Avezzano — gateway to the Marsica

Abruzzo is one of the few Italian regions where, within a few hours, you can go from the snow-capped Apennines to the Adriatic coast — and its towns aren't just destinations in themselves, but starting points for everything around them.

Avezzano is one of these: the ideal base for anyone who wants to experience the Marsica, the inland, less-trodden soul of Abruzzo, without giving up comfort, services, or a pleasant evening life. Travelers from abroad can fly into Abruzzo International Airport in Pescara, about 115 km away, or reach Avezzano from Rome by regional train (roughly ninety minutes to Rome Termini) or by car along the A24.

Avezzano isn't just a stop along the way. From here it's easy to plan day trips to the villages, parks, and archaeological sites nearby, then come back into town for dinner, a stroll through Piazza Risorgimento, or an evening in one of the small towns close by, often enlivened by local festivals and patron saint celebrations in the warmer months. The town council runs a regular summer calendar too — "E Statt' Ecc'" brings live music, markets, and the occasional late-night shopping evening to the center. A new tourist Infopoint recently opened in Largo Pomilio, along the Corso coming down from the station, and by all accounts it's already seeing a steady flow of visitors.

What had been a vast expanse of water became one of the most fertile agricultural plains in central Italy, the Piana del Fucino, still visible today from the scenic points around town. A second, harder chapter came with the earthquake of 13 January 1915, one of the most devastating ever recorded in Italy, followed decades later by wartime bombing. Walking through Avezzano today means crossing a rebuilt town, its early-20th-century buildings standing alongside the few structures that survived both.

In town, the Orsini-Colonna Castle and Villa Torlonia are worth the time, along with the Sanctuary of the Madonna di Pietraquaria on Monte Salviano — which somehow survived both the earthquake and the bombing — and the Claudius Tunnels, an impressive piece of 1st-century Roman engineering built to try to regulate the ancient lake's waters — visits are by guided tour only, Sundays, booking required by phone.

It's from Avezzano that the rest of the Marsica opens up.

Celano, a few minutes away, has its Piccolomini Castle and the dramatic Gole di Celano canyon.

Tagliacozzo, among Italy's most beautiful villages, and Ovindoli, one of the region's main ski resorts, are both close by.

Alba Fucens — a Roman colony founded at the end of the 4th century BC — has its forum and amphitheater set at the foot of Monte Velino.

Further out, Gioia dei Marsi opens onto the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, and Pescina keeps the memory of writer Ignazio Silone.

Some of these places I've already written about properly.

Aielli, the "terrace of the Marsica," turned itself into an open-air gallery through street art.

The Valle Roveto and Canistro, known across Italy for its mineral springs, is a whole generous world of its own.

And Villalago, on the shore of the Lago di San Domenico, sits a short drive from Scanno and its famous heart-shaped lake.

Cocullo deserves its own mention: every 1st of May the village becomes the stage for the Festa dei Serpari, when the statue of San Domenico is carried through the streets covered in live snakes — one of the oldest and most striking folk rituals left in Abruzzo.

TUA buses connect Avezzano to the main towns of the Marsica, and regional trains cover a few more, so it's entirely possible to get around without a car if you're not in a hurry. But many of the best spots — the Gole di Celano, the small mountain villages — sit outside the bus routes or run on a limited holiday schedule, and a car (your own, or rented locally) is what lets you chase a scenic viewpoint on a whim and still be back in Avezzano for dinner. Every one of these places is well signposted and well documented online these days — opening hours, bookings, entry tickets, all a search away — so the only real planning left is deciding how many days you have.