This summer was very hot. And in Italian towns with stone buildings the heat takes on other dimensions. But we sat under the shade of the trees in the courtyard and bathed in the almost cold pool of the hotel. Actually, that’s how we had planned it – some walking but mostly slow and pleasant moments, just the two of us with Mimi. Like in those very romantic movies about Tuscany, you know, but in Umbria.
This story will not show you all the sights of Umbria, but it will show you the green countryside of Italy, where tourists are fewer than Italians.
Why Umbria, and not Tuscany
In fact, Umbria and Tuscany share a common “border” which, you guessed it, doesn’t exist. Here, Umbria and Tuscany are just words, and food, wine and everything else are super intertwined. We are staying in Città della Pieve, a town 30 km from Montepulciano – a Tuscan town by all standards. But we will talk about Montepulciano at the end. In Umbria they also have pasta pici and drink Tuscan wines (unlike, in Tuscany, Umbrian wine is harder to find). They also have beautiful views because here you are always in the mountains and the towns are perched on the hills. It is also much cheaper and peaceful. This proximity and interconnection between the two regions makes the visit even more interesting and diverse.

Hotel Vannucci in Cita della Pieve.
And because it is significantly cheaper, we are staying in the most expensive hotel in the town of 7-8 thousand inhabitants. Hotel Vannucci may only be 4 stars , but it really is the best we’ve come across recently. Cozy rooms, a small fresh pool in the courtyard, many trees, a restaurant in the Michelin guide and Francesca’s breakfasts, the cakes she makes during the day for us to eat in the morning. Francesca didn’t speak English but we got along so well, she’s from Tuscany and a bit of Umbria. I told you things are wrapped up here. She taught us how to make pici (a type of pasta) and was very smiling to us in the morning.



If you decide to stay here we recommend Hotel Vannucci, but there are plenty of other options too.
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The hotel is lovely, by no means budget unless you have other ideas about budget, but it’s worth taking part in an “American cinema” type of adventure. A month before we left, Mimi and I looked at almost all the nicer hotels in Umbria and had a lot to choose from. The conditions – to be in a small town, to have a nice restaurant with a good chef, in this case Chef Vito Quarto . The hotel had to be one of those we like to write about, but also affordable for us. We liked a few, we wrote to them (to keep all the services we were interested in), some responded really inadequately, but the Vanucci’s were super nice and we immediately booked.

People often underestimate the place, where ” just to sleep”, but why shouldn’ t a trip be complete? Think, going somewhere and just seeing the sights is not the same, as taking your time at the concept the locals have created for food and accommodation. Well this is a personal opinion, but since you are here, we may share the same values.



The story of a hotel: love, kings, palaces…
I’m almost copying this from the Hotel Vanucci website. The story is typically Italian – love, kings, princes…

Hotel Vannucci is the project of Vittoria Spinola, one of the daughters, born of the relationship between King Vittorio Emmanuel II of Savoy and Rosa Vercellana, known as “Bella Rosina”. In 1868. Vitoria married Marquis Giacomo Filippo Spinola1 and had three children: Rosa, Vittorio Emanuele and Oberto. When her husband dies prematurely, the King insists that Victoria marry Giacomo ‘s brother Filippo, Marquis Luigi Domenico Spinola, who is now very old. The couple lived in Pisa in the Medici-Spinola palace, located in Lungarno Street.
Ferdinando de Simone, the Pisan intendant of the royal house, visited Victoria every month on business, but often the clerk brought with him one of his sons, Paolo, a handsome young man. Victoria fell in love at first sight. She left her husband and
ran away with her lover and children
In 1887. Vitoria, together with Paolo, arrived in Citta della Pieve, where she bought from the Dukes Bonelli the estate of Salci, a small Umbrian village. In Salci, Vittoria and Paolo started new projects: a pasta factory, greenhouses for the production of citrus fruits and exotic plants, as well as breeding thoroughbred horses. Vitoria was also dedicated to the production of candles and soaps.

Paolo later became mayor of Città della Pieve. In 1896, due to debts, Vitoria sold Salchi and other properties and from that moment on devoted herself to her great project. In 1897 Vittoria Spinola bought for her son Oberto a small house with a vegetable garden located outside Porta San Francesco. Thus began the Vannucci Gardens project, which consisted of the construction of two villas connected by a pavilion, greenhouses and a garden for the accommodation of wealthy Roman vacationers. Construction continued until the beginning of 1900. The two villas were named Vita and Mirafiori. The name Mirafiori derives from the noble title that King Vittorio Emanuele II gave Rosa and which she passed on to her children. In 1900, Victoria and Paolo got married and moved to Rome , where they lived in a modest apartment. She left her estates to her sons and gave Villa Mirafiori to her daughter Rosa, who married Roberto De Simone, Paolo’s brother.



