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Fara San Martino - Via Nazionale n. 21
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Fara San Martino is a charming Abruzzo town nestled within the Maiella National Park and is renowned worldwide as one of the global capitals of pasta production. Thanks to the local terrain, abundant water resources and the enterprising spirit of its inhabitants, the town has earned its reputation for pasta manufacturing, which has been the cornerstone of Fara San Martino’s industrial development. The water from the Verde River was not only used as a raw material in production but also powered the mills needed to grind wheat semolina. With these advantages, the nineteenth century saw the birth of several historic Italian pasta factories here, including De Cecco, Delverde and Cocco.
The history of this locality has long been tied to the Benedictine monks. Fara San Martino was initially colonised and controlled by the Benedictines before falling under Vatican jurisdiction. Subsequently, various noble families ruled this fief, including the Valignani in the fifteenth century and the Melchiorre Reviglione in the sixteenth. The village itself takes its name from the presence since the tenth century of the Abbey erected in honour of Saint Martin, Bishop of Tours. During the Second World War, Fara San Martino suffered considerable damage, though some of the town’s oldest quarters in the Terra Vecchia hamlet managed to survive intact.
Today, Fara San Martino is celebrated for its rich history and ancient traditions, and because it sits at the foot of the eastern slope of the Majella massif, it makes an excellent base for exploring this celebrated Abruzzo park. Around the town you’ll find numerous karst caves and can organise walking, cycling or horse-riding excursions.
The oldest part of the town is undoubtedly the fortified village of Terra Vecchia, which perches on a rocky outcrop. Access to the village is through the Porta del Sole, where you’ll find several points of interest, stately palaces and numerous churches.
At Piazza Municipio, there is the Natural History Teaching Museum, where you can learn about the flora and fauna of the park and which also houses the Visitor Centre for the Maiella National Park.
The remains of the Monastery of San Martino in Valle are set into the mountainside near the Gole di San Martino gorges. According to historical records, the monastery was built on the site of an earlier hermitic settlement consisting of a cell hewn from rock. The fact that it was dedicated to Saint Martin, Bishop of Tours, suggests Frankish origins. The earliest records of this complex date from the ninth century, when it appears in the inventory of possessions belonging to the monastery of Santo Stefano in Lucania.
The monastery and its attached church were destroyed multiple times and underwent considerable renovation work between the ninth and eighteenth centuries. Though recently restored, the remains of the entrance and an inner courtyard are still visible, which led to a portico with three arches supported by four columns with leafed capitals.
The Church of the Santissima Annunziata was built around the thirteenth century in the ancient Terra Vecchia village. An eighteenth-century earthquake caused severe damage to the building, which was then reconstructed to incorporate the Porta del Sole. What we see today is therefore a reconstruction dating from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The church is in baroque style with a central plan, covered by a low dome. Above the portal on the exterior is a lunette featuring a representation of the Virgin with Saint Anthony, whilst inside the walls are finely frescoed.
Palazzo di Cecco is a residential palace in the Terra Vecchia hamlet and was originally the abbatial palace of the Church of the Annunziata. Extending over two levels plus a basement, the building features an external façade with cornice mouldings and finely decorated windows. The entrance portal is graced with a beautiful round arch.
The Fara San Martino Gorges lie behind the village, hidden between two towering rocky walls that, according to legend, were carved by Saint Martin himself. The tale goes that the Saint created these narrow gorges with the strength of his bare hands to allow the people of Fara faster access to the Majella pastures.
The first stretch of the route begins with walls in close proximity, which gradually widen and lead to the remains of the Monastery of San Martino. The walk to the monastery is about 3.5 kilometres, though more experienced hikers can continue to Monte Amaro, the summit at the heart of the Majella.
Fara San Martino is a small town in Chieti province with a handful of modest accommodation options for a peaceful getaway. The town is favoured by many visitors as a base for discovering the Maiella Park.
Other visitors prefer to stay in larger towns such as Lanciano, Chieti or Pescara, all roughly an hour’s drive away, which offer a far wider choice of accommodation.
The best way to reach Fara San Martino is by car. From Pescara, take the SS656 towards Chieti, then the SS81; from L’Aquila, take the Strada Statale 17 followed by the A25 motorway towards the Manoppello exit.
What's the weather at Fara San Martino? Below are the temperatures and the weather forecast at Fara San Martino for the next few days.
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