Introdacqua Voyage Tips and guide

Contents

Introdacqua is a town in the Italian Province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region. Notable structures include the city's castle dating from the 1200s, as well as the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. The main church was built between 1474 and around 1510. A mansion called the Palazzo del Barone was built in the 1400s which is today open to the public accompanied by a museum. The Palazzo Trasmondi is another notable structure. A Jewish quarter with synagogues remains in the city, dating from the 1500s.

The best way to get to Introdacqua is to take the train to Sulmona (the closest town with a station). From Sulmona take a 15 minute cab ride into Introdacqua. You can also catch a bus from Sulmona (tickets from tobacconist, timetables from the Information Centre, departing from the bus-stop beside the park). It's only a few kilometres from Sulmona, so you could walk.

Use your feet. The town is so small you can cover all the hills in one day at a very steady pace.

• 42.00627113.8966961 Medieval tower and castle (Dongione di Introdacqua). The medieval tower of the 12th century overlooks the town; it is a square-plan donjon surrounded by polygonal walls. The castle is the ancient village of Introdacqua and includes the houses that surround the tower up to the Marchesale palace.  
• Campanile. The 17th-century Romanesque bell tower is built in local stone.
• Mother Church of Maria SS Annunziata (Chiesa Madre Maria S.S. Annunziata). Adjacent to the bell tower is the mother church of SS Annunziata, which houses the remains of the patron saint of Introdacqua, San Feliciano Martire; the church has an internal basilica structure with three naves and houses medieval and Renaissance frescoes, in particular the one dedicated to San Cristoforo.
• Trasmondi Palace, Cavour Square. The palace built around the 13th century is called Trasmondi, the last feudal lords of the town. It was the refuge of Giovanni Quatrario, a humanist friend of Petrarca who was fleeing from Sulmona, and in 1853 it hosted Panfilo Serafini, a writer and patriot from Sulmona, persecuted by the Bourbons for his liberal ideas. The palace is in the center of the town
• Porte della Terra. Close to the Marchesale Palace there are two gates, called "Gates of the Earth", which provided for the defense of the old village. On the keystone of the arch of the gate facing north appears the quadripartite coat of arms of the Trasmondi family.
• Church of Our Lady of Sorrows (Chiesa della Madonna Addolorata). Located in front of the Mother Church, inside it preserves the statues of the Dead Christ and Our Lady of Sorrows which are carried in procession on Good Friday.
• Church of the Holy Trinity (Chiesa della S.S. Trinità). Completed in 1706, it houses the statue of the "Madonna che vèle", the Madonna running towards her resurrected son during the performance staged on Easter day and which attracts locals and tourists to the town.
• Church of St. Anthony (Chiesa di Sant'Antonio). It was built in the 11th century in honor of the holy hermit. The church preserves restored frescoes from the 15th and 16th centuries.
• Church of San Giovanni (Chiesa di San Giovanni). The rural church of San Giovanni Battista was built around the 11th century and preserves original medieval frescoes.
• Church of Our Lady of Grace (Chiesa della Madonna delle Grazie). It is a rural church built around the 15th century; it preserves a 19th century canvas.
• Old Fountain. The "Fontavecchia" is a rectangular basin on which a curtain parapet is placed; it features the town's coat of arms in stone, with the date of construction engraved on it (1706). This large fountain was for a long time the only source of supply for the inhabitants of Introdacqua, otherwise forced to go to one of the nearest springs called "Fonte La Strega".

What to do? Relax, enjoy, breath! That all there really is to do here. Visit the town square, the church, the cemetery, and the tower. Meet the local Italians!

The high part of Introdacqua is old (10th century) and a mix of ruins and renovated apartments. Check out the square tower. In the lower part of the town is the Palazzo of the Trasmondi Marquises and a lot of quaint 18th-century houses with iron balustrades.

• The fires of Saint Anthony the Abbot (I fuochi di sant'Antonio Abat): During the evening of January 17, the day of Sant'Antonio Abate, after whom the country church of the same name is dedicated, numerous bonfires are lit in the streets of the entire town, which are accompanied by banquets filled with local dishes.
• The Madonna who sails (who flies) (La Madonna che véle (che vola)): The Easter celebration is believed to have begun in the second half of the nineteenth century, although some sources believe it began in the last decade of the eighteenth century.
• Patronal feast (Festa patronale): The penultimate Sunday of August is the patronal feast of Saints Feliciano and Antonio.

• Be sure to go to Sulmona and purchase some confetti (Italian almond candy).

• La Trota (The Trout) - not just fish. Some seriously good food. Bring your appetite but not much money. Carlo will make you anything you wish, he is kind of like a genie! Beyond great food, seriously

• Hotel La Trota - 16 nicely outfitted rooms +39 0864 47154
• B&B Antonella, Via Crispi n° 4, 67030 (AQ), ☏ +39 086447150, +39 3291935934. A family-run bed and breakfast in centre of town. 

• Make a visit to Pacentro family home of Madonna and the Ciccone family.