What is Castro dei Volsci known for?

Born here in 1921, one of the four pillars of postwar Italian comedy alongside Sordi, Gassman and Tognazzi. Città dell'Olio designation for the extra-virgin oils pressed from the terraced groves below the centro storico. Pre-Roman Volscian stronghold on the ridge above the Sacco valley, the name preserved in the town's full title.

Where is Castro dei Volsci?

Castro dei Volsci is a comune in the province of Frosinone, Lazio region of Italy, about 56 kilometers from Latina.

Lazio · Frosinone

Castro dei Volsci

A Ciociaria hilltop borgoin the Sacco valley, named for the pre-Roman Volsci and birthplace of actor Nino Manfredi.

56 km / 35 mi

Nearest hub (Latina)

4,465

Population

Apr–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Why come

Castro dei Volsci sitson a ridge above the Sacco river valley, ninety kilometers southeast of Rome and fourteen from Frosinone. The Volsci, an Italic tribe Rome spent two centuries subduing, held this hill before the Latins took it; the name preserves both occupants, Castrum and Volsci, castle and people. After the year 1000 the village fell to the Papal States and stayed inside that orbit until unification. Olive groves cover the slopes below the centro storico, which earned the town its Città dell'Olio designation. The actor Nino Manfredi was born here in 1921, and the Torre dell'Orologio in the upper village houses a permanent exhibition of his films, scripts and personal effects. Castro joined I Borghi più belli d'Italia for the stacked stone houses, the medieval gates, and the panorama over the Monti Ausoni that opens from the castle ruins at the top.

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Gallery

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Known for

Torre dell'Orologio
Medieval clock tower in the upper village, now home to the permanent exhibition dedicated to native son Nino Manfredi.
Castello
Ruins of the medieval fortress at the top of the borgo, with a panorama over the Sacco valley and the Monti Ausoni.
Centro storico
Stacked stone houses, vaulted passages and medieval gates that earned the borgo its Borghi più belli d'Italia membership.
Area archeologica di Casalvieri
Roman-era settlement remains in the valley below the borgo, with foundations and mosaics from the imperial period.
Olive groves of the Sacco slopes
Terraced groves below the centro storico that produce the extra-virgin oil for which the town carries the Città dell'Olio designation.

When to visit

Best months · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

April through June and September through October are the best windows. The Sacco valley is green in spring and the panoramas from the castle ruins open clean once the haze burns off. July and August push past thirty-five degrees; the centro storico empties between two and five in the afternoon, and the olive groves on the slopes go silent until evening. November through March is quiet. Many family-run osterie close on weekdays and some open only by reservation. The olive harvest runs from late October into December, and the new oil reaches the local frantoi around the same time the first cold settles over the valley.