Subiaco in winter: ski resort, culture and mountain scenery

Winter sports at Monte Livata

At around 1,400 metres, Monte Livata is home to a ski resort divided into two areas and surrounded by beech forests. The Campo dell’Osso ski resort has downhill runs for all ability levels. The activities also include cross-country skiing and snowshoe hikes. Downhill skiing means skiing downhill on a run. In cross-country skiing, you move on narrow skis, while snowshoe hikes are undertaken on foot with snowshoes. For a winter’s day at Monte Livata, downhill skiing, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing can therefore be planned as separate options.

Natural surroundings and rafting outside winter

Subiaco is located in the Parco Naturale dei Monti Simbruini.

The Centro Sport Fluviali di Subiaco organises guided rafting trips with experienced guides from spring through autumn. Guidance by experienced guides is part of the offering. The period from spring through autumn separates rafting from the winter activities at Monte Livata. For seasonal planning in Subiaco, rafting trips and winter sports should therefore be treated as separate activities.

Monasteries, manuscripts and the history of paper

The Santa Scolastica Monastery was founded in 520 AD. Its library and museum preserve more than 10,000 manuscripts and old printed works.

Area Nucleo A of the Villa di Nerone comprises around twenty rooms used for thermal purposes and probably also for residential purposes. It also includes a cistern and an elliptical fish-farming pool. The rooms were used for thermal purposes; residential use is probable.

At the Sacro Speco, Saint Benedict lived for three years in an inaccessible mountain cave.

The Museo delle Attività Cartarie e della Stampa di Subiaco, or MACS for short, is housed in rooms on the ground floor of the Rocca Abbaziale. It includes one section on the history of printing and another on the history of paper. The presentation of written communication includes true-to-scale replicas of medieval tools and historic industrial machines. Printing and paper form two separate subject areas at MACS.

Historic centre and medieval buildings

The Borgo Medievale degli Opifici is considered Subiaco’s oldest and most distinctive quarter. Narrow, winding streets and small squares characterise this part of the town.

The Ponte San Francesco in Subiaco is a well-preserved fortified medieval bridge. It was built in 1358 by Abbot Ademaro.

The Palio di San Lorenzo takes place on 10 August. The Festival dei Cortei storici Borgiani takes place in September. The two events are held in different months and therefore provide two separate points of reference in time.

How to get to Subiaco

From Rome, Subiaco can be reached via the Vicovaro-Mandela exit on the A24, followed by the SS 5 Tiburtina. For orientation along this route, the two road names are relevant in precisely this order.

To the main travel overview: Rome.