Umbria & Southern Tuscany
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UMBRIA & SOUTHERN TUSCANY GEMS OF CENTRAL ITALY MAY 8-21, 2021 TOUR LEADER: DR NICK GORDON Pienza, Tuscany UMBRIA & Overview SOUTHERN TUSCANY GEMS OF CENTRAL ITALY Umbria and Southern Tuscany are home to many of Italy’s most charming medieval towns, such as Montefalco and Pienza, and elegant regional Tour dates: May 8-21, 2021 centres, such as Spoleto, Perugia and Arezzo. These regions are also celebrated for the beauty of their landscapes, from the verdant valleys and Tour leader: Dr Nick Gordon mountain forests of Umbria to the rolling hills and vineyards of southern Tuscany, and the prized cuisines and exceptional wines these lands Tour Price: $7,790 per person, twin share produce. Single Supplement: $1,670 for sole use of Yet these regions are also home to extraordinary masterpieces of double room medieval and Renaissance art and architecture, and a host of ancient sites that are not marred by mass tourism. This 14-day tour explores Booking deposit: $1,000 per person these regions in depth, from their Etruscan and Roman past at Carsulae Recommended airline: Emirates, Etihad and Rusellae, through their medieval glory at Spoleto and Assisi, and on Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qatar and Singapore to Renaissance masterpieces by Benozzo Gozzoli, Piero della Francesca Airlines and Filippo Lippi. Maximum places: 20 The preservation of the past is felt everywhere in these regions, and is as equally present in rich artisanal traditions, such as stained glass in Itinerary: Spoleto (3 nights), Perugia (4 nights), Perugia and majolica in Deruta, as it is in the elegance and gentle pace of Arezzo (3 nights), Pienza (3 nights) provincial capitals and cultural centres that are rarely found in major cities. With three and four-night stays in Spoleto, Perugia, Arezzo and Pienza, Date published: May 13, 2020 the tour allows you to enjoy the best these regions have to offer in the relaxing manner they deserve. Your tour leader Dr Nick Gordon is a cultural historian and artist with over 10 years’ experience leading small group cultural tours to Italy. Nick holds a University Medal and PhD in history from the University of Sydney. He taught at universities in Sydney for 10 years, and continues to lecture on art and history for the Nicholson Museum, WEA, Hazelhurst Regional Gallery, and as part of Academy Travel’s lecture series in Sydney and Melbourne. He has developed and led numerous new tours to Italy for Academy Travel, as well as art- focused tours to Europe, Australia and Asia. Nick’s academic background is complemented by the deep, hands-on understanding of art he has as an artist, and he brings his passion for art, history and travel to his tours. Enquiries and bookings “Dr Nick Gordon gave us such insight into the culture of Italian For further information and to life as well as politics, religion and food! Such a good, caring man.” secure a place on this tour – Feedback from a tour participant on Easter in Umbria & Tuscany, please contact Lynsey Jenkins March 2018 at Academy Travel on 9235 0023 or 1800 639 699 (outside Sydney) or email [email protected] Tour Highlights MEDIEVAL HILL TOWNS Umbria and southern Tuscany are littered with rocky outcrops that stand above the fertile plains, which have made easily defensible settlements. Many of these have been occupied since the Etruscan period, but most were dramatically redeveloped in the Middle Ages, with winding laneways, market squares and Romanesque and Gothic churches. Explore these beautiful towns at a relaxed pace. RENAISSANCE MASTERPIECES While major galleries such as the Uffizi are brimming with Renaissance art, there are amazing pieces beyond the major galleries, many of which are still in situ. The tour takes you to admire some of the finest masterpieces by the likes of Benozzo Gozzoli, Filippo Lippi, Pinturicchio, Signorelli and Perugino, and along the Piero della Francesca trail around Arezzo. HIDDEN HISTORIES When travelling around Italy, it is hard not to be struck by just how much cultural wealth is around every corner. Discover the hidden histories of Umbria and southern Tuscany, from unexpected Roman and Etruscan sites, to masterpieces in small churches, and a long history of cultural diversity: Umbrians, Etruscans, Romans, Lombards, French knights, German emperors, Syrian monks and much more. EXCEPTIONAL REGIONAL CUISINES Umbria and southern Tuscany, while contiguous, have very different microclimates and these produce quite pronounced contrasts in food and wine. Enjoy local cuisines throughout the tour, from the truffles of Umbria to the prized pecorino of Pienza, and sample some of Italy’s most highly acclaimed wines, such as Brunello di Montalcino and Sagrantino di Montefalco. A DIFFERENT ITALY Provincial Italy has much to offer travellers who