Hotel Vannucci
In 1903 Roberto and Rosa opened Hotel Vannucci. Between 1907 and 1908 Roberto also became mayor of Città della Pieve and resigned soon after when Oberto, Vitoria’s son, won the contract to provide public lighting. In 1914 Roberto and Rosa moved to Rome and in 1919 sold their properties, including the Albergo Vannucci and the Villa Vitta, to Antonio Fe. Villa Vita later became the variety cinema “Vitoria”. In the following years, the hotel passed through different owners. In October 2018, the property was handed over to the Wirth family 2 . The most famous hotel of the family is Hotel Hassler in Rome . Going up the Spanish Steps you get right next to it, and on its sixth floor is the famous IMÀGO Restaurant with one Michelin star.
Where did the Umbria story go?
Excuse me, I get distracted, but this is when the hotel is an acting part of the narrative. And we are staying in this gem, standing in the garden waiting for the afternoon sun to go a bit down. The nice thing about July days is that they flow smoothly into July evenings. But let’s go back to the very beginning.

One of the inconveniences of Umbria is the lack of flights from Bulgaria. We fly from Sofia to Rome (Fiumicino) , where we take an electric car with which we go around the entire Rome on the ring road and cross from Lazio to Umbria. We thought we’d stop for a rest somewhere along the way, but our flight was delayed by more than five hours and it was already late. So we were driving on the road at night. We turned off the A1 just before entering Tuscany and the road climbs into the mountains. We arrived in Citta della Pieve after 10 p.m. It’s Friday, the city is full of life, music can be heard from several bars around us, young people are walking on the street. Vanucci is lit with lights everywhere, it’s almost cool. We check in, but we’re tired, this almost five hour layover at the airport has ruined our day, and we sink into the soft covers of the bed, listening to the noise of people outside.
Morning in Citta della Pieve
Andrey woke up early, it was quiet outside, he went put for a walk. it’s early and there’s just random people on the street. Andrey usually gets up early and likes to go somewhere to take pictures, while Mimi sleeps, so he went to another town nearby. It’s deserted there too, but it ‘s nice to see new places.

Mimi wakes up from the noise on the street. I’m still gone, but the time is around 8am. The stalls for the Saturday market are set up on the street. Andrey returns and barely manages to find the hotel, the situation has changed radically. The street now sells truffles, porquetta, fruit and vegetables, jeans, shirts, toys, sausages, cheese… everything.




We sit down to breakfast. We don’t know anyone here yet, but the food and cappuccino in the morning are just gorgeous. The service is extremely friendly, unobtrusive and cozy. We have a leisurely breakfast, we are in Italy, we are not in a hurry. Andrey has made a detailed plan for our stay here, which we will try not to follow. We go to the reception and talk to the young man about our plans this Saturday. In Perugia there is a Jazz Festival all week (I recommend it), we liked a restaurant with one Michelin star, but he advised us to another one, again with one Michelin star (which we will not recommend). Then we go out for a walk in the market.
It’s starting to get hotter outside, it’s one of the hottest weeks for the season. But we have a plan – to stay by the pool and not walk around much. Citta della Pieve is not a big town, but it is beautiful with its reddish brick buildings and has preserved its medieval appearance. Directly opposite the hotel’s garden is the Church of Saint Francis, built at the end of the 13th century. From there we go to La Rocca Perugina.
La Rocca Perugina – the fortress of Citta della Pieve
La Rocca Perugina was built in the early 14th century and has defended the town for several centuries. The project was commissioned to Ambrogio and Lorenzo Maitani. Lorenzo Maitani is famous in Umbria for the outstanding cathedral in Orvieto. Like any fortress, La Rocca Perugina is a fortress with towers and a defensive function. From the towers you can see Perugia, which is the capital of Umbria and is about 40km from here. It now houses the tourist information centre. From here we got a map of the city and learned about Pietro Perugino.

Pietro Perugino
Pietro Perugino (1446 – 1523).) was born Pietro Vannucci, just like the name of the hotel where we stayed. So Pietro Perugino was an Italian Renaissance painter, he was among the teachers of Raphael (Raphael Sanzio da Urbino). Pietro Vannucci was born in Città della Pieve, and Perugino was his nickname, which links him to his origins in Umbria. Perugino ‘ s famous works are in the the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, the Uffizi, Florence, the Louvre in Paris.



The whole walk through Città della Pieve heads to search for Perugino ‘s frescoes around the city. An it spreads through several days, because some churches only open on Sundays.


