Itineraries for Your Trip to Assisi
3 Days in Assisi for Foodies
Assisi’s biggest draws are its medieval old town and 13th-century Basilica of St. Francis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that celebrates the town’s most famous resident. Though these cultural gems are what first inspired me to visit decades ago, it was the local food that had me coming back for more.
Assisi sits in the heart of Umbria, a rural region long known for its excellent farm-to-table cuisine. Rich extra-virgin olive oil, bold red and crisp white wines, aromatic truffles and wild mushrooms, plus hand-rolled pasta and artisan cheeses and charcuterie await gourmands in the rustic trattorias and farm restaurants in and around Assisi. Here’s how to discover the best of Assisi’s traditional food and wine in three days.
Bring wet-weather gear if visiting from October through April, when Assisi gets abundant rainfall.
If you only have time for one thing, make it a visit to the wineries around Montefalco.
Check out Giotto’s frescoes in the Basilica of Saint Francis and then head out to discover a delightfully atmospheric historic center thick with artisan workshops and gourmet food markets. Sample goodies like local olive oil and wine and slivers of aged sheep cheese along Assisi’s winding lanes.
Connect with a local host this afternoon for a hands-on home cooking class. Roll up your sleeves and get to work shaping and cutting fresh pasta like a true nonna (grandmother) and learn the secrets to preparing traditional sauces from Assisi. Then, relax and enjoy the meal you made around the family table.
Explore beyond Assisi’s city walls by car or with a driving tour. Stroll through the woods with a local forager to hunt wild truffles as locals have for centuries. Afterward, sample your spoils over lunch with delicacies like truffle-laced frittata and fresh tagliatelle tossed with grated truffle.
Assisi’s hills are known for their silvery olive groves. The hillsides here are called the gold coast both for the color and value of the area’s oil. Visit a local olive farm and mill and pick up tips on how to judge the quality of olive oil for yourself during a guided tasting.
This morning, take a trip to the neighboring city of Perugia, home to one of Italy’s great chocolatiers. Visit the chocolate museum and factory and learn about the Perugina chocolate company’s history spanning more than a century. Before you leave, take a stroll through the city’s spectacular old town to marvel at its Etruscan walls and medieval palaces.
No culinary jaunt to Assisi would be complete without sampling the assertive, tannic Sagrantino di Montefalco wine, made only in this tiny corner of Italy. Put aside some time this afternoon to visit a local winery and learn about Montefalco’s winemaking culture.
