If you are looking for a European tourist destination, consider the Latium region of central western Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea. Latium, also known as Laszio, is the region that includes Italy’s capital Rome, the Eternal City. Because there are so many articles describing the multiple pleasures of Rome, we are going to write about the lesser-known attractions of Latium. This article focuses on Latium west of Rome. A companion article describes Latium east of Rome.

We’ll start our tour at Cerveteri about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Rome. We’ll head along the sea northwest past Rome’s port, Civitvecchia, and stop at Tarquinia. Then we’ll travel inland (northeast) to Tuscania, Viterbo, Bagnaia, and then southeast to the village of Caprarola. We then head almost directly north to finish our tour at Bomarzo not far from the Umbrian border. (It might be a bit shorter to go from Bagnaia to Bomarzo and then to Caprarola but as you will see, we have our reasons for following the first itinerary.) Before we start this tour we will introduce a onetime major player, the Etruscans. » Read more: I Love Touring Italy – Latium West Of Rome