Ascoli Piceno
Historic Centre Of Ascoli Piceno, Built In Local Travertine, With Piazza Del Popolo And The Annual Quintana Joust Between The Town'S Six Districts · Ascoli Piceno, Marche
Ascoli Piceno is built almost entirely out of travertine, quarried from the hills around it, and the effect of a whole town in one pale stone is something you notice within a minute of arriving. The centre of it is Piazza del Popolo, a rectangle paved in the same travertine and polished by four centuries of feet until it shines, closed on one side by a Gothic church and on the others by arcades, with a cafe at one corner that has been serving anise liqueur since 1860 and still has its original fittings. The town sits in a bowl between two rivers with mountains on every side, it has a medieval quarter of towers and a Roman bridge still carrying traffic, and in the first week of August the six districts fight a full costumed jousting tournament that the whole place takes extremely seriously. Almost no foreign visitors come here, because it is two hours from anywhere with an airport and the region is better known for its beaches.
Piazza del Popolo, Ascoli Piceno, Marche, 63100, Italy
NO OPENING TIME HERE WAS CHECKED. The structure: the squares, the arcades and the Roman bridge are public and never close. The cathedral opens daily and free with a long early-afternoon interval, closing for services; the crypt keeps shorter hours. The Pinacoteca Civica and the other municipal museums close one day a week and over part of the day. Forte Malatesta keeps seasonal hours. The Caffe Meletti runs ordinary bar hours. The Quintana occupies the centre for several days in summer. Confirm before travelling.