Illice: Discover Churches, Museums and Cycling Routes

Illice combines traces of ecclesiastical history, cultural sites, a distinctive high-altitude location and three different cycling routes. If you are balancing culture and landscape for an individual trip to Italy, you will find several themes here: churches, museums, a castle, an ancient archaeological site, as well as mountains and peaks in the surrounding area.

Churches and Culture

The Church of San Giovanni Battista near Illice is associated with an entry in the Rationes Decimarum from 1290. It is located a few hundred metres from Illice on a hill. The area around Illice is home to the Pinacoteca Fortunato Duranti, a museum, Castel di Luco, a castle, the Area Archeologica del Teatro Romano, an ancient archaeological site, and the Museo-Biblioteca “F.A.Marcucci”, a museum.

San Giovanni d’Illice is situated on a ridge that separates the Aso valleys to the north and the Fluvione valley to the south. The first parish registers date from 1618. After suffering severe damage in the series of earthquakes that began in 2016, the church was restored and reopened in 2019. San Giovanni d’Illice is considered to have a single nave and a vaulted ceiling. It also includes a chapel dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and two paintings, each depicting Saint Francis of Paola.

Ridges, Mountains and Peaks

Its position on the ridge gives San Giovanni d’Illice a clear geographical relationship between two valleys: the Aso valley lies to the north and the Fluvione valley to the south. The area around Illice also includes Monte la Torre, a mountain, Monterone, a peak, Monte Sibilla, a peak, and Monte Camperi, a mountain.

Three Routes with Different Courses

The cycling routes also each have their own geographical focus. After descending to Lago di Gerosa, the Ascoli Piceno–Montegallo cycling route follows a 2-kilometre climb towards Illice. After Croce di Casale, the Roccafluvione–Lago di Gerosa cycling route passes through Illice on a descent towards Gerosa. The Ascoli Piceno–Arquata del Tronto cycling route passes through Illice between Polverina and Croce di Casale.

For cyclists travelling around Illice, the 2-kilometre climb towards Illice is an uphill section of the route. On an individual cycling tour, this distance can be incorporated into your own planning of the climb. The other two routes each have their own distinctive features, with a descent and a passage through the village.

When planning your trip around Illice, you can choose how to balance ecclesiastical and cultural history, the mountain landscape and cycling. The religious heritage, museums, castle and ancient site offer different historical perspectives; ridges, mountains and the three routes add landscape and movement to these.

More Destinations

For more travel ideas, you can also explore Venarotta, Colle San Marco, Monsampolo Del Tronto, Abetito, Grottammare, Castel Di Lama, Porchia and Comunanza.

To the higher-level travel overview: Ascoli Piceno.