It’s already brutally hot outside, we only walk in the shadows of the buildings. But we are already in the hotel and take two sunbeds in the shade under a tree. At the front desk we are provided two towels, we love our swimsuits and take a dip in the cool water, flowing out of a sort of fountain in the pool. Once again our vacation looks like a Hollywood production.
Perugia and the Jazz Festival
Every year in Perugia there is a week during which the famous Umbria Jazz Festival is held. Umbria Jazz in 2025 .
Imagine a beautiful Perugia, full of scenes with musicians who are very good and play jazz. We find ourselves in the late afternoon right here amidst this youthful euphoria of mainly Italian visitors and not a few foreign tourists in Umbria’s capital, Perugia. We are in the gardens of Carducci overlooking one of the most breathtaking panoramas of Perugia, with views of the city, the valleys and the mountains that close the horizon. Here is the monument to Pietro Vannucci, the garden is dedicated to the poet Giuseppe Carducci, who made it immortal in his ode “Canto all’amore”, written during his stay in Perugia in 1877. Today there is a stage, musicians, people and a super mood.



From the Carducci gardens, we head along Corso Pietro Vannucci (well, he is also popular in Perugia), which will take us to the Cathedral of San Lorenzo /Cattedrale di San Lorenzo. It is dedicated to one of the patrons of Perugia – Saint Lorenzo. Unlike most cathedrals, Perugia’s cathedral does not face the city’s main square, but faces the Fontana Maggiore and the Palazzo dei Priori on its south wall. This side is characterized by Braccio’s Loggia commissioned by Braccio da Montone (1423), an early Renaissance building attributed to Fioravante Fioravanti of Bologna. The foundation stone of the cathedral was laid in 1345, but work began sometime between 1437 and 1439. Construction continued until 1587 without ever being completed.


Our walk was more to enjoy the music and the atmosphere, to walk around beautiful Perugia with its medieval appearance. The sunset caught us in the neighboring Assisi.







Assisi – rain and beautiful sunset
We stopped at a parking lot at the foot of Assisi, from here there is a pedestrian street to the old part of the town, which is pleasant but steep. The time was nearly sunset, and the crowds of tourists and pilgrims had dispersed. It was so quiet.

Assisi is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in the world and one of the most fascinating small towns in Italy. Known for its charm, its precious art, its historic churches and buildings, but it is best known as the city of Saint Francis. And St. Francis has been especially mentioned in recent years due to the fact that the current pope chose his name in honor of St. Francis of Assisi. Saint Francis (1182 – 1226) was born into a rich family, but devoted his life to the service of the poor, preaching peace and love to all living beings. He founded the Franciscan Order, known for its vows of poverty and humility. Saint Francis is also known for his special spiritual approach to nature and animals, perceiving them as his brothers and sisters.




We ascend to this beautiful city and head to the Papal Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi ( Basilica Papale di San Francesco d’Assisi ), which is the main church of the Franciscan Order. We can see in the distance that rain is coming. And the walk through the Assisi turns out to be an extremely good hit, because both the sky is very beautiful and there are no people and we enjoy every step. It’s pouring down, the only rain during our extremely hot stay, and we’re making our way down to the parking lot. Mimi says that the place and time this rain finds us is no accident and there must be something divine around it. We get into the car very wet.




We dined in Perugia at a Michelin star restaurant. The restaurant was boring and the service was slow. But we don ‘t regret for a moment, we had our time to ourselves with nice Italian wines. I would like to mention that the wines in the restaurants in Umbria are very reasonably priced, which can only make us happy.
Sunday in Citta della Pieve
We told you, we decided to be typical tourists like in the movies. On Sunday we indulged ourselves completely in Città della Pieve. In the morning we got up, had breakfast and went looking for more Perugino frescoes. We visited several small churches, which are not open every day. We talked to an elderly woman about the beautiful cat, who stands at the window and watches the passers by. Mastio is the name of the cat, so dignified looking, as if he were an aristocrat, out of one of the many decorated houses in the village.








Cooking class – how to make pasta from Umbria
In the morning we had reserved a cooking class at “Il Ristorante Zafferano”, the restaurant of the Hotel Vannucci. The name Zafferano is because of the saffron, which is grown in the region of Citta della Pieve. We were welcomed by the cheerful chef Vito Quarto.
We are the only two for a lesson on Sunday and the chef takes us into his kitchen. On Sundays, the restaurant is also open for lunch, but it is not busy. Citta della Pieve is not the most touristy place, it’s very peaceful here and if you’re at the weekend, you can have lunch in a very pleasant environment. And we put on the aprons and start cooking the sauces for two types of pasta – tagliatelle and pici. Tagliatelle you know what they look like, and pici is a typical Tuscan and Umbrian pasta – thick, handmade spaghetti that is a bit rougher in texture. They are usually served with simple sauces, such as cacio e pepe (cheese and pepper) – Tuscany or ragu (meat sauce) more recently in Umbria. It is ideal for capturing the rich flavors of sauces and creates a sense of authenticity and home comfort. Sometimes in Umbria you can also see their local name Umbricelli.





