7 Most Instagrammable Spots in Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy's 'Dying Town'

Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a plateau of volcanic tuff in Lazio's Calanchi valley, a plateau that has been steadily eroding for centuries and left the town accessible only by a single pedestrian footbridge stretching some 300 metres across the gap. Locals have long called it "La città che muore", the dying town, and that slow-motion precariousness, combined with an Etruscan history stretching back roughly 2,500 years, has made it one of the most photographed small towns in central Italy. Here are seven of its best spots.

1. The Bagnoregio belvedere

The classic postcard shot of Civita, its footbridge, eroded clay valley and clustered rooftops in one frame, is taken from the belvedere in Bagnoregio, the larger town on the opposite side of the gap, and is best photographed in the soft light of early morning.

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2. The pedestrian footbridge itself

The roughly 300-metre bridge connecting Bagnoregio to Civita is as much a subject as a route in, framed from below against the eroded clay cliffs it spans, and is often shot with a single figure crossing for scale.

3. Piazza San Donato and the Church of San Donato

Civita's small main square, built over what was once the town's Etruscan and Roman forum, is anchored by the Church of San Donato, whose plain facade and Romanesque interior are a quiet contrast to the drama of the approach.

4. The town's narrow vicoli

Civita's population has dwindled to a small handful of permanent residents, and its narrow stone alleys, or vicoli, often threaded with potted plants and flowering vines against weathered stone, are quiet enough most of the year to photograph without a crowd in frame.

5. Grotte di Civita's cave dwellings

Beneath and around the town, a network of Etruscan-era caves, some later used as wine cellars and stables, has been opened to visitors as the Grotte di Civita, giving a very different, subterranean angle on a town otherwise defined by its cliff-top position.

6. Giardino Malvicino

Tucked at the edge of town, this small garden offers views out over the Calanchi valley from a different angle than the main belvedere, with far fewer visitors competing for the same shot.

7. The town walls at golden hour

Civita's edges, where medieval walls meet the sheer drop into the valley, catch the low, warm light of late afternoon particularly well, and the near-total absence of overnight visitors once day-trippers leave makes early evening one of the quietest times to shoot here.

Traveller tips

• Civita charges a small entrance fee to cross the footbridge, used toward the town's conservation.
• The site is a popular day trip from Rome, roughly 90 minutes away by car; public transport connections are limited.
• Visiting outside midday and outside peak summer months avoids both the harshest light and the largest day-tripper crowds.
• Comfortable footwear is worth it; the footbridge has a noticeable incline and the town's lanes are cobbled.