Amatrice is a small town located on the border between the Italian provinces of Lazio, Abruzzo and Le Marche.  It is a small medieval town with 14th century Civic Tower. Amatrice is perhaps best known for an Italian pasta sauce of world wide fame: the "amatriciana". Each year at Amatrice a well attended festival is held to celebrate the ancient recipe, originally invented by shepherds''', the main ingredients of which are guanciale, tomato, and pecorino cheese. The sauce is traditionally served with spaghetti, bucatini and vermicelli pasta.

Stomachs replete, visitors take a stroll though the town to admire the churches of San Francesco and Sant'Agostino. Both houses of worship were built at the end of the 15th century and feature magnificent gothic facades and a series of superb frescoes.

Amatrice, immersed in the green of the National Park of the Gran Sasso, is a favourite destination for nature lovers keen to catch a glimpse of the foxes, wild cats, eagles and many other species of animals which inhabit the park. In the summer, the landscape is made all the more beautiful by the proliferation of wild orchids which grow spontaneously in this fertile terrain.

On August 24th, 2016 the town suffered a bad earthquake where many citizens were killed. The town is now in the process of rebuilding. 

- Updated by Jesse Andrews, on August 24th 2016