annw

Thanks TD -- looking forward to your report!

annw

Toppping this thread for Maude --

We had a good stay at Fortuna, which has a great rooftop lounge with views; Internet access somewhat limited, and the staff civil if not the warmest. Cute little balconies from most of the rooms. Well located.

We took the train to Perugia (from Florence), then for our initial trip took a taxi up the hill to the hotel; after that first trip we used the shuttle/funicular cars up and down between the town and the train station. The interesting old town center inside the walls is uphill; I haven't done much exploring down below. There's a station stop by the university (lower area) so don't confuse it with the main station near town.

Perugia has a wonderful passagiata, excellent restaurants, gorgeous views! Don't miss the subtle escalators--they aren't obvious--that are inside the lovely ancient walls; one is right across from the Hotel Brufani. There are a couple of excellent museums too, and a 7th century church north end of the town. The fountain at the far end of the main drag, away from the Brufani/Fortuna end, is quite the gathering place. I found wonderful shopping on the main drag and nearby side streets (a Prada bag on sale, linen kitchen towels).

I'll check my notes/papers for more specific suggestions.

Maudie

Hi annw,

Thank you so much for topping this for me and taking the time to add in the extra information. I have TDudette's report bookmarked and thought that Perugia seemed like a perfect base for us to do some exploring and now with your notes we can happily settle on the town and the hotel.

We won't be going until April 2011 (we have 8 weeks, 4 in Italy & 4 in the UK at this stage) but I have started researching (love doing this part!) to see what we can achieve and what is feasible - especially on trains and buses. I am starting to get a good idea of what our "Italian" itinerary might look like.

So thank you again annw, you have been really helpful, I just love the community spirit on this board.

Maudie

annw

You're very welcome Maudie and it sounds like a *wonderful* trip! I look forward to seeing more about it as it evolves.

I've been to Perugia twice now, as well as Assisi, Spello, Orvieto (was sorry to miss Gubbio, Todi, and the like), and really like Umbria; I'm always glad to see others encountering its subtle charms.

Maudie

Hi Ann,

When we leave Rome I am thinking that we could train to Orvieto and hopefully dump our bags at the station (yet to confirm this part) and have lunch there before we head off to Perugia so we don't miss it.

Too many wonderful places, so little time!

annw

Orvieto sounds like a great stop! I wish I had checked at the station for storage because there have been several questions here about that (I stayed over). There's a funicular right from the station up the hill as you may have learned, and then I think there was a bus ride up the rest of the way that stopped right in front of the Duomo; I think the funicular ticket may also cover the short bus ride. There are a number of good restaurants; I don't recall the name of the lunch place I went to; on the main drag, outside tables, excellent pasta. However, the dinner restaurant I tried was Vinosus, which was also excellent, and is adjacent to the Duomo, to the left of the Duomo as you face it. But there's also another well known restaurant in that small campo/piazza to the left of the Duomo; I'm sure there are some posts about Orvieto restaurants. If you drink wine, it's fun to have the Orvieto white wine in Orvieto (since you don't have to drive down the hill, LOL!)

Maudie

I found a post from last month that someone kindly updated after their trip - no storage at the station itself but a nearby hotel does offer a service. So that's good news.

Thanks for the directions too, I will print them out and add them to my every growing Perugia file as well as checking out restaurants. And yes we do drink wine, sounds like we are in for a nice lunch. Roll on 2011!

Thanks so much for your help Ann, I really appreciate it.
Best wishes.

wanderfully

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