are keen to see beyond the major cities. Life moves at a different pace, the passeggiata is performed in the city centre, and artisanal traditions live on. The tour also takes you to the source of many of Italy’s traditional, handmade goods, including the majolica of Deruta, the linen of Montefalco and stained glass of Perugia. Detailed itinerary Included meals are shown with the symbols B, L and D. Tour start & finish time The tour begins at 3.00pm on Saturday 8 May, at Rome Fiumicino airport. The tour ends at 12.00pm on Friday 21 May, at Rome Fiumicino airport. Saturday 8 May Arrival The group gathers at Rome Fiumicino airport in the mid- afternoon for a coach transfer to Spoleto. On arrival in Spoleto, we take time to freshen up before taking a short walking tour of the city followed by dinner in a local restaurant. Overnight Spoleto (D) Sunday 9 May Ancient Umbria Umbria was one of the first territories conquered by the Above: the remains of a Roman gatehouse and Roman road at Carsulae, a town founded in the 3rd century BCE to protect Rome’s Romans, and its rich agricultural lands and reserves of metal interests in Umbria’s fertile plains and rich mineral deposits would fuel the expanding republic. Indeed the road to Umbria – the Via Flaminia – is still used in Umbria and in Rome, where it Below: one of the rose windows of Spoleto’s Romanesque cathedral, runs all the way to the Capitoline Hill. Today we explore supported by telemons and surrounded by the symbols of the Evangelists Umbria’s Roman past, first by taking a guided tour of Carsulae, one of central Italy’s best preserved Roman archaeological sites, and the Roman cisterns beneath the town of Amelia, a testament to Roman engineering. After lunch at a fine local restaurant, we continue exploring Rome’s legacy with a visit to Marmore Falls, a large mountain reservoir made in the Roman period to regulate the flow of water in Umbria and modernised in the 20th century as a dam and hydroelectric station. Our tour continues to the Nera Valley, which was a key border in the early Middle Ages when Spoleto became a Lombard duchy, to visit San Pietro in Valle, a quiet Romanesque abbey where the Lombard dukes retired. Returning to Spoleto, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Spoleto (B, L) Monday 10 May Spoleto Spoleto’s strategic importance – on a high hill guarding the southern entry to Umbria – has resulted in it having rich layers of history, preserving the many different ages of its inhabitation. Today, after a talk in the hotel, we take a walking tour of the city, exploring its Roman remains through to its glorious medieval churches and Renaissance masterpieces, including Filippo Lippi’s last work – it is thought he was poisoned in Spoleto in the late 1400s. After a break for lunch, we visit Monteluco, the mountain behind Spoleto which has had spiritual significance to the Umbrians, Romans and Franciscans. On reaching the summit by minibus, we visit the Sacred Wood, the Franciscan hermitage and enjoy the panoramic views across the Valley of Umbria. Returning to Spoleto, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Spoleto. (B) Tuesday 11 May Spello and Montefalco Umbria’s smaller hill towns are among Italy’s best-preserved medieval towns, and their location well off the highway between Florence and Rome keeps tourist numbers down. This morning we visit Spello, to take a walking tour of the town, including the frescoes by Pinturicchio – Raphael’s master – in the Collegiate Church, and the Villa of Mosaics, which houses extensive Roman floor mosaics discovered by accident in 2005. We continue by coach to Montefalco, where we enjoy lunch together, before visiting the Museum of St Francis, a former church with spectacular frescoes by Benozzo Gozzoli. After some free time in Montefalco, we continue by coach to Perugia, our base for the next four nights. Overnight Perugia (B, L) Wednesday 12 May Perugia Perugia guards the northern pass into Umbria and has a fascinating history, from Etruscan origins to a bustling medieval city state, and its renewal as a contemporary centre of culture. This morning we explore the city’s history on foot, including visits to the Collegio di Cambio – a medieval guildhouse with Renaissance frescoes by local boy Perugino – and the Gothic Cathedral of San Lorenzo. After a break for lunch, we visit the National Gallery of Umbria, with its masterpieces of medieval and Renaissance art. The later afternoon is at leisure, and you may wish to visit the National Museum of Umbria to see its archaeological collection. Overnight Perugia. (B) Thursday 13 May Assisi Top: The Dispute with the Doctors, one of Pinturicchio’s frescoes in In spite of its fame, Assisi retains a strongly spiritual atmosphere the Baglione Chapel of the Collegiate Church in Spello which gives it a special place among medieval Italian hill towns.