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Voykit pocket guide · Italy
L'Aquila
Spend 1 day for the historic centre and museums; add a half‑day for Gran Sasso or ski resorts if interested.
L'Aquila, capital of its province in Abruzzo, sits at the foot of the Apennines. Its compact historic centre, 99 churches, a medieval castle and the National Museum can be walked in a day, while the nearby Gran Sasso park and ski areas justify an extra half‑day in winter.
- Country
- Italy
- Best months
- May–June, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Jan–Feb (cold, possible snow) and heavy winter ski season when hotels fill quickly
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Currency is the euro (EUR, €). Cards and contactless are widely accepted in cities; small cafés, markets and rural places may prefer cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget €45–70 excl. bed · Mid €70–120 excl. bed · High €120+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- TIM, Vodafone, WindTre and Iliad sell prepaid SIMs in shops and at airports; a passport and an Italian tax code (codice fiscale, issued in-store) are needed.
- Emergency
- Police 112 · Fire 115 · Ambulance 118
- Plugs
- Types C, F, L · 230 V · 50 Hz · Italian type L plugs have three pins in a row; most sockets also take two-pin Europlugs (C), and bivalent sockets take Schuko (F).
- Tipping
- Bar: Leave €0.10–0.20 of change on the counter if you like.; Restaurant: Coperto or service may already be on the bill; leave €1–2 a person or round up for good service.; Taxi: Round up to the next euro.; Hotel porter or housekeeping: €1–2 per bag or per night.; Tour guide: €5–10 per person for a half day.
- Water
- Tap water is safe unless signed otherwise; Rome's nasoni fountains run all day. Restaurants serve bottled water (naturale or frizzante) unless you ask for tap (acqua del rubinetto).
- Toilets
- Few public toilets; use bars (buy a coffee), museums and stations, where some charge €1.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee in a café | €1–2 |
| Pizza slice | €3–5 |
| Meal (two dishes + wine) at La Matriciana | ≈€20 |
| Museum entry (Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo) | €5–8 |
| Local bus ticket | €2–3 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- CIA · Rome Ciampino Airport
- —
- FCO · Rome Fiumicino Airport
- —
Typical fares
- Rome Tiburtina → L'Aquila (intercity bus)
- ≈€15, about 2 h
- Local bus L'Aquila → Gran Sasso cable‑car
- ≈€8 round‑trip
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Language, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
The city centre is walkable; a local bus can cover the hill to the railway station and the fountain. For trips to Gran Sasso or ski resorts use regional buses (e.g., Bus 6D/6S/M6).
See and do
Known for
- 99 churches and squares
- Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo
- Forte Spagnolo
- Gran Sasso National Laboratory
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Gran Sasso National Park | Regional bus from L'Aquila to Campo Imperatore (cable car) – about 1 h 30 min total | ≈2 h round‑trip |
| Rocca Calascio Castle | Bus to Calascio, then walk 15 min uphill | ≈2 h round‑trip |
| Pescara (coastal town) | Intercity bus from L'Aquila bus terminal, about 1 h 30 min | ≈3 h round‑trip |
Sleep
- La Compagnia del Viaggiatore
- 34 rooms, breakfast, central location; €50–100 per night
Language
Italian is the language of daily life. English works in hotels, museums and restaurants in Rome, Florence, Venice and Milan, and thins fast in the south and the countryside. A greeting and a few words (buongiorno, grazie, per favore) go a long way, and gestures and tone carry a lot of meaning.
- Use 'Lei' (formal you) with strangers and staff; 'tu' is for friends and young people.
- German is the majority language in South Tyrol (Alto Adige) and signs are bilingual; French is co-official in the Aosta Valley.
- Dialects (Neapolitan, Sicilian, Venetian) are strong at home and in markets; everyone also speaks standard Italian.
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Say buongiorno (until mid-afternoon) or buonasera on entering shops and bars; avoid: Walking in and pointing without a greeting
- Cheek kisses: Two kisses, right cheek first, among friends; follow their lead; avoid: Kissing strangers or in business settings
- Dress: Smart-casual in cities; covered shoulders and knees in churches; avoid: Beachwear, bare chests and flip-flops away from the beach
- Queues: At delis and pharmacies take a number (numerino); avoid: Assuming the crowd at a bar counter is chaos — pay at the till first where asked
- Restaurants: Wait to be seated and ask for the bill; avoid: Splitting a bill item by item with a large group
- Conversation: Food, football and family are safe openers; avoid: Mafia jokes and north–south stereotypes
- Dinner at a home: Bring pastries, wine or flowers (not chrysanthemums, which are for funerals); avoid: Refusing seconds too firmly
Scams and watch-outs
- Winter ski season can make hotel rooms scarce; book early.
- The station and Fontana delle 99 are on a steep hill; consider a bus if you have luggage.
Generally safe; watch for steep streets when walking with luggage and check bus schedules in winter.
One and two days
No timed day plan for L'Aquila yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- 99 churches and squares
- Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo
- Forte Spagnolo
- Gran Sasso National Laboratory
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: L'Aquila, revision 5050704 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5050704
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/laquila). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.