A complete guide to the caves and underground sites of Italy in 2026: the Frasassi Caves, the Castellana Caves, the Blue Grotto of Capri, the volcanic caves
Italy is one of the European countries with the highest density of visitable caves, not just the classic stalactite caves but also volcanic caves, sea caves, early-Christian catacombs, and medieval underground systems. This guide covers all of the Italian underground, from the tourist level to the sport-caving one.
| Cave | Region | Level | Visit duration | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frasassi Caves | Marche (AN) | Easy tourist | 1h15 | €18-22 |
| Castellana Caves | Puglia (BA) | Easy tourist | 1h or 3h | €15-28 |
| Blue Grotto (Capri) | Campania (NA) | Sea, by boat | 5-10 min | €16+boat |
| Borgio Verezzi Caves | Liguria (SV) | Easy tourist | 1h | €12 |
| Postojna Caves | Slovenia (near Trieste) | Easy tourist | 2h | €30 |
| Etna volcanic caves | Sicily (CT) | Caving-tourist | 2-4h with guide | €50-80 |
| Catacombs of San Callisto | Lazio (Rome) | Easy tourist | 45 min | €10 |
The Frasassi Caves (AN, www.frasassi.com, €18-22) are the most spectacular underground system in Italy, discovered systematically only in 1971, with a main chamber (the Sala dell'Infinito, 240 m long, 120 m high, 200 m wide) that is among the largest caverns in Europe. The stalactites and stalagmites have formations of rare beauty, some called "stone waterfalls", others formed of translucent calcite crystals. The internal temperature is a constant 14°C all year, bring a sweater even in August. The standard tourist route (1h15) is equipped with lights and walkways; the advanced route (2h30) goes into less-lit areas. In the Marche in summer: pair Frasassi with a visit to the Conero beaches (40 km) for a complete day.
The Castellana Caves (BA, www.grottedicastellana.it, €15-28) are the most famous karst system in southern Italy, 3 km of galleries including the "Grotta Bianca", the cavern with the purest and most crystalline white calcite concretions in Europe. The short route (1h, €15) goes as far as the Grotta Bianca; the long route (3h, €28) crosses the whole system. In Puglia, the Castellana caves pair naturally with Alberobello (25 km), a day that combines the underground (the caves) with the surface (the trulli) in the Valle d'Itria.
The Roman catacombs (1st-4th c AD), the system of underground galleries dug into the tuff to bury the early Christian dead along the consular roads outside Rome, extend for over 300 km altogether beneath the hills of the Appia Antica and the Colli Albani. The four most important visitable ones: Catacombs of San Callisto (Via Appia Antica 110, €10, the largest, where many popes of the 2nd-3rd c were buried); Catacombs of San Sebastiano (Via Appia Antica 136, €8, the oldest, with original relics); Catacombs of Domitilla (Via delle Sette Chiese 282, €10, the most extensive, with the underground basilica of Sts. Nereus and Achilleus); Catacombs of Priscilla (Via Salaria 430, €10, with some of the oldest pictorial representations of the Virgin Mary). All visitable only with a guide included in the ticket, the tour lasts 40-60 minutes.
The lava caves (or "lava tubes") of Etna form when the surface of a lava flow cools and solidifies while the lava keeps flowing inside, creating a hollow tunnel. The main visitable ones with a guide: the Grotta dei Lamponi (the north flank of Etna), the Grotta del Gelo (1,900 m altitude, with permanent ice that never melts: a unique phenomenon in Sicily). The volcanological guides of Etna organize caving-volcanological tours with a helmet and headlamp (€50-80/person, 2-4 hours), check at www.guide.etna.it.
The Frasassi Caves are open all year (except some closure dates for maintenance in November-December, check at www.frasassi.com). The internal temperature is a constant 14°C in every season, always bring a sweater or a light jacket regardless of the outside temperature. The winter visit has the advantage of no lines; in summer (July-August) the caves are among the few genuinely cool Italian attractions, the contrast between the 35°C outside and the 14°C of the caves is striking. Free parking, a bar/restaurant outside; the visit requires no specific equipment.
Yes, "adventure" caving (distinct from scientific caving) is available in various forms for non-experts: the Fighiera-Farinaccio complex (Cuneo, Piedmont) runs introductory courses with the Gruppo Speleologico Piemontese; the Toirano caves (SV, Liguria) have an adventure-caving route for families; the Dolomites have cavities explorable with mountain guides. For an advanced caving experience with no prior experience: look for the "caving courses" of the CAI (Italian Alpine Club, www.cai.it) that organize introductory 2-3 day courses across Italy. The SSI (Italian Speleological Society, www.socspeleol.it) has a map of all the Italian caving groups by region.