Marco (Marco Polticchia) poured for us two glasses of wine, because we refused the coffee. And immersed ourselves into making the pasta. Chef Vito , besides explaining about all kinds of pasta, told us many stories. He himself is from Puglia and is Andrey ‘s age but looks younger. The kitchen is perfect, very relaxed and the mood is super. Everyone has a role in this kitchen, Now we see Sous Chef Jordy (Jordy Steven) cooking for the lunch guests while we cook our lunch.
I have fun recalling those moments and the people we met then. Everyone was so positive and energizing. At one point Francesca, who is in charge of the pastry in the restaurant, showed up. She started teaching us how to make pici. Sous chef Jordy, who was not from Italy, but from somewhere in Latin America, also joined the lesson, he hadn’t done pici before.


The lesson ended with lunch in the garden of Vannucci and wonderful wines from Umbria and in high spirits. We rested a bit from the tiring pre-lunch and settled down by the pool. We had booked a visit the hotel ‘s cellar -“Cantina Vittoria” and a small wine tasting.
Cantina Vittoria in Vannucci Hotel
We had decided to really leave it all in the hands of the staff at Vanucci, just to see their idea on the wines to show us. It reminded me to think about how intertwined Tuscany and Umbria are. Because for the tasting in the cellar, the man with the wine – Nicola (Nicola Panelli) had also prepared Tuscan and Umbrian wines for us. Which we messed up a bit with our questions. The most Umbrian wine you can drink in Umbria is Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG, Montefalco is the region (next to the town of Montefalco) and sagrantino is the variety. The wine is red, rich and magnificent. The most popular cellar is Antonelli. For this wine to become DOCG, it must have been aged for a minimum of 37 months, of which 12 months in barrel and 4 months in bottle.



Grechetto di Todi (Grechetto) – that’s what we asked for, as a more unusual choice. Grechetto di Todi is a DOC from the area of the town of Todi. Grechetto di Todi is a white wine from the Grechetto di Todi grape (there is also Grechetto di Orvieto, but di Todi say it is better). The bottle we tasted, which was perfect, is from oenologist Iacopo Paolucci’s vineyards. The wine is natural and we liked it very much.
Since we had also booked dinner at Zafferano that evening, Nicola promised to upgrade our wines.
The perfect dinner at Ristorante Zafferano
Zafferano is a Michelin Guide restaurant, no stars yet, but we wish Chef Vito would get it. Mimi was a little late getting down for dinner and we missed the beautiful sunset that was visible from the garden. So we settled down in the garden to enjoy the quiet summer night in Italy. When you are in Umbria or Tuscany you will notice that everywhere there is a great emphasis on olive oils. This is also a feature of the region, nice olive oils and every dinner starts with a wonderful nice olive oil and bread.




The wine, as Nicola promised us, took us a little further through Umbria and Tuscany . As we tried the Barberani – “Luigi e Giovanna” Orvieto Classico Superiore DOC, which is from Grechetto, but from Orvieto. Then we drank Gamay del Trasimeno from Trasimeno DOC – a red wine from the north of Umbria. The final red wine was Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Tuscany, which is 100% Sangiovese. Although I’m more of a fan of another iconic Tuscan wine from Sangiovese, namely Brunello di Montalcino . For dessert they brought us Muffa Nobile from Orvieto which is a DOC Orvieto dessert wine and Passito Montefalco Sagrantino which is a DOCG dessert wine.



We are sitting in Zafferano, enjoying the evening and the pleasure of Chef Vito and his team’ s menu, and we think it ‘s our last night here and we want to come back .
Le Logge del Vignola in Montepulciano
Le Logge del Vignola is one of our favorite restaurants in Tuscany . Montepulciano is about thirty kilometers from Citta della Pieve, and although we were on a vacation in Umbria, we spontaneously decided to end up in Montepulciano. We parked at the top next to the fortress of Montepulciano, paid for the parking and walked down town to Le Logge del Vignola, where Virginia and Massimo Stella welcomed us two years ago .



We enter Le Logge del Vignola, Virginia Stella still remembers us, greets us like old friends and seats us at the table from our previous visit. We know that Christian, who is of Bulgarian origin, also works in the kitchen, and he comes to greet us. Virginia shows us what’s new on the menu. Le Logge del Vignola is also in the Michelin guide and here the service and food are much more than what you expect. An emphasis on local produce, superbly prepared and with a refined service that only Massimo and Virginia can create. We will not get tired of visiting them.







Our flight is on the same day in the evening, we say goodbye to Virginia and head to the Rome airport, where it turns out that our flight is canceled and our trip is extended by 3 days in Rome and its surroundings …

- Spinola is the name of one of the four noble families of Genoa. ