Travel guide - Umbria, Marche | Petit Futé

Ideas for a stay, practical advice and addresses are offered in this guide to Umbria and the Marches (Italy).

All the inhabitants of Umbria say it: “We have nothing to envy to Tuscany. If the Renaissance was not born in Perugia, but in Florence, it must be recognized that this territory enclosed between luxuriant nature, graceful landscapes and cities of art are not lacking in assets. Today's Umbria offers a striking marriage between the tradition of the land and the richness of its villages. In the center of Italy and recognized as being its green lung, Umbria has always been an obligatory stage of the armies which have agitated History; A plethora of villages have risen there, protected by ramparts and other medieval walls, on the sides of the Apennines massif. Among the most famous cities, Perugia of course, a dynamic university centre, the capital of the region contains many architectural treasures such as vestiges from the Etruscan period, further south Assisi is an essential stopover for admiring frescoes by Giotto in the Basilica and walk in the footsteps of Saint Francis of Assisi. In the extension of Umbria, the Marches take shape, a neighboring region strangely little visited. Yet nature has given this rectangular area what it has best: the sea (180 km of coast), the plain, hills and rugged and wild mountains. Its name, which dates back to the High Middle Ages, refers to the lands which were dominated by the Markgraven, the marquises who ruled on behalf of the German emperors who repelled the Lombards to the south and the Byzantines to the north. Here too there are many discoveries between Ancona, historic port of the Adriatic between West and East, the Conero Park known for its pine forest and its large cliffs where beautiful beaches with fine sand are buried under lush vegetation or even the ducal city of Urbino and the Renaissance atmosphere of its cobbled streets. No doubt, it is the vibrant heart of Italy that Petit Futé invites you to discover with this Umbria - Marches guide.