iamq

This trip would take place in mid June 2011. The Umbria portion would be for a five night stay after a week in Bologna/Emilia Romagna. For now I have narrowed it down to these two places. Genius Loci is a bit more resasonable in price and is located near Bevagna. Palazzetta is a little higher end and is located further south and west..sort of central Umbria.The nearest hamlet is Fratta Todino. Todi is a few miles south.

My questions center around location. Must sees on this portion of the trip are Assisi and Orvieto, plus I want to spend a day or two roaming around Spello, Montefalco and possibly Trevi, but I hear Todi is worth a visit too. If we had more time I'd like to drive to Norcia, but that might not be possible given the short amount of time. It seems like the location of Genius Loci would be ideal, but never having been there I don't know about the scale of things and driving times and wonder if the location of Palazzetta would be a deficit. It is closer to Orvieto and Todi and possbily close enough for a day trip to parts of southern Tuscany, so that would be a plus.

For those of you that know the area or have been there, could you advise me a bit? Here are links that show the location of each place. Click on the google map.

Palazzetta:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...na_Umbria.html

Genius Loci:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...na_Umbria.html

Thank you!

Jean

I haven't spent much time in the area where Palazzetta is located, but I loved Todi. The area south of Bevagna, all the way to Spoleto, is gorgeous. I think it depends on your priorities: access to Umbria or southern Tuscany. One town we loved that would be a stretch from either location (but slightly less from Bevagna) is Gubbio.

If you visit Todi, I highly recommend lunch at Ristorante Umbria for great food and the wonderful views (toward Bastardo) from their terrace.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/30/43...7ffa624083.jpg

iamq

Hi Jean,

We will be driving from Bologna and the route I wanted to take (E45) puts us perhaps within distance of Gubbio for a lunch stop and walk around on our way south. I have heard wonderful things about it. Thanks for everything.

Flame123

We spent 9 days in Bevagna about 3 years ago and loved it. We stayed in the small town and Genius Loci is a bit out of town. It is a relatively new place and I have heard and read wonderful things about it. Bevagna was wonderfully located to visit all the places you mention (plus others) but not Gubbio which we missed this time. But along with all the ones you mentioned we also visited Norcia, the Piano Grande (which is amazing and I suggest you read up about it), Spoleto, etc. We did not visit Orvieto at this visit, as we intended to spend all our time just in Umbria.
Have a good trip.

bobthenavigator

My son loved Genius Loci and I love that location.

iamq

Thank so much for the additional information. Not that everything comes down to price, but 160 euro for G.L. vs. 210 euro for Palazzetta will probably help make up me mind, especially if as it sounds the location is great.

zoecat

Sounds like a wonderful trip!

I feel the Bavagna location is more central to where you want to visit (except Orvieto- a 1.5 hour drive from Bavagna and 45-60 minutes from Todi). I have stayed in the area a few times and have visited all of the places you have mentioned, including Orvieto and Todi (a nice visit). All are doable as day trips.

I have also visited Norcia and the Piano Grande from the Bavagna area. This is a day trip I highly recommend, especially in mid June when the flowers are in full bloom. It may end up being the highlight of your trip. Choose a clear, sunny day. Be sure to have lunch at the Tavern in town of Castelluccio in the Piano Grande. Yum!

The Todi area is not as central, but still not too bad. With either base, I recommend exploring Umbria rather than Tuscany.

I like the Touring Club of Italy Umbria guidebook. It has wonderful details and great suggested day trip itineraries and in-town walking itineraries (especially for Trevi). I don't think it's been updated recently, but it is still full of information on the area you do not want to be without and does not seem dated at all.

Jean

iamq, if you make it to Gubbio, be sure to ride the funicular or "Bucket of Bolts," thus named by a fellow Fodorite, that takes you to the top of the town for wonderful views of the Umbria Valley.

You can park adjacent to the ruins of the Roman theater at the bottom of the town (on, surprise!, Viale Teatro Romano). If you type in Viale Teatro Romano on maps.google.com (satellite view), you'll see the outline of the theater ruins and the parking lot just southwest of the red location pin. I think you'll be arriving from the northwest corner of this view.

http://travel.webshots.com/photo/101...7193YNggQrYzfm

http://www.bellaumbria.net/Gubbio/teatro_romano_eng.htm

I think you'll have to leave rather early to make Gubbio by lunch time. Lots of nice stuff to distract you along the way from Bologna.

Jean

Should be, "If you type in Viale Teatro Romano Gubbio Italy on maps.google.com...."

iamq

You're probably right Jean about not having enough time for Gubbio, but I have this recessive (?) optimisitic travel gene that makes me want to think I can do it all. LOL. Thanks again.

Jean

I wouldn't deter you from stopping in Gubbio. I just don't know whether you'd reach it by lunch time. Hey, see how it goes... My only goal would be to arrive at my final destination that day before dark. I hate, hate, hate looking for an unfamiliar place in the dark. Lucky for you, sunset in mid-June will be about 9:00 pm.

sacc

Iamq, I've visited Genius Loci twice -- last year, staying almost one week -- and can't say enough good things about it. For one, the location really is wonderful. From the terrace, you can easily look across the valley to see Assisi, Spello, Foligno, and Montefalco. So that tells you how well-located it is for visiting some lovely Umbrian hilltowns. In fact, it's only a few minutes' drive (on paved roads)to any of those spots, for lunch or dinner or sight-seeing.

The Tacconi family who own the Inn are extremely welcoming and kind, and have lived in the area for decades so they know it well. Service is excellent and the rooms are very comfortable (excellent AC if you're there during a heat wave -- and it can get very hot in central Umbria in June!) Also, a beautiful swimming pool.

Todi is a lovely town, but I think that the area is not quite as interesting, and not nearly as central, as the Bevagna-Spello-Montefalco-Assisi region.

And I've driven to Norcia from Genius Loci, it's only about an hour's drive (maybe 90 minutes) and Michael Tacconi at Genius Loci can give you some good ideas about things to see around Norcia.

iamq

Oh thanks so much sacc! What a great recommendation.

What category of room did you stay in, and what is the basic difference in the two room categories? My guess is size and view?

Thanks again for helping to make the decision a bit easier.

sacc

Hi iamq,

I think you're right -- the main difference between the classic doubles and the deluxe doubles at Genius Loci seems to be in terms of size and views.

I was traveling alone, so I had a classic double room which is a bit smaller than the deluxe rooms, but still much larger and well-appointed than many hotel rooms in Europe (which tend to be small.) Actually, as a single traveller, I always book double rooms for single use because the price is usually not much higher than a single room price but double rooms are invariable much better.

Anyway, my classic double at GL still had good views and lots of light. I had windows on two sides, including a large bathroom window. These gave me decent views over the pool area towards the valley towards the north. But I think the deluxe rooms would have even better views of the valley and all the hilltowns I mentioned earlier.

On the Genius Loci website, there are photos of different rooms and my room is shown in the 3rd view, a large (perhaps queen-sized) bed, windows on two walls, a really lovely large 3-cornered antique wardrobe that snugged into the corner) a large dressing table and chair and a very big bathroom. So you can see that even classic rooms are beautifully decorated and are a very good size with lots of light and windows.

I'll be returning to GL for several days this spring, since I really love this part of Umbria. There is so much to see and do that I keep going back!

BTW, nearby Bevagna has a remarkable medieval festival, very authentic, each June. You might want to check into that, it's great fun.

Good luck with your travel planning.

iamq

Thanks again!

Il Mercato delle Gaite in Bevagna is on my list of things to do while in the area. I'd also like to see the flower street art thing that is done in Spello if the timing is right.