Twenty-five minutes for Orvieto and its Cathedral. Thirty-five for Cetona, intimate Tuscany. An hour and Rome is there. In the evening you always come back to the hamlet.
The village where the hamlet is located. Panoramic view over the Umbrian-Tuscan countryside, medieval alley, excellent local restaurants and a small market 5 min away for everyday shopping.
The Cathedral, the Underground, St Patrick's Well. Orvieto Classico DOC cellars carved into the tufo.
Medieval hamlet of Perugino. Town gallery, Palazzo della Corgna, Italy's narrowest alley.
Castiglione del Lago, Polvese Island, Maggiore Island. Lake fish, historical regatta in September.
Tuscan hamlet on the hill, Mount Cetona, Belverde — prehistoric caves with rock carvings.
UNESCO heritage, the "ideal city" of Pius II. Pecorino DOP to taste at the dairy.
Vino Nobile DOCG, Piazza Grande, historic cellars carved into the tufo. Set of "Twilight" and "Under the Tuscan Sun".
Thermal waters in the heart of Val d'Orcia. The 16th-century pool in place of the square; free hot springs at the Mills Park.
The "dying town" perched on a tufo cliff, reachable only on foot via a pedestrian bridge. Some of Italy's most photographed sunsets.
Europe's largest volcanic lake. Free beaches, Castello Monaldeschi, Basilica of Saint Cristina, lake fish in local restaurants.
Piazza IV Novembre, Fontana Maggiore, National Gallery of Umbria, Rocca Paolina. October: Eurochocolate; July: Umbria Jazz.
UNESCO heritage. The Basilica of Saint Francis with Giotto's frescoes, the Rocca Maggiore, the Temple of Minerva. The birthplace of the Saint.
Historic centre reachable in a day via A1. Train from Orvieto in 1h: arrive at Termini in time for lunch.
Destination photos courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY / CC-BY-SA licensed). Hamlet photos are property of Borgo Santa Maria.
An 8-hour itinerary in Orvieto starting from Borgo Santa Maria (25 min by car): Duomo, Orvieto Underground, St Patrick's Well, lunch in the historic centre and Orvieto Classico DOC tasting.
A day trip into northern Lazio from Borgo Santa Maria: the volcanic Lake Bolsena with the basilica of its eucharistic miracle, and Civita di Bagnoregio — the 'dying town' suspended on its tufa crag. 100 km in total, and landscapes that stay with you.
An 8-hour itinerary in Assisi from Borgo Santa Maria (1h15 by car): the Basilica of St Francis with Giotto's frescoes, the Temple of Minerva, the Rocca Maggiore, lunch in the old town and the Eremo delle Carceri.
A one-day itinerary through the UNESCO-listed Val d'Orcia starting from Borgo Santa Maria: Pienza and its DOP pecorino, Montepulciano and the Vino Nobile DOCG cellars, Bagno Vignoni and its great sixteenth-century pool. 130 km in 8 hours, at a human pace.
The short trip par excellence from Borgo Santa Maria: 20 km, 25 minutes. A town built entirely of red brick, birthplace of Perugino, with his Adoration of the Magi in the Oratory of Santa Maria dei Bianchi, the Palazzo della Corgna and Vicolo Baciadonne, barely half a metre wide.
