Perugia

Perugia, the capital of Umbria, displays a face of magnificent streets, squares, and fountains, as well as a more intimate one of winding alleys and intimate spaces. All around, a breathtaking panorama.

Perugia

What to see in Perugia

basilica di san pietro perugia

Saint Peter’s Abbey

The way that starts from the Church of Saint Ercolano, and that in past times led directly to Rome, ends in Borgo Bello, the “Beautiful Suburb,” an area that developed thanks to
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Vista di Baci Perugina. In primo piano un bacio perugino aperto a metà all'interno del quale si vede la nocciola intera e il ripieno di cioccolata. Sotto le due metà del cioccolatino è steso l'inolucro, formato da un biglietto con citazioni celebri su amore e amicizia e il classico rivestimento in alluminio argentato con stelle blu. Sullo sfondo altri due baci perugina, incartati.

Chocolate in Perugia

Perugia only made friends with Chocolate in relatively recent times, but it is a story worth telling as it lets us see how one person – and, often unconsciously – can start a
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Vista della Fontana Maggiore dando le spalle alla cattedrale. Sullo sfondo la facciata di Palazzo dei Priori.

A Fountain for an Aqueduct

The Fontana Maggiore, a gem of Gothic sculpture The Fontana Maggiore (Great Fountain) is the sculptural symbol of Perugia. It was built in 1278 to celebrate the completion of a
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Vista frontale del Palazzo dei Priori.

The Palace of Priors

A Town Symbol The Palace of Priors is undoubtedly one of the most important buildings in Perugia, beside being a masterpiece in Gothic style. Its structure develops partly along
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The Rocca Paolina – Perugia

The Intriguing Story of a Fortress In Perugia's old town center, at the southern end of Corso Vannucci (Main Street) there is an area with flowerbeds, benches, and fountains,
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Vista dell'interno della Cattedrale di San Lorenzo con vista della Madonna delle Grazie sulla destra. La sinistra dell'immagine è occupata dalla navata centrale della chiesa che mostra le colonne e le volte affrescate.

The Cathedral of Saint Lawrence

A Cathedral to Welcome Them All The current Cathedral of Saint Lawrence replaced an older church, a Romanesque church, that therefore must have been built in the 12th century.
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Vista scorciata da sinistra dell'Arco Etrusco. Il bianco della sua pietra si sposa con il verde dei pochi alberi vicini ad esso.

The Etruscan Arch, the Town Walls

Perugia was one of the main Etruscan towns. Its external walls, dating back to the third century BC (with some older, fourth century parts), still witness the importance the town
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Explore the city

Discover Perugia

Views, Layers, and Differences in Level

Perugia, the capital of Umbria, is a diverse city, spread across wide streets and winding alleys, squares and open spaces with fountains and wells, and breathtaking panoramic views. The main street, named after Pietro Vannucci, known as the Perugino, corresponds to the cardo maximus of the ancient city and connects the two highest points: Colle del Sole, from which you can admire the medieval walls that extend for over 6 kilometers, and Colle Landone, which offers a sweeping view of some of the city's medieval and modern neighborhoods and the surrounding area, all the way to Assisi, Spello, Foligno, Mount Vettore, and the Tiber Valley.
Perugia has numerous differences in level, which in the historic center are alleviated thanks to a system of highly evocative escalators and elevators, as well as functional to the needs of visitors.

 

Three thousand years of history

The Umbrians had already settled on these hills between the 11th and 10th centuries BC, but it was thanks to the Etruscans that the site became a city starting in the 6th century BC. Part of the Dodecapolis, Perugia was among the major Etruscan centers and was finally subjugated by the Romans in 40 BC at the end of the Bellum Perusinum. The inscription Augusta Perusia, which attests to the dominion of Imperial Rome under Octavian Augustus, is still visible on the top of the recently restored and magnificently preserved Etruscan Arch.
Piazza IV Novembre, among the most beautiful in Italy, is the hub overlooked by buildings and original medieval monuments such as the Fontana Maggiore, the Palazzo dei Priori with the Sala dei Notari and the Galleria Nazionale dell'Umbria, the Cathedral of San Lorenzo, and the Loggia di Braccio. The Piazza Grande, as it was once called, also hides other treasures not visible on the surface. From the Museo del Capitolo della Cattedrale, you descend into the Perugia Sotterranea, an archaeological area that recounts the Etruscan, Roman, and Byzantine presence in Perugia and the stratifications that were created over the medieval centuries.
The depths of the Etruscan Well also bear witness to the engineering skills of the city's founders, while the underground area of ​​the Rocca Paolina, commissioned by Pope Paul III Farnese in the mid-16th century, contains medieval buildings and the Etruscan Porta Marzia.

A true city of art

The Middle Ages and the Renaissance were centuries of splendor, during which the city was enriched with fascinating places worth visiting. On Corso Vannucci are the headquarters of the arts and crafts guilds: the Collegio della Mercanzia and the Collegio del Cambio, frescoed by Perugino. In the southern district is the Basilica of San Domenico, with one of the largest Gothic stained glass windows in Italy, and the Benedictine Abbey of San Pietro, with its richly decorated church, three cloisters, and the adjacent medieval garden. In the northern part of the city, we find the Temple of San Michele Arcangelo, an early Christian church with a central plan built on the highest point of the district of the same name. While to the west lies the complex of San Francesco al Prato with the church, once rich in works of art and now restored as an auditorium, and the Oratory of San Bernardino with the façade designed and built by Agostino di Duccio in the mid-fifteenth century.

 

Between taste and music, Perugia lies

Small artisanal food shops offer delicious breaks to savor typical delicacies such as torta al testo filled with Umbrian produce, wood-fired porchetta, fresh cream made daily, and chocolate, a delicacy for which Perugia is renowned worldwide. The House of Chocolate, the Perugina historical museum, and the City of Chocolate, housed in the former covered market, are true culinary journeys.
Perugia, a city with ancient origins and now cosmopolitan, offers a series of wide-ranging cultural events that periodically put it at the center of attention. In July, the Perugian summer resonates with the sounds of Umbria Jazz, one of Italy's most renowned festivals; In September, classical music fills theaters and concert halls with the Umbrian Music Festival, while October is filled with chocolate with Eurochocolate, the festival dedicated to the food of the gods. At the beginning of November, the traditional Fiera dei Morti (Fair of the Dead) is held, a large market featuring a wide variety of products that coincides with the feast of all saints and the dead. In December, the city center streets are illuminated with lights and host Christmas markets, and the Journalism Festival in April brings Perugia to the headlines.

Su una superficie di colore nero sono posti polvere di cacao. riccioli di cioccolato ed una piccola pila composta da tocchi di cioccolato.

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