Tuscia Film Fest: Italian cinema in Viterbo (and the Bomarzo night)

For nine evenings every July, Viterbo's most beautiful square becomes an open-air cinema. The Tuscia Film Fest brings contemporary Italian cinema under the stars of Piazza San Lorenzo, at the foot of the Palazzo dei Papi: screenings, premieres, talks with actors and directors, and an audience that fills the arena late into the night. In 2026 it reached its 23rd edition.

How it works

The heart of the festival is the large arena set up in Piazza San Lorenzo, in Viterbo's medieval centre. Each evening a film — often a preview — is presented by its cast: over the years some of the biggest names in Italian cinema have taken the stage to introduce their film before the screening. It is a popular, accessible festival, made for the city and its visitors, not just for insiders.

The 2026 dates and the Bomarzo night

The 2026 edition ran from 10 to 18 July: a week in Viterbo and a special finale on 18 July in the Sacro Bosco of Bomarzo, the Monster Park, where cinema meets the strangest garden in Europe. It is the night we recommend most: a screening among the stone ogres and the sixteenth-century sculptures, 10 minutes from Villa Vacanze Valentina. The dates change from year to year, always in the first half of July: it is worth checking the official programme a few weeks ahead.

Practical tips

Arrive early: many screenings are free but seats run out; the events with the big guests are ticketed (on sale on the official website and at the city museums). Make a day of Viterbo: the medieval San Pellegrino quarter and the Palazzo dei Papi are worth the afternoon, and in the evening you stay in the centre for the film. Bring a jumper: even in July, evenings in the square get cool.

Pair it with: Viterbo and Bomarzo

The festival is the perfect excuse for two places we write about often: the Monster Park of Bomarzo, which hosts the closing night, and Viterbo with the Terme dei Papi, for the next day's soak. An evening of cinema, a morning among the sculptures of the Sacro Bosco, an afternoon in thermal water: Tuscia in three acts.

Where to stay for the Tuscia Film Fest

Villa Vacanze Valentina is in Bassano in Teverina, about 25 minutes from Viterbo and 10 minutes from Bomarzo: in the evening you reach the festival square with ease and come back to the silence of the countryside, with the pool instead of the traffic. Discover the holiday home with pool or write to us for the July dates.