hour, as its pretty small and a lot of the restaurants weren't even open yet. But it's enough time to see the views and get a feel for this area that is virtually untouched by time. We spent about a 1/2 day in Orvieto and it was nice, but I didn't quite love it the way a lot of others do (felt the same way about Siena). I just preferred the smaller towns.
We drive from Pienza (about an hour south of Siena on freeway), hit Civita and Orvieto and was in Rome about 4 pm, so it's doable.
