Tarquinia: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Viterbo, Lazio. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Tarquinia
The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.
For example: Viale dei Navigatori 2, Tarquinia.
Tarquinia, Etruscan tombs, a hilltop town and the Lido
The painted tombs of the Monterozzi necropolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with Cerveteri, have made Tarquinia known worldwide. The old town stands on a hill a few kilometres from the Tyrrhenian Sea, with medieval towers and the Etruscan museum in Palazzo Vitelleschi; on the coast are the Lido di Tarquinia and the salt pans.
The municipality is large and mostly farmland, and the housing market falls into three parts: the old town on the hill, with stone houses; newer districts at the foot of the town; and the Lido and coast, with many second homes used in summer. The Tyrrhenian railway between Rome and Pisa stops at Tarquinia, the Via Aurelia runs alongside, and Civitavecchia with its port is a little further south.
At the end of 2023 there were 15,953 residents, almost as many as in 2011 (down 0.4%, according to Istat, the national statistics office). Tarquinia is home to 5.2% of the province of Viterbo's population and is slightly older than the provincial average, with over-65s at 26.8% against 25.9%. Foreign residents make up 6.0%, and average incomes are a little above the province. There are 131 cafés and restaurants on record, a lot for a town this size, which reflects tourism.
Seismic hazard is moderate. Tarquinia is in zone 3, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.077 g, while 40 municipalities in the province are in zone 2. For a stone house in the old town, the state of walls and roof matters; at the Lido, upkeep of buildings exposed to salty air.
Near the river Marta and in low-lying coastal areas, flood hazard should be checked for the exact address. The report does this on the official maps and finds the plot using the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral data.
Key points
- UNESCO Etruscan necropolis, hilltop town and seaside Lido.
- Station on the Tyrrhenian line between Rome and Pisa.
- Over-65s at 26.8%, against 25.9% in the province.
- Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.077 g.
Overview
Tarquinia is a municipality in the province of Viterbo, in Lazio. At the end of 2023 it had 15,953 residents, the second most populous in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Tarquinia is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 3B. Only 20 of 60 municipalities in the province are in zone 3.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.077 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
Even in zone 3, seismic standards apply to new buildings: for an older building, ask about the design year and any structural work.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the number of residents is nearly unchanged. The estimated average age is 48 years, in line with the province. 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 6.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Tarquinia declared an average taxable income of 22,938 euros, in line with the province (22,031 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Tarquinia is in climate zone D, with 1,658 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 133 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Tarquinia has 12 schools and 5 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 15 grocery shops and supermarkets, 5 healthcare facilities, 24 sports facilities and 7 parks and green areas.
There are 0.3 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.5).
Public transport
We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.
How built-up it is
Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 4.6% of the land in Tarquinia, compared with 4.7% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 150.1 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list 4 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Tarquinia, and 8 more have been cleaned up or closed. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Tarquinia: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.
House prices
The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.
Land registry
The cadastral maps for Tarquinia are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.
Liveability area by area
The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 128 inhabited census areas in Tarquinia. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 77 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 17.8%
- good 40.9%
- very good 41.3%
Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.
The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out
Data sources
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Contaminated sites, ISPRA, MOSAICO - Banca dati nazionale dei siti oggetto di procedimento di bonifica. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 12 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 056050. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.