We will be driving from Florence to Rome (actually to visit family in Casino). Are there any nice places to take a break? I'm wondering if there is a quaint village or nice walking area en route. We will have our 3 children (5,9,10) with us. Any suggestions?

Of course Orvieto is very convenient to the autostrada and a great place to stop for an hour or two. Or Orte, a smaller town to the south of Orvieto, might make a nice stop for a stroll or a meal.

If you want to stray a few miles from the autostrada, the children will enjoy the climb to Civita di Bagnoregio, a minature Orvieto that is experiencing something of renaissance in the last few years.

You will be passing very close to Tivoli and might consider stopping there and visiting Villa Adriana and/or Villa d'Este.

Another option is to have lunch at the restaurant at La Peninsola-Villa Bellago in Baschi, a few miles down the road to Todi. We had a lovely lunch there and spent a hour of so sitting by the pool and strolling the property before continuing on our journey.

La Peninsola - Villa Bellago

Chiusi is just off the A1. Great restaurant- La Solita Zuppa and an Etruscan museum reputed to be quite a treat (though we missed it on our trip).

I would recommend Orvieto! It is a beautiful town.

I often drive between rome and firenze and fully agree with suggestions of orvieto and chiusi.

orvieto is really wonderful, very close to the highway and about halfway between the two cities. there you can have a wonderful meal at la volpe e l'uva

other good places are arezzo, montepulciano, cortona and todi. all lovely and not far from the autostrada

but probably the best choice overall remains orvieto. enjoy your trip !

I'm going to chime in for Orvieto for reasons stated by others and also because of the children. The big main piazza often has groups of children playing, running around, and a safe place for yours to let off some steam while the adults look at the endlessly facinatic facade of the Duomo there or sit outside one of the caffes and enjoy some espresso. You might even have time for a brief tour of the underground city, again something that many kids would like. -gedlin

Orvieto is a good choice. But do not leave ANY luggage exposed in the car. It will be in a big public parking lot that is unsupervised.

When will you be traveling? You might want to put the stop together with one of the area's fascinating festivals on the way.
Did you mean the town of Cassino?

Mary Jane, Oops, I should have spell-checked myself. Yes, the town of Cassino. My father was born there! We will be driving there next Saturday from Florence.