Living Umbria: Food, Wine & Culture Tour | May 24 – June 1, 2027

Discover the region we now call home—Umbria, a place of quiet beauty still untouched by tourist crowds.

Where You’ll Stay
Your base for the week is the Hotel Priori Secret Garden, a four-star boutique hotel in the heart of Perugia’s historic center. The city’s best cafes, restaurants, and architecture are right outside your door. On your second evening, we’ll host you for aperitivo on our own terrace — which sits on top of a third-century BC Etruscan gate. It’s one of our favorite spots in the world.

Who This Tour Is For
This journey is for you if you want to experience Italy differently. If you care less about checking off sights and more about how a place feels. If you value convivial meals, meaningful conversation, and the kind of experiences that are chosen with intention. Join us if you want to step into daily life and experience Umbria as our special guest. 

Why This Tour Feels Different
Past guests have told us that this doesn’t feel like a tour but more like being part of our lives. That’s exactly how we want you to feel. This is not a tour with a bucket list of Instagram moments to create FOMO for your friends back home. It’s a slower, more personal way of experiencing Italy. 

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Duration: 8 nights
Base: Perugia, with day trips to Assisi, Spello, Deruta and Orvieto 
Price: €4,600 per person (shared double) | Single supplement €500 
What’s Included: Accommodation, daily breakfast, 4 lunches, 5 dinners, all activities, transport for daily activities, and all entrance fees 
What’s Not included: Airfare and airport transfers on arrival. Optional gratuities
Please note: This tour involves walking at a relaxed pace on uneven cobblestones, hills, and stone stairs. It is not suitable for guests with mobility issues. Dietary requirements can be accommodated with advance notice.

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Day to Day Itinerary

(Arrive on May 24 and depart on June 1)

Day 1: Arrival in Perugia

Today is your arrival day in Umbria. You’ll be welcomed at your home base for the week, the boutique Hotel Priori Secret Garden. Located in the historical center of Perugia, the hotel is steps from shops, museums, cafes, and historical attractions. At the hotel’s rooftop bar, you can enjoy an afternoon drink with views over the city. Drop your bags and have an afternoon stroll or grab lunch on Perugia’s main Corso. Later, you’ll have time to relax before getting to know your fellow travelers at an evening meet and greet, followed by dinner.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Welcome Aperitivo/Light Dinner

Day 2: Perugia Food Tour and Artisan Weaving

Today, we’ll explore Perugia on our Taste Perugia food tour. As we stroll through medieval streets and alleyways, we’ll stop for tastings along the route. You’ll be struck by the beauty of this ancient city and by the delicious simplicity of Umbrian food. We’ll meet the local restaurant and shop owners we’ve known for years and learn about the history of Perugia as we sip and taste our way around town. Later today, we’ll visit with our friend, Marta Cucchia, a fourth-generation weaver. Marta’s studio is a former hermitage built by St. Francis and his disciples in 1212. This characteristic location now houses the Giuditta Brozzetti Museum Workshop, one of Italy’s last surviving hand-weaving workshops. Here, Marta still weaves on the original working looms from the 18th and 19th centuries. After our experience, we’ll have free time to relax before a light dinner/aperitivo on our terrace, which sits on top of a 3rd-century BC Etruscan gate.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Aperitivo

Day 3: Cooking Class at a Local Winery

After breakfast, we’ll head to a beautiful winery just 30 minutes outside Perugia for a cooking class to make traditional pasta shapes and fillings in the winery’s state-of-the-art DeManicor kitchen. Chef Jacopo and his staff will conduct this hands-on class and answer all your questions about Umbrian food. During the class, we’ll have finger food and wine. The meal you have made will be served downstairs in the Vineria accompanied by a sommelier-guided tasting of Carmine Estate wines. In the afternoon, you’ll have free time in Perugia with dinner on your own.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 4: Assisi

Today we’ll head to Assisi. The birthplace of Saint Francis and Saint Claire, the city is the spiritual heart of Umbria. You’ll visit Assisi’s majestic Basilica, a UNESCO World Heritage site, that stands above the valley and offers panoramic views in every direction. The basilica, a religious pilgrimage site, is the final resting place of Saint Francis and is famous for its series of Giotto frescoes depicting his life. We’ll have a short tour of the Basilica and Assisi’s main points of interest before free time to meander, shop, and have lunch on your own. Next, we’ll stop at a local winery in the Assisi DOC. Here, we’ll be welcomed by a mother and daughter for a private tour and tasting of their organic wines, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar served with an aperitivo of local cheeses and snacks. Later in the day, we’ll return to Perugia with free time before dinner on your own.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Breakfast, Aperitivo

Day 5: Deruta Pottery and Torgiano Wines

This morning, we’ll stop in Deruta to tour a family-owned ceramics studio where the ceramics are still hand made by talented artisans. The owner, Michele, will show us the process of creating their Majolica ceramics, from forming the clay, firing, glazing, to stenciling and painting. After a bit of free time in Deruta, we’ll stop for lunch at an organic winery in the heart of the Torgiano DOCG wine region. We will tour the property with Susan’s friend, Federico, whose title at the winery is “Resident Visionary.” Federica, whose energy and welcoming personality are immediately evident, will show us around the property before lunch, paired with wine.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Truffle Hunting with a Local Family

Today we’ll hunt for truffles on a farm where Francesca’s family has lived off the land since the 1400s. When we have enough of this local delicacy to make lunch, we’ll stop in a panoramic spot and have our first taste of a freshly dug truffle with scrambled eggs (an Umbrian favorite) and a glass or two of Prosecco. After our hunt, you can lend a hand to Francesca while she makes fresh pasta or simply sit back and watch as you enjoy homemade snacks, pecorino cheese, and loads of local wine. When the pasta is made, we’ll sit down to a traditional Umbrian meal where all of the recipes have a distinctly ‘wild’ flavor. Family and friends from the village often join us for this relaxing, fun, and authentic lunch. In the afternoon, we’ll head back to Perugia for free time and dinner on your own.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 7: Perugia Chocolate + The Infiorata in Spello

This morning we’ll do a chocolate experience at Perugia’s newest museum—Città del Cioccolato (Chocolate City). After our experience, you’ll be free to wander the museum to learn about the origins of cocoa, walk through a chocolate forest, and follow the history of chocolate that comes to life through beautiful display panels, multimedia displays and unique collections of chocolate ppackaging and memorabilia. After our vist, you’ll have free time to relax and have lunch on your own before our late afternoon departure for Spello. Once in Spello, we’ll enjoy a special evening of magic as the entire town prepares for The Infiorata. This unique festival transforms the streets of this ancient town into a vibrant art installation using millions of fresh flower petals. We’ll have time to wander and shop the many artisan boutiques—many of which stay open past midnight. Along the way, you’ll witness every resident of Spello creating breathtaking floral designs to be revealed the following morning in a religious procession to celebrate Corpus Domini. We’ll stop for dinner at a local restaurant before returning to Perugia in the late evening.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Priori Secret Garden

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 8: Sunday, June 7, 2026: Orvieto and Fiumicino

Today, we check out and head to Orvieto, a city with an ancient and mysterious atmosphere that soars above the surrounding valley, perched atop a tufa cliff. Your day includes a ticket to Orvieto’s magnificent Duomo, an example of Italian Gothic architecture, renowned for its striking facade and intricate detailing. You’ll have free time to meander in the many shops and beautiful piazzas before a short visit to the ancient laboratory of L’Orvietan. Our host, Lamberto, will tell us the story of this renowned, local amaro. This traditional herbal liqueur, steeped in history and crafted with a secret blend of local herbs, roots, and spices, was first concocted as a medicinal remedy in the 17th century. After lunch on your own, we’ll head to the port town of Fiumicino for a farewell dinner and an overnight stay at the 4-star Hotel Tiber.

Accommodation: 4-star Hotel Tiber Fiumicino

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 9: Departure

Today is your departure day. After breakfast at our hotel, we’ll say arrivederci until our next adventure in La Bel Paese. A free shuttle to Rome Fiumicino is included.

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Please Note

1. Although every effort is made to adhere to the stated tour, our itinerary is subject to change at any time due to unforeseen circumstances beyond the control of Via del Vino, LLC and its travel providers. A non-refundable deposit is due at the time of booking to secure your spot.
2. Our Umbria tour uses a boutique property with a mix of rooms that are all unique and may vary in size and amenities. Rooms are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis according to need (doubles vs twin beds vs single supplement). Single supplement rooms are limited. Please let us know if you need twin beds.

Physical Requirements of This Tour:

• Walking unassisted at a relaxed pace on uneven pavements, hills, and stone stairs with only short breaks
• Standing for 1 or 2 hours for walking tours with only short breaks and limited seating available
• Getting on and off the minibus unassisted
• This tour is not suitable for guests with mobility issues

What’s Included:

• 8-Nights accommodation
• Transportation for all daily activities
• Daily breakfast
• 4 lunches, 4 dinners, and 2 aperitivi all include wine
• 1 cooking class, 1 cheesemaking class, 1 Artisan Chocolate Experience
• 2 Winery visits
• 2 Artisan Visits
• Entrance fees to the Basilica in Assisi and the Cathedral of Orvieto

What’s Not Included:

• Airfare
• Airport transfers on arrival (can be provided for an additional cost)
• Cash tips for local guides (optional)

Note: Additional nights before the tour start can be arranged for an extra cost.