Casa Vale
Pitigliano - Piazza Cittadella 48
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Allow yourself to be amazed by Pitigliano: this beautiful town in the province of Grosseto set on a tuff cliff is one of the main attractions in southern Tuscany, and as soon as you see its outline in the distance, it is not difficult to understand why. A unique panorama awaits you, even if objectively not as famous as it deserves to be.
Pitigliano is a village waiting to be discovered, thanks also to the numerous monuments and museums in the historic centre, which retains the atmosphere of a typical Tuscan town, surrounded by surroundings of rare beauty. But that’s not all: Pitigliano bears witness to an important Jewish community that lived here from 1600 until the unification of Italy, when the local Jews decided to move to larger and richer cities such as Florence and Rome.
But the Jewish past remained, so much so that it is affectionately nicknamed ‘Little Jerusalem’. Today, the Jewish community of Pitigliano has almost completely disappeared, but the ancient ghetto is one of the most interesting areas of the historic centre to visit, with its narrow streets and beautiful buildings.
Finally, Pitigliano’s location in the heart of the Maremma makes it a must-see destination for those who decide to visit this part of Italy. It is also possible to use it as a base where to stay, and after having toured it thoroughly, enjoy the beautiful surroundings and attractions such as the village of Magliano in Toscana or the thermal baths of Saturnia, only 20 minutes away.
Start your visit to Pitigliano by wandering aimlessly through the narrow streets of the historic centre. This is the best way to get in tune with it and fall in love with it right away. Explore the side streets and alleys, stop to admire the valley below at the numerous panoramic terraces and belvederes, and enjoy the village, the typical Tuscan houses, the flowers in the windows and the magnificent views. This done, you will be ready to visit the monuments and main landmarks of Pitigliano.
The cathedral of Pitigliano, officially the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, is a medieval church built starting in the 13th century, but not completed until 500 years later, so the entire building is a mix of styles.
The façade, for example, is Baroque, with a 16th-century travertine portal and some 18th-century stucco work. To its left is the bell tower, while inside you can admire a series of truly valuable works from different historical periods, such as the 19th-century painting of St Paul of the Cross Preaching, the Madonna of the Rosary with Saints by Francesco Vanni dating from 1609, or two 19th-century paintings by the painter Pietro Aldi, The Predestination of the Young Ildebrando and Henry IV at Canossa.
The wooden baptismal font dating back to the 18th century and the side chapels, also rich in sacred art, are also very beautiful.
The walls of Pitigliano were built for defensive purposes in the Middle Ages by the Aldobrandeschi family. The walls have two gates, Sovana Gate2 and Citadel Gate3, built at different times.
But Pitigliano’s first walls date back to the Etruscans, and are still visible today, at least in part, in the north-west area of the historic centre, not far from the Sovana gate. The rest of the curtain wall is only partially preserved today in the centre, and some sections have even been incorporated into the outer walls of some buildings; others have been demolished. Many sections of the walls are clad in tufa, while a number of panoramic terraces have been built along them, overlooking the cliff.
The Medici aqueduct of Pitigliano was originally used to supply water to the village, the imposing work of which remains today. Work began in the 16th century, and was very complicated due to the irregularity of the terrain: this led to a lengthening of the construction time, which lasted more than 100 years.
Today, the aqueduct can still be admired in all its splendour, clad in tuff, which blends perfectly with its surroundings.
Piazza della Repubblica is the access point to the historic village of Pitigliano, and at the same time for many it is the first vantage point in which to stop and take wonderful photographs. The square is elongated in a north-south direction, while Via Roma, the main street of the centre, starts on the eastern side. The square is very neat and clean, and is a must when visiting the town.
On the south side of Piazza della Repubblica is the monumental fountain of the Sette Cannelle, dating back to the 16th century at the behest of Count Gianfranco Orsini; here is also the head of the Medici aqueduct, consisting of large arches covered in tuff. The water gushes from spouts decorated with sculptures depicting the heads of various animals.
Orsini Palace in Pitigliano is a castle located in the historical centre, dating back to the 12th century when it was actually a convent; it was later transformed into a fortress by the Aldobrandeschi, to make it their residence. However, the palace was named after the Orsini, the family that succeeded the Aldobrandeschi and governed Pitigliano for the following centuries, until 1600.
Today there are two museums here: the Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art, known simply as the Palazzo Orsini Museum, and the Archaeological Museum of Pitigliano. The former exhibits a series of sacred art masterpieces in 18 rooms, while the latter, consisting of 6 rooms, is dedicated to finds from the Poggio Buco area and those from the ancient site of Pitigliano.
If Pitigliano is called ‘little Jerusalem’ there is a reason: discover it by visiting the synagogue and the Jewish museum, testimonies of the town’s ancient Jewish ghetto.
The synagogue dates back to 1598 and was built in the Romanesque style, while the interior furnishings date mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries. Many restorations have taken place over the centuries, the last only in 1995, by the municipality of Pitigliano. The Jewish museum, on the other hand, allows visitors to discover all the secrets of the local Jewish community, which resided in the ghetto established in the early 1600s.
The Pitigliano synagogue and the Jewish museum can be visited every day except Saturdays.
The Church of the Madonna delle Grazie is located along the regional road SR74, about one kilometre from the entrance to the town centre. It is a small and very pleasant church, especially inside, where valuable stucco work can be admired.
But the main reason that will make you want to visit the Church of the Madonna delle Grazie is its extraordinary belvedere, located at a hairpin bend of the SR74 road, where you can park your car in peace and admire a sensational view of Pitigliano silhouetted against the tuff cliff.
In the following map you can see the location of the main places of interest mentioned in this article.
The historic village of Pitigliano is literally dotted with flats and B&Bs, which can be found everywhere. They are mostly old houses that have been completely renovated and made available to tourists, some renovated in a traditional style, others in a modern style, and others that recall the tufa and the town’s distinctive features.
Choose to sleep in the historic centre if you want to enjoy Pitigliano 100%, especially in the morning when day-trippers have not yet arrived, or in the evening when they have already left. Beware that you cannot use your car in the centre of Pitigliano, so you will have to leave it in the car parks outside the centre. Contact the hotel to organise luggage transport.
If, on the other hand, you prefer to experience a holiday immersed in the Tuscan Maremma, choose to travel just a few kilometres and you will be surrounded by nature. Here, the old farm houses have practically all been renovated and converted into agritourisms, where you can sleep in complete silence surrounded by vineyards, hills and rows of vines; many of them also have an in-house restaurant, where you can enjoy local specialities at zero kilometre. The obvious disadvantage of sleeping in agritourisms in the countryside is that you will necessarily have to take the car to visit Pitigliano.
Pitigliano is located in an area of Tuscany that is rather distant from the main communication arteries. This, combined with its geographical position at the south-eastern end of the region, means that it is never too convenient to reach: suffice it to say that from its provincial capital Grosseto it takes almost an hour and 15 minutes, for a distance of over 80 kilometres.
Of course, it is absolutely worth the effort to get there, but allow for a journey of more than two and a half hours from Florence and a distance to cover of more than 160 kilometres, passing through the A1 motorway to the Chiusi-Chianciano Terme junction, and then taking a series of provincial roads that will lead you into the heart of Tuscany, passing through places like San Casciano dei Bagni, Castell’Azzara and Sorano.
From other cities in Tuscany, the story does not change: from Siena, for example, it takes 2 hours and more than 110 km, travelling along the regional road SR2, the Via Cassia, as far as Ponte a Rigo, and then entering SP20. The journey time from Arezzo is also the same, even though the road is completely different, as you take the A1 motorway to Chiusi-Chianciano Terme. From the cities on the Tuscan coast, namely Pisa and Livorno, the distance is about 3 hours, arriving first at Grosseto and then at Albinia, then continuing along the SR74 to Pitigliano.
Travelling by public transport , then, Pitigliano is almost unreachable. It takes an average of 4 bus changes from Florence, for a journey distance that varies from 4 ½ to 6 hours. Even from the provincial capital Grosseto the situation does not change: provincial transport buses are used, but there are no direct buses from Grosseto to Pitigliano, and the journey takes up to three hours.
What's the weather at Pitigliano? Below are the temperatures and the weather forecast at Pitigliano for the next few days.
Pitigliano is located in the province of Grosseto, not far from the border with Lazio, in the hinterland of Tuscany.
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