We will be traveling from Siena to Bari and are looking for two interesting/beautiful cities along the way...perhaps one in Umbria and one in Abruzzi (along the coast). I would appreciate any suggestions.

Cathie, <BR> <BR>I just spent three weeks driving Umbria last month. What are you looking for in a city? Culinary or art interests? Both? <BR> <BR>I particularly liked Assisi and Spoleto, and can recommend some nice hotels/restaurants there...let me know. <BR>Best, <BR>Wendy

For Wendy <BR> <BR>We're going to Italy in October and plan to spend three nights in Umbria. I've been looking at the area between Assisi (not in the city of Assisi) and Trevi, not too far off the beaten track, but away from the highway noise. We like agriturismo or B and B lodging for up to 200,000 lire/night. I've checked a bunch of the web sites for the area. Haven't yet found anything that clicks. We'll definitely have a car. Any ideas? <BR> <BR>I enjoy your contributions to this board.

Hello Cathie, <BR> <BR>If you're looking for places for an overnight stop, my choice in Umbria would definitely be Assisi, which is a gem! A city on your route which is well worth a visit is Ascoli Piceno. <BR> <BR>I don't know the Abruzzo coast very well, - my choice for a coastal stop would be the Gargano Peninsular (north of Manfredonia), in Puglia. <BR> <BR>From my knowledge of Abruzzo, I think the inland cities (e.g. Sulmona, L'Aquila) have much more of interest than the coastal ones, though these may be off you're route. <BR> <BR>I hope this helps... <BR> <BR>Steve

Wendy- <BR> <BR>Can you elaborate on your 3 weeks in Umbria? Where did you stay? We're looknig for a villa where we can take cooking lessons (however, not the expensive cooking in Tuscany classes that are being advertised so much here in the states..i.e. 2500 for the week).

I would recommend Spoleto. My wife and I enjoyed it much more than Assisi. Dont get me wrong...Assis is great, but Spoleto is amazing. There is a great historic bridge that you can cross on foot. The path on the other side winds through the hills. It is an awesome walk, not too tough, very scenic. <BR> <BR>Stay at the Hotel Gattapone. This was our favorite of all of Italy's hotels. Funky but classy interior. The hotel is set right on the hillside overlooking the valley. We were there in May. Poppies blooming, could not be more stunning. The town has some great restaurants. I do not have the names, but we got all recommendations from the hotel clerks. <BR> <BR>Good luck. <BR> <BR>Zomby Woof

Thanks for the comments about Assisi and Spoleto. My girlfriend & I are going to be in Rome and we're contemplating a day or overnight trip to one or two places in Umbria. Both of these towns had sounded very appealing, along with Orvieto.

We loved Orvieto and stayed at Locanda Rosati (they have a web site) and the cost of a <BR>double room is 180000£ for B&B or 130000£ for half board. <BR> <BR>email: Locanda Rosati &lt;[email protected]&gt;