International credit cards (Visa, Mastercard) are accepted at the great majority of Italian businesses, mandatory since 2022. The exceptions where cash is still preferred or necessary: neighborhood markets and street vendors, some small family trattorias, the offerings in churches, the metered parking in smaller towns, the stalls at village sagre. The Italian ATMs: the machines of Intesa Sanpaolo, UniCredit, BancoBPM, Banco BPM don't apply fees to withdrawals with foreign Visa/Mastercard cards, the fees you pay are those of your issuing bank. Contactless cards (tap-to-pay) work in almost all modern Italian shops, the standard limit is €50 per contactless transaction; above €50 it requires a PIN. PayPal: accepted at online boutiques and some physical shops but not as widespread as in international online transactions.
Boat rental in Italy is among the most developed in the Mediterranean, Sardinia, the Amalfi Coast, the Aeolian Islands, the Gulf of Naples have hundreds of operators that rent everything from 6-meter motorboats to luxury catamarans. "License-free" rental: boats up to 40 HP (the vast majority of the coastal gozzi) are rented without a boating license in Italy, always ask the rental operator whether the boat falls within the limit. Prices: a small motorized gozzo 6-7 m from €150-300/day (fuel excluded); a sailboat 10-12 m with a skipper €400-700/day. The organized excursions: GetYourGuide and Viator have boat excursions for every Italian coastal area, the most booked are the trips to the Aeolian Islands from Milazzo and the Blue Grotto trips from Capri. Book at least 1-2 weeks ahead in July-August.
The options for the internet connection in Italy in 2026: (1) eSIMs from international operators, Airalo (www.airalo.com) and Holafly (www.holafly.com) offer unlimited data in Italy from €15-25 for 10-30 days; they activate before you leave with no need for a physical SIM; (2) a local Italian SIM, TIM, Vodafone, WindTre, and Iliad have SIMs with data from €10-20/month buyable in the shops (they require an ID for activation, mandatory under Italian law); (3) hotel WiFi: almost all Italian hotels have free WiFi in the room; (4) free public WiFi: present in the main stations (Termini Rome, Centrale Milan), in the airports, in many squares of the big cities (Roma WiFi, Milano WiFi metropolitano), the quality is variable. The recommendation: an Airalo eSIM for stays up to 30 days (no bureaucratic complication, immediate activation); a TIM or Iliad SIM for stays over a month.
The Italian extra-virgin olive oil market is plagued by fraud more than any other Italian food product, the European Union estimates that 70% of the oil labeled "Italian" sold abroad is actually of different origins. The authentic oil to buy in Italy: look for the DOP certification (Protected Designation of Origin) with the name of the specific consortium, Riviera Ligure DOP, Terra di Bari DOP, Val di Mazara DOP, Garda DOP, Toscano IGP. The price: a liter of quality DOP extra-virgin oil costs €12-20 in Italy (€8-10 for the non-DOP but good-quality ones); under €6/liter, whatever certification is present, it isn't of superior quality. To take it home by plane: liquids over 100 ml don't pass the security check in carry-on luggage, put the oil bottles in the checked baggage, wrapped in clothes to absorb any leaks. Oil tins (safer than glass bottles) are found at the agriturismo markets and the oil cooperatives.
Italy has three main law-enforcement bodies a tourist might encounter: the Polizia di Stato (blue uniforms, present in the stations and the cities), the Carabinieri (black uniforms with a red stripe, present throughout Italy including the rural centers), and the Guardia di Finanza (gray-green uniforms, they deal with smuggling, tax evasion, fraud). For a tourist, contact almost always happens with the Polizia or the Carabinieri for: reporting a theft or loss (both bodies accept the report), asking for information (both often speak basic English in the tourist areas), emergencies. The Guardia di Finanza at customs and the airports: they may check your purchases to verify you've filled out the Tax Free (detaxe) correctly, it's a routine procedure, not an accusation. The Vigili Urbani (Municipal Police) handle the traffic and the ZTLs, they're the ones who manage the automatic fines from the ZTL cameras.
If your rental car is stolen: (1) Immediately call the rental agency's emergency number (on the contract) and 112 or 113; (2) File a theft report at the nearest Polizia station or Carabinieri, you need the plate number, the model, and the rental contract; (3) Get the report's protocol number (essential for the rental agency and for your insurance); (4) Contact your travel insurance if you took out theft coverage; (5) The rental agency will apply the contract's excess (usually €500-2,000) unless you bought the full Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) with no excess. Prevention: NEVER leave visible objects in the car parked in Italy, windows broken to steal a bag on the seat are common in the tourist areas of the southern cities.
The products to buy at the Italian markets rather than the tourist wine shops (which apply a 50-100% markup): aged parmigiano reggiano at the dairies of the Via Emilia (Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena) directly from the producer, €12-18/kg vs €25-35 at the wine shops of Florence; prosciutto di Parma at the salumifici of Langhirano (PR), €15-20/kg vs €35-50 sliced at the delicatessens of Rome; Calabrian or Pugliese DOP extra-virgin oil at the oil mills during the harvest (November), €8-12/L vs €18-25 at the wine shops. The markets rule: at the Italian farmers markets that exist in almost every town on Saturday morning, the producers sell directly with no middleman, the prices are 30-50% lower than the large retailers for the same quality.