Discover Bracciano

Bracciano is a comune of about 18,300 people in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, in Lazio, standing in a dominating position over the lake that shares its name, thirty kilometres north-west of Rome.

It is known for two things. The first is the lake — Lake Bracciano, also called the Sabatino, the eighth largest lake in Italy, widely used for sailing. The second is the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi, a particularly well-preserved medieval castle on the hill above the town, which today hosts a good many events and is a well-known wedding venue for actors and singers.

The landscape is volcanic, but not in the way most people assume. Bracciano's territory lies on the western edge of the Sabatine Hills, a low volcanic range encircling the lake, inside the Sabatine volcanic district, whose activity began more than 600,000 years ago across several eruptive centres.

Part of the comune and of the lake shore falls within the Bracciano-Martignano regional nature park, established in 1999 to protect the Sabatine volcanic complex and the lakes of Bracciano and Martignano.

Two more medieval towns lie close by on the same lake: Anguillara Sabazia and Trevignano Romano.

Is Lake Bracciano a crater lake? No — and this is the commonest mistake about it. The lake occupies a vast volcano-tectonic depression formed about 300,000 years ago through numerous faults and the collapse of the upper part of the magma chamber that fed the area's several volcanic centres. It is not the crater of a single ancient volcano.

How big is the lake? It is the eighth largest lake in Italy, and is widely used for sailing.

How do I get there from Rome? By urban railway line FR3, from Ostiense and Valle Aurelia, in about 55 minutes. The town is thirty kilometres north-west of Rome.

What is the castle? The Castello Orsini-Odescalchi, a particularly well-preserved medieval castle, grown from a twelfth-century tower later absorbed into a fortress built by the Prefetti di Vico between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.

Can I always get into the castle? Not necessarily. It hosts a number of events, especially weddings of actors and singers, so check before planning a visit around it.

When was the town first documented? 10 January 1234, in a laudo drawn up in castro Brachiani, in platea ante domum Arsuli de Porta. A second document of 10 March the same year names Landolfo and Goffredo Amatore as lords of Bracciano and Santa Pupa.

What is Santa Pupa? The medieval name of today's Manziana.

Is the lake protected? Yes. Part of the comune's territory and of the shoreline lies in the Bracciano-Martignano regional nature park, established in 1999 for the Sabatine volcanic complex and the lakes of Bracciano and Martignano.

What else is on the lake? The medieval towns of Anguillara Sabazia and Trevignano Romano.

How old is the volcanic activity? The Sabatine volcanic district's activity began more than 600,000 years ago, across several eruptive centres.

When is the wettest month? November, with about 90.1 mm of rain over 9.3 rainy days. July is the driest, at about 16.5 mm over 2.7 days.