Perugia?

Others disagree with me be we weren't crazy about Perugia--we were there last September. It's not a convenient city to get into and out of for day trips and parking can be a hassle. In my opinion, Cortona would be a better option!

I agree with the previous poster about Perugia being hard to get in and out of; but I think Cortona, though much smaller, may have a similar problem, being atop a hill. Some years ago we rented a cottage in a tiny village about 20 minutes west of Perugia, and that was a great location for exploring the region. We were easily able to get to Assisi, Arezzo, Gubbio, Cortona, Spello, Montefalco, Spoleto, Montepulciano, Orvieto, as well as Perugia twice. Why don't you look into basing in one of the many agriturismos in that area or a b&b at the edge of one of the small towns? Check locations on a map. Depending on your town choices, being near the A1 can be a huge plus.

Thanks, Rosalyn and Sharon, for your information
on Perugia and thoughts. We will be checking out
agriturismos in the area.

We just returned from Umbria. Loved it. We were driving and based ourselves at the Relais San Clemente just north of Perugia near Bosco (Rammazzano). Relais San Clemente is probably a little pricey but as Rosalyn suggested base yourself outside of the cities because with a car most towns are not too far away.

We were able to take the train from Rammazzano into Perugia and then drove when visiting all the other towns. Parking was easy and straight forward in Gubio, Assissi, and Spello with parking outside the walls and everything in more or less reasonable walking distance. Spoleto would be harder to drive around.

In Spello I highly recommend Ristorante Pizzeria Il Frantoio. Don't go there in a rush as service is a little slow but relax and enjoy the excellent food.
The stinco di maiale al forno was one of the best dishes I had anywhere.

http://www.originalitaly.it/ristoranti/umbria/perugia/spello/ristopizzailfrantoio

I have just returned, still jet lagged, and envy you.

have used perugia as a base and it worked fine; probably helped that we picked up our car in perugia right at the train station. Its a larger hill town with a wonderful piazza, nice restaurants, etc. Really you can't go wrong with either choice; we have also used Cortona as a base, just parked on the hill just outside of the gate.

Thanks Scott and Mike! We're still
working on it!

Funny you should ask . . .

We had originally planned to use Perugia as a base for visiting other towns. When we arrived, we liked it OK, but realized we wanted a smaller town.

The Perugia hotel reservation was messed up anyway so we only stayed one night.

We called the first Orvieto religious housing listed in Rick Steves Hill Towns of Italy, they had room, so we stayed there 2 nights. We loved Orvieto.

Carol- we used Perugia as a base in 9-2006, and drove to Gubbio, Assisi, Orvieto, Montepulciano for day trips and then Siena and San Gimignano on our way out to Florence. Although it was a bit of a climb up, then down to get to the center of Perugia , the drive is pretty and we liked it alot and would return.There is a public parking area about half way up the hill, then catch the bus or taxi to the center to avoid parking hassles.Not to be missed : Perugia has an outdoors escalator that disapears for a moment under building foundations to reveal old ruins- fascinating.Our hotel was The Fortuna on a small alley close to the main plaza (forgot name).Very charming and cozy with a 4th floor library and roof terrace.They offered parking- by a hotel staff person.Take at least half a day and a morning to explore Perugia, all it's levels, University, gardens and museums. Enjoy !

Several years ago we spent about 5 or 6 days in Perugia and thoroughly enjoyed the town. We had a quad room in the Hotel Fortuna on via Bonazzi. It was located about 50 meters from the 2 connected main piazzas. I used the parking secured by the hotel, while it was pricey the car was always delivered to the hotel by the parking people. We had easy access to Assisi, Gubbio, and any other place we wanted to explore. After traveling for 3 weeks previously, Perugia was somewhat of our vacation from our vacation.

Hi all, You seem to be familiar with Perugia and I've been having trouble finding information on which area of Perugia is best to stay in. We will be arriving in from Florence by train and staying for only one night. Is it best to stay close to the rail station and make the trek to the center of town (what I understand would be an uphill climb as the station is at the bottom?) We will be in Italy for 2 weeks and I have been planning for about 6 months. I have so much information floating around in my head that I'm afraid my brain might not recover from this trip!! All replies are extremely appreciated!

Perugia is a fun, youthful town. However, as a base, you can't get any better than Cortona in my opinion. With Cortona's vibrant local crowd, great food, great views... it would definitely be my pick.

I am also considering Perugia (for 3 nights in May) as a base for Umbria, but will not have a car. For those of you who have used Perugia as a base using buses/trains, is it convenient?? Is bus and/or train station near town center?? Thanks.

The train station in Perugia is in a valley a few kilometers from the city center. It's a bit of a hike and I'm not sure about public transportation between the station and city center. There is probably a bus but hopefully someone else can comment about public transportation. We had a car when we were there and dropped it off at the Hertz rental car agency at the train station to go to Orvieto. Parking a rental car in Perugia wasn't always easy though there are some public parking lots.

We appreciated all the good information provided us about Perugia. In September, we took a train from Cortona, a charming hilltown
defintely worth visiting, to Perugia where we picked up a car. The Hertz agency is just steps from the train station. We chose to use Assisi, most definitely worth visiting, as our base in Umbria before revisiting Orvieto. We dropped the car back in Perugia before taking the train to Florence. Regrets? Only that we didn't have another few days in Umbria.

David, Perugia has a big bus terminal right near the hilltown part of town. There is also a regional railroad (not part of Trenitalia) that has a terminal near the top. It's more a diesel-powered tram than a train, but it makes it up the hill. When we were last there 2-3 years ago there were plenty of buses from the train station to the hilltown, and I understand there is now some type of mini-metro (don't know where it runs, though). "Convenient" is a relative term. We have stayed in Perugia and other hilltowns and used the train. It avoids the hassle and expense of a car, but is nowhere as convenient as having a car. Since you need to use 2 transport systems (bus down to the station, train to another place you want to visit) there is loss of time because the 2 aren't synchronized; if the trains run once per hour, the bus that works might drop you off 30 minutes ahead of the train. Same with your arrival at some other town you want to visit; hop off the train and you might be cooling your heels for a while before a bus comes along to the top.

There is a mini-metro stop at most 100 yds. from the train station.
It goes upto the city's center. The cars run every couple of minutes and take 10-15 minutes to get up the hill. It runs above ground for part of the way then underground. Cost is 1.50 euros per ride. There are ticket machines at each stop, that take coins as well as bills. I can't remember if they take credit or debit cards. We spent four nights in Perugia last month. We did day trips to Assissi and Cortona on the train. We really enjoyed Perugia and would pick it over Cortona for a base.

Carol, I based myself in Assisi when in Umbria last May and took a day trip to Perugia. It was a short train ride from Assisi and then the mini-metro to the center of Perugia. A wonderful thing about travel is the planning but also meeting people on public transportation that are so helpful in giving little tips. This tip about the mini-metro was received from a sweet Belgian student on her way to class. Happy travels. Ciao!

We stayed in Perugia for several nights in late September while touring Umbria. We did not have a car. We took trains to Spoleto and Gubbio, and the bus to Assisi. Evenings were dinner and walking around Perugia. It was fun running into a lot of students, both Italian and American (they chat as much as I do), and contributed a lot to happy impressions of Perugia.The mini metro made access to train and bus easy. The TI provided us with lots of friendly help. We liked staying at the modest Hotel Ercolano, covenient to mini metro, a deli and walking the city. Friendly and helpful staff, reasonably priced. Actually, it was on this trip that we took the base-camp/daytrip approach and really had a great time.

Thanks Denny, info is greatly appreciated. Carol, sorry, didn't mean to poach on your post. I just figured it would me easier since the Perugia topic is already out there.

No problem! I love reading about adventures and adventures-to-come. I am already dreaming about our next trip to Umbria. I do agree that it is fun to meet locals on the trains going to and fro....But a car was essential to visit Todi, Spello, and Deruta. And, traveling along the backroads with
hillsides covered with olive trees and rolling acres of spent sunflowers is unforgettable.

Carol, I'm pretty sure you can get to Todi and Spello by public transport, i hope so anyway, because they're on my list. Not sure about Deruta. I've been to Italy a few times, Europe many times, never had a car. And since this trip may be solo, i'd rather use trains and buses anyway.

David, on our last trip we took that private rail line I mentioned before from Perugia to Todi. Worked out fine. There is a bus from the train stop in Todi that goes to the hilltown. Also, as has already been mentioned, we found the TI in Perugia to be very helpful.

Thanks Mike. Appreciate the help.