I will be in Orvieto for approximately 5-6 hours (from maybe mid-morning to 4 pm) & I'd like suggestions in terms of what to do there. I will definitely take a quick peek inside the Duomo but probably won't linger there for very long. After that, I was thinking of doing the underground tour though Rick Steves suggests the tour of St. Patrick's Well over the underground tour if one is short on time. Has anyone done these tours & if so, which do you suggest? I thought the underground tour sounded more interesting but I'm wondering why Rick suggests St. Patrick's Well more than the underground tour. I was also thinking of climbing to the top of the Torre del Moro. Has anyone done this? Is it a tiring walk up to the top & is it worth it? Do you think I'd have time for a quick look inside the Duomo, the underground tour & a climb to the top of the tower in 5-6 hours? Thanks for any suggestions you can give me.
Posted by
Port St Lucie, Florida, USA
28 posts
Go to: www.RoninRome.com and click on Orvieto-daytrip from Rome. This will give you the information you are seeking. Ron used to reply on The Boot but he now seems to use his own site which is excellent!! Nancy
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32213 posts
Sheron,
I'd definitely suggest having a look inside the Duomo, as it's beautiful! The frescoes on the ceiling in the room off to the right side of the altar are espeically worthwhile, as they're incredible! Try not to strain your neck looking upwards. Rick has described the meaning of these on his "Hill Towns" TV program, but I can't remember the details (might also be in the Guidebook, but I haven't checked?).
I found the Underground tour interesting, but I suppose that's a matter of opinion. You can book that at the T.I. just across from the Duomo. I also found St. Patrick's Well very interesting from a historical perspective, especially considering how difficult the double-helix construction must have been given the construction technology at the time.
I can't provide any comments on Torre del Moro. Just exploring the three sites above and enjoying the town at a leisurely pace should easily be possible in 5-6 hours.
Happy travels!
Posted by
Seattle, WA
1317 posts
Torre del Moro is fun. Great views and rather deafening when the clocks go off (every 15 minutes I think). I didn't find it especially tiring. If you don't have issues with stairs, you won't have any trouble -- these are generally nice and large as opposed to the curved and tight spaces of St. Peter's Dome.
I second visiting the Duomo. The chapel is well worth it. Gorgeous art. We didn't do the underground tour, but did St. Patrick's Well. It's neat to see how they built it, but it's not highly informative or anything. You go down a bunch of stairs, reach a platform on the bottom, and go back up a bunch of stairs. I'm glad I did it, but probably wouldn't bother to do it again.
Orvieto is a pretty compact little town, particularly if you stay in the central area. You should be able to do everything you want in a few hours, as long as you don't get caught during the afternoon closures (usually about 1-3). Try to have lunch during this time, as that's what the rest of the town is doing.
Also, part of Orvieto's charm is to just enjoy the town, so I would worry less about seeing everything and just enjoy being there.
Posted by
Florida, USA
12172 posts
I would have suggested the three that Ken suggested. I believe there are multiple underground tours. We booked ours at the TI and it was very good. Others may know of private tour options. The Duomo is amazingly large for a smaller town (built because of the Corpus Christi miracle) and is worth more than a peak.
Posted by
St Louis
411 posts
We were just in Orvieto on Thursday for a day trip from Rome and had a delightful time. The ticket for the San Brizio Chapel with the Signorelli frescos is 5 euro and includes admittance to the Duomo museum next door and two other sites. When you get off of the funiculare go into the Tourist office directly to your right and get a free city map. Your funiculare tickets includes passage on the bus to the Duomo. From there you can work your way back down to the funiculare station then back down to the train. We were there from a little before noon until 4:30 and found nothing closed during that time. Be sure to have some Orvieto white wine.