Umbria

Umbria, for years known as Tuscany’s less alluring sister, has finally come into its own. These days the ‘green heart’ of Italy enjoys a new-found and wholly-deserved status as the region that gives a more authentic Italian experience. With less tourists than its more celebrated sister Tuscany, Umbria retains a charm that is typically Italian. Food, wine, art culture and architecture are the equal of any in Italy, and there is the same glorious pastoral scenery as in Tuscany – the olive groves, vineyards , cypress-topped hills and coronets of intimate hill towns to visit. The countryside is at its best in May, garlanded with flowers and spring green, and blessed with balmy weather. Known as ‘la terra dei santi’ or ‘land of the saints’ after the hundreds of saints born here, St Valentine, St Francis and St Benedict to name but three, Umbria exudes an almost mystical quality that is unparalleled by anywhere else in Italy.