Cerveteri Necropolis: the Etruscan tombs of the Banditaccia from Rome

Updated on October 5, 2026

The Banditaccia necropolis in Cerveteri, about 40 km north-west of Rome, is a genuine Etruscan city of the dead: hundreds of tumuli shaped like small houses, lined up along streets cut into the tufa. Together with the one at Tarquinia, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004. Only a small part of the vast site, around ten hectares, can be visited. It is closed on Mondays. From 29 March to 12 October 2026 it opens from 9am to 7:30pm (last entry 6:30pm); from 13 to 24 October, from 9am to 6:30pm (last entry 5:30pm); from 25 October, from 9am to 5pm (last entry 4pm). The combined necropolis and museum ticket costs €13, and entry is free on the first Sunday of the month.

Highlights

The Via Sepolcrale Principale

The main street of the necropolis, lined with grass-covered stone tumuli. You walk between the tombs as in a small town, with its squares and lanes.

The tumuli

Circular tombs whose base is cut into the tufa, topped by an earth dome. The largest held several burial chambers for a single family.

The Tomb of the Reliefs

A burial chamber whose pillars and walls bear everyday objects modelled in painted stucco: weapons, kitchen tools, animals. It is the most famous tomb on the site; access may be limited or exceptional depending on the period.

The chamber tombs

Some "dice" tombs open onto a staircase or a corridor and reproduce the inside of an Etruscan house, with funeral beds carved into the rock.

The Via delle Serpi

A side street of more modest domed tombs, where you get a sense of how the necropolis was organised into districts.

The Museo Nazionale Cerite

Housed in the fortress in the centre of Cerveteri, it displays the objects found in the tombs; the combined ticket covers it.

Practical info

Tips

Prices and hours noted in October 2026, from the Cerveteri and Tarquinia Archaeological Park: €13 for the combined necropolis and museum ticket. Allow one to two hours on the site, which is in full sun: bring water, a hat and good walking shoes, as the paths are dirt and stone. A torch helps to see inside the tombs. After heavy rain, some tombs may be inaccessible. To place these tombs within Etruscan civilisation, visit the Villa Giulia museum before or after; it holds part of the finds from Cerveteri. Our guide to the Etruscans around Rome offers a complete route.

How to get there

Via della Necropoli, 00052 Cerveteri (RM). By public transport: a Cotral bus links Rome to Cerveteri in about an hour (departing from Cornelia metro station, line A), and the necropolis is then a few kilometres from the town centre: plan for a taxi or a walk. The Rome–Civitavecchia regional train stops at Cerveteri-Ladispoli, but the station is far from the site. By car, allow about 45 minutes from Rome on the A12 motorway or the Aurelia road. For tickets and city rules, see our guides to getting around Rome and driving in Rome.