Updated on January 14, 2024
If you’re looking for a town to soak up Italian life and one that your kids will love to explore, be sure to add Orvieto to your Italy itinerary.
Orvieto, in Umbria (central Italy), is set high on a tufo hill and has medieval streets, an enchanting Duomo, an Underground you can visit, and spectacular countryside views.
Orvieto with kids is easy for parents and entertaining for all ages. It’s especially great for active kids – there are plenty of ways for kids to move and explore the hilltop town.
Our family enjoys visiting on a day trip (easy to do from Florence or Rome!).
Here are some of the best things to do in town with little kids plus some helpful tips for your visit.
If you’d like more general info on the town, check out our Guide to Orvieto.
Map of Orvieto with Kids
Best Things to Do in Orvieto with Kids
Take the Funicular up to Town
You can drive up to the center of Orvieto to look for pay parking, but why not park in the huge free lot and take the funicular up?
- Buy your tickets in the café at the edge of the large parking lot
- Walk up the steps, pass under the train tracks, and exit the tiny train station.
- You’ll see the funicular station across the street.
- Find your seat (or stand). The funicular leaves every 10 minutes and it’s a quick 2-3 minute ride. The views are great from anywhere in the cable car.
Good To Know: There are pay toilets (€0.50, free for kids) at the café at the edge of the large parking lot.
Good To Know: You can sit or stand, and on the way up, it’s fun to stand at the large window at the very front.
See the Duomo
This is one of Italy’s most interesting Duomos for kids!
On the façade, don’t miss:
- The stone reliefs – can you find the snakes and dragons?
- Bible stories in the colorful and golden mosaics
- The bronze statues of an angel, ox, lion, and eagle (representing the Evangelists)
Inside the Duomo, check out:
- The pipe organ (as my boys say, like the one from the Grinch)
- Miraculous cloth inside the Chapel of the Corporal
- Luca Signorelli frescoes in the Chapel of the Madonna di San Brizio. Depending on the age of your child, you may or may not want to explain what the frescoes show – the end of the world. Even if you don’t explain them, kids still can at the interesting characters in the artwork, including ‘zombies’ rising from the dead, the skeletons, and an angel shooting lasers from its eyes!
Good To Know: After your visit, head outside and to the back of the Duomo to the DOMO Museum. Kids will like seeing mosaics up close, sculptures of St. George and the dragon, and a few damaged paintings. The damaged paintings are a great conversation starter – How did that happen? How do we fix them?
You can also visit the Duomo underground next door. Enter and head to the left – it takes about 2 minutes to walk up and down the storage area. Our boys liked the area with statue heads.
Climb Down (& Back Up) St. Patrick’s Well
St. Patrick’s Well (Il Pozzo di San Patrizio) is a deep well that kids will love! Smaller kids can do it too (my 4-year old had a blast). Just make sure they don’t run! The steps are wide and they’re moist and slippery toward the bottom. Also, be careful looking over the edge – it’s a loooooong way down!
I wouldn’t recommend bringing a baby into the well. It’s dark, not interesting for a baby, and the steps may be slippery or tricky to negotiate with a baby in a front carrier. Don’t carry baby in your arms!
Helpful Tip: The well is just next to the top of the funicular. It’s a good thing to do right when you get into town. If you wait until the end of the day, little legs may be too tired.
Discover Orvieto Underground
Also known as Orvieto Sotteranea, exploring a part of Orvieto’s underground network of caves and tunnels is an adventure for kids!
The tour takes about 1 hour (English language tours available). You’ll see how underground Orvieto’s tunnels and caves were used, including for storage, pressing and storing olive oil, raising pigeons, and hiding from invading militaries.
Good To Know: The tour is not kid-focused, so some kids may get bored listening to the explanations. An alternative is to do a self-guided visit to the Pozzo della Cava.
Good To Know: You can book online or when you arrive. To book on arrival, head to the ticket office opposite the cathedral in the Piazza del Duomo. Choose your time and come back to the same spot to meet the group for the visit. English language visits are available.
Fun Fact: The Colosseum and the Pantheon in Rome are made with tufo stones.
Play with Local Kids at Orvieto’s Playgrounds
The two best play areas in Orvieto are:
This playground is better for older kids, but there is a baby swing.
The view from the walls is gorgeous, and it’s a very quiet area of town.
This is the park that local families visit most often.
Good To Know: There’s a water fountain in the corner of the playground.
Inside Orvieto’s (run down) Public Gardens, you’ll find a small kids’ play area that’s geared toward little kids.
Older kids can still run around the grassy areas and check out the fish in the tiny fountain.
Walk along the walls and climb the Fortress steps to get more incredible views. If you have a stroller, the views along the stroller-friendly walkway are just as good.
Good To Know: There are toilets next to the play area, but they’re not well-maintained. There’s also a water fountain.
Climb Torre del Moro
Energetic kids will love the climb up the Torre del Moro clock tower.
On the walk up (you can take an elevator at the beginning to skip a little bit of the climb), check out the old clock mechanism and see the face of the clock from the inside of the tower.
On the top, check out the 360° view of Orvieto and the surrounding Umbrian countryside.
Helpful Tip: Use the free bathrooms in the tower building (ask where you buy the tickets).
Explore Pozzo della Cava
The Pozzo della Cava is a privately-owned museum and great for visiting with kids. The underground areas are fun to explore and you can do it at your own pace using the written explanations.
Shop at the Piazza del Popolo Outdoor Market
Markets are a fun way for kids of all ages to experience local culture.
Babies and toddlers will delight in the colorful fruits and vegetables and variety of goods.
Kids and teens can try to make a purchase and practice Italian language skills.
The whole family can plan out and purchase food for a picnic or aperitivo!
More Fun Things to Do in Orvieto With Kids
- Get gelato! Our favorite gelateria in Orvieto is Gelateria Pasqualetti. There are two locations – one is to the left of the Duomo, and the other is on Via del Duomo.
- Visit the Mago di Oz shop
One Day Itinerary for Orvieto with Kids
Crunched for time and want someone to tell you how to spend your day in Orvieto? Here’s a full day plan that suits most ages:
- Park in large, free parking lot in Orvieto Scalo (at the base of the funicular).
- Take the funicular up to Orvieto’s historic center.
- Walk down and up St. Patrick’s Well.
- Take the minibus (from in front of the funicular) or walk to the town center.
- Reserve a visit to Orvieto Underground. Or skip the reservation and plan on seeing Pozzo della Cava post-lunch.
- Visit the Duomo.
- Have lunch (and while you’re waiting, kids can color Italy-themed pages.
- Go on the Orvieto Underground tour or see Pozzo della Cava.
- Get gelato and play at one of the town’s playgrounds.
- Have an early dinner or head back to your accommodation.
Good To Know: If this feels like too much, remove one activity from the morning and one from the afternoon.
Distances from Orvieto to Nearby Destinations
| Destination | Distance | Time by Car | Highlights |
| Civita di Bagnoregio | 20 km | 35 min | Bridge to the ‘dying’ city |
| Lago di Bolsena | 25 km | 35 min | Sailing; cycling or walking lakeside; visit Bolsena |
| Bomarzo | 40 km | 35 min | Sacro Bosco (Monster Park) |
| San Casciano dei Bagni | 35 km | 50 min | Thermal springs |
| Pitigliano | 50 km | 1 hr | Etruscan vie cave; historic center; view of the town from outside its walls |
| Saturnia | 80 km | 1 hr 20 min | Thermal springs |
| Perugia | 75 km | 1 hr 10 min | Baci chocolates; Corso Vannucci |
| Pienza | 80 km | 1 hr 15 min | Pecorino cheese; playground |
| Montepulciano | 70 km | 1 hr | Underground; Piazza Grande (for Twilight fans); tower climb |
| Rome | 120 km | 1 hr 30 min | Colosseum; Vatican Museums; plate of carbonara |
If you’re planning to drive to Orvieto in a rental car, remember to bring your home-country license and an International Driving Permit. And check out our posts on Important Italian Road Signs and Getting Gas in Italy!
Logistics for Orvieto with Kids
Strollers
It’s easy to move around Orvieto with a stroller. There are some bumpy cobblestones, but they’re doable and the town center is fairly flat.
Strollers can’t go on all activities.
- St. Patrick’s Well – baby shouldn’t go into the well, so leave baby and stroller with one adult while the other goes (alone or with kids).
- Orvieto Underground – You’ll be able to leave your stroller outside the entrance to the cave. Don’t worry, it’s unattended, but it’s a locked gated area. You walk back the same way to get it.
- Torre del Moro – You can bring your baby with you (preferably in a carrier). If you do bring your baby on the climb, you can leave your stroller at the ticket area inside the building. It’s unattended, but inside.
Breastfeeding in Orvieto
Orvieto is a breastfeeding-friendly town, but especially nice because there are plenty of benches and shaded areas outside. You can also feed your baby indoors at restaurants or museums.
Baby Supplies
You can purchase baby care products like diapers, diaper cream, and wipes at the PAM grocery store or most pharmacies.
Check out our post on Diapers in Italy – Brands, Sizing, and Where to Buy Them!
Bathrooms in Orvieto
Whenever possible, use a bathroom at a place you’re visiting (restaurants, museums).
Some of your Orvieto bathroom options:
- At the bottom of the funicular
- In Piazza del Duomo (to the right of the Orvieto cathedral)
- In the Public Gardens (next to the top of the funicular)
- In the Torre del Moro building (ask where you buy tickets)
- In museums
- At restaurants
Public bathrooms typically cost €0.50, and kids are free.
Check out some of our guides to Italian destinations with kids:
Alberobello with Kids
Alpe di Siusi with Kids
Bergamo with Kids
Bologna with Kids
Bolzano with Kids
Burano with Kids
Cefalù with Kids
Dolomites with Kids
Emilia-Romagna with Kids
Fiè allo Sciliar with Kids
Florence with a Baby or Toddler
Florence with Kids
Florence with Teens
Gardaland and LEGOLAND Water Park
Lake Garda with Kids
Lake Molveno with Kids
Le Marche with Kids
Locorotondo with Kids
Lucca with Kids
Matera with Kids
Milan with Kids
Modica with Kids
Monopoli with Kids
Montalcino with Kids
Monterosso al Mare with Kids
Ortisei with Kids
Orvieto with Kids
Ostuni with Kids
Palermo with Kids
Polignano a Mare with Kids
Pompeii with Kids
Puglia with Kids
San Cassiano with Kids
Seceda with Kids
Siena with Kids
Sirmione (Lake Garda) with Kids
Taormina with Kids
Venice with Kids
Vernazza with Kids
Orvieto with Kids FAQ
Only get the Carta Orvieto Unica if you plan on visiting every attraction on the card. Even then, you’ll only save a couple of €. Kids don’t need the Orvieto Card because they enter at free or reduced rates at all attractions in town.
