Stalactites lit inside a show cave Under the ground

Pastena caves

Pastena

A hillside in southern Lazio opens up and you walk into it, following a guide down through the chambers on wet steps. Outside it can be blazing; down there the air stays cool all year, which is what makes it the plan for the hottest day of the trip.

How the day goes

  1. Drive out from Rome into the hills of Frosinone — this is a day the car makes easy.
  2. Book by phone first: visits go in guided groups and the times are theirs, not yours.
  3. Down through the chambers on wet steps, cool air the whole way, then back up into the heat.
  4. It is a short visit: out into the daylight with most of the afternoon still to spend.

Underground, on wet steps, at a guide's pace. If you would rather set your own speed and stay in the open air, the e-bike morning around Frascati is the opposite of this.

Where it is

Pastena at its real position from Rome, with everywhere else we list behind it — so you can see how far out this one is.

Pastena, and where it is from Rome Pastena drawn at its real position relative to Rome, about 99 minutes by car. The faint dots are the other places we list, so you can see how far out this one is. 99 min Rome Pastena

Open it where the roads are

Takes you to Pastena — the town, not the meeting point. Check with the operator where exactly to turn up: their own page is linked further up.

Getting there

This one really wants a car

  • 1 h 39drive from the middle of Rome
  • 114 kmeach way
  • 1 h 30once you are there

  • Rent a car for the day

    The day stays yours: you leave when you want, stop where you want, and come back when the light goes.

    • You pick it up in Rome and drop it back in Rome
    • No timetable to build the day around
    • The stops on the way are the good part, and they need a car

    Affiliate link — you pay their price, never more, and they pay us. You book with Localrent, and anything about that booking goes through them.

    See prices on Localrent

  • Have a driver take you, door to door

    No parking to find, no wrong turns, and you leave when the day is done.

    • Picked up where you are staying, dropped back there
    • No parking to find and no ZTL to worry about
    • Nobody spends the day driving

    Affiliate link — you pay their price, never more, and they pay us. You book with Welcome Pickups, and anything about that booking goes through them.

    See prices on Welcome Pickups

Also around Pastena

More under the ground

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Speleo-canyoning in a hidden cave

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A caver crawling through a low, muddy cave passage Under the ground

Caving in the Simbruini mountains

A guided visit to natural caves inside the Monti Simbruini park, wearing a helmet and head torch, through tunnels and narrow passages.

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Checked 2026-08-08 · grottepastenacollepardo.it/grotte-di-pastena

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