How to get to Monte Porzio Catone from Rome

Monte Porzio Catone is one of the Castelli Romani towns closest to Rome: it sits on the hill between Frascati and Monte Compatri, south east of the city. It is easy to reach by car and, with a little patience, by train and bus.

How do you get there by car from Rome?

The simplest route uses the motorway.

1. From the Grande Raccordo Anulare (GRA), Rome’s ring road, take the exit for the A1 motorway towards Naples (the stretch called Diramazione Roma Sud).
2. Leave at the Monteporzio Catone toll exit, about 10 km from the ring road according to the tables of Autostrade per l’Italia.
3. From the toll booth, follow the signs for the town, which you can see on the hill.

Without the motorway, you can drive up the Via Tuscolana to Frascati and carry on to Monte Porzio on the road that passes Villa Mondragone. It is the prettier road, but Frascati can be slow at rush hour.

A small curiosity: for years the motorway sign spelled the name as one word, “Monteporziocatone”. It was corrected in 2022 after residents complained.

How do you get there by public transport?

Monte Porzio no longer has its own railway station: services on the old line ended in 1944, and the station now houses the town’s Wine Museum. You combine a train with a bus.

• Train and bus via Frascati. Take the regional train to Frascati. From the square in front of the station, a Schiaffini Travel shuttle bus runs to Monte Porzio Catone, stopping in Piazza Borghese, at the edge of the old town.
• Train and bus via Colle Mattia. Alternatively, get off at Colle Mattia station and take the same company’s bus to the centre.

The combined train and bus ticket is sold through Trenitalia (website, app, ticket offices and machines): choose Monte Porzio Catone as your destination. The bus leg cannot be bought on its own through Trenitalia. Times change, so check the Trenitalia or Schiaffini website before you set off.

Where can you park?

The old town is small and its streets are narrow: it is best to leave the car in one of the public car parks near the centre and walk in. From Piazza Borghese the squares and the cathedral are a few minutes away on foot.

How long does it take?

It depends mostly on traffic on the ring road, which can double the journey at rush hour: check a navigation app before you leave. By public transport, allow time for the change between train and bus.

What can you see once you arrive?

• Villa Mondragone and the Gregorian calendar, on the road to Frascati;
• the ruins of Tusculum, on the hill above the town;
• Cicero at Tusculum, the story of his villa;
• Frascati wine, grown on these hills.

In short

• By car: GRA ring road, A1 towards Naples (Diramazione Roma Sud), Monteporzio Catone exit, about 10 km from the ring road; or the Via Tuscolana to Frascati.
• By train and bus: regional train to Frascati or Colle Mattia, then the Schiaffini bus to Piazza Borghese.
• Ticket: train and bus together through Trenitalia, destination Monte Porzio Catone.
• Parking: public car parks near the centre, then on foot.