Norman E. Haighton (reader) Northumberland, UK: "I have read most of the guides to Tuscany and Umbria and used several. None of them come anywhere near the Rough Guide for comprehensive cover. Where the others describe only the big attractions, the Rough Guide gives ample detail on those plus a wealth of information on smaller, out-of-the-way and less visited places of interest. I have used it for three visits and it has never let me down." Vogue: "A down-to-earth guide with reliable recommendations." Sunday Telegraph, London: "The best guidebook."
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
When to go
Midsummer in central Italy is not as pleasant an experience as you might imagine: the heat can be stifling, and from May to September you'll require luck to find accommodation in all but the most out-of-the-way spots. If at all possible, the month to avoid is August, when the great majority of Italians take their holidays. As a result many town restaurants and some hotels are closed for the entire month and the beaches are jammed solid. As the standard Italian idea of an enjoyable summer break is to spend a few weeks towel-to-towel on the sand, Umbria escapes the worst of the rush, but the problem of limited opening remains.
Florence throughout the summer is such a log jam of tour groups that the major attractions become a purgatorial experience - a two-hour queue for the Uffizi is not unusual. To enjoy a visit fully, go there shortly before Easter or in the late autumn - times of the year that are the best for Tuscany and Umbria as a whole, as the towns are quieter and the countryside is blossoming or taking on the tones of the harvest season. The Umbrian climate is slightly more extreme than Tuscany's, chiefly because of its distance from the sea; temperatures in summer are fractionally higher, while the hill-top locales of many towns can make them surprisingly windy and cool at other times. Winter is often quite rainy, but the absence of crowds makes this a good option for the cities on the major art trails. Bear in mind, however, that the high altitude of much of the region means many roads are impassable in midwinter, and in places like the upper Casentino or the Sibillini the snow might not melt until March or even April.
Festivals
It's always worth checking when each town has its festivals or pilgrimages. Accommodation is always tricky during these mini peak seasons, but some of the festivities are enjoyable enough to merit planning a trip around. Many have been crucial to their town's image for centuries - the most celebrated of these being the Siena Palio, a hell-for-leather horse race round the central square. The frenzy of Gubbio's semi-pagan Corsa dei Ceri almost matches it, as does the passionate commitment of Florence's Calcio Storico, a football match in medieval attire with no holds barred. Costumed jousts and other martial displays are a feature of several festive calendars, notable examples being the jousts in Pistoia and Arezzo, and the twice-yearly crossbow competitions between Gubbio and Sansepolcro. Holy days and saint's days bring in the crowds in equal numbers, with Assisi leading the way as the most venerated site.
Among the innumerable arts festivals, the highest profiles are achieved by the contemporary arts extravaganza in Spoleto, the Umbria Jazz festival in Perugia and the Maggio Musicale in more conservative Florence - but as with the more folkloric events, even the smallest towns have their cultural stagione. Finally, there's scarcely a hamlet in Tuscany or Umbria that doesn't have a food or wine festival, the region seeming to find an excuse to celebrate almost everything that breathes or grows. Appealing mainly to the local population and often lasting for just a day, these events place less stress on the hotels, though it might be a good idea to book a room if you're dropping by - fountains running with wine and other such excesses are pretty common.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best guide I have ever bought!,
By "bashkar" (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Rough Guide to Tuscany & Umbria, 4th Edition (Paperback)
After tooking a 2-month off sabbatical at my job, I decided to spend some time driving all around Italy, and I can't thank this guide enough. It has all the information someone needs for traveling in Tuscany and Umbria, the two most fascinating regions in Italy (ok, the Amalfi Coast is great too). All cities are described in detail, from the historical background to what to see and what to do. This guide allowed me to do exactly what I wanted: to hit the road, stop by somewhere (Trasimeno Lake, the Orvieto hill, San Gimignano Film Festival) and just decide what the next stop would be. The author has a hilarious and superb style to describe anything, from the Cathedral in Orvieto to the paintings in Assisi and the pottery in Gubbio. Gold medal to the chapter about San Gimignano... After this, I have bought Rough Guides for all my trips.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fabulous Guide,
By Farb Dannon (Manhattan, Kansas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Rough Guide to Tuscany & Umbria, 4th Edition (Paperback)
Of all the guidebooks I've ever used, this one is the best. Extenstive information not only for the main tourist attractions in the area, but also good information for the smaller out of the way towns. This books is utterly thorough and accurate. The information on art and its historical background is significant and comprehensive. It's well organized and easy to use. And it pointed us to great restaurants. This guidebook literally contains two or three times as much information as the other ones. I couldn't be more enthusiastic. By the way, if you're going to rural Tuscany and Umbria, you'll have a fabulous trip and this book will make it even better.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Tour Book,
By "texasbookguy" (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Rough Guide to Tuscany & Umbria, 4th Edition (Paperback)
My wife and I used this book extensively on a 10-day tour of Tuscany and Umbria. Excellent mix of history and restaurant and lodging recommendations. A few drawbacks to the book. The first is that many of the restaurants were not marked on the maps and the directions given were incomplete. Another drawback that I found is that the hotel recommendations were inconsistent from city to city - Pisa had only budget hotels listed while Assisi had hotels across the range. But these are minor criticisms, overall an excellent book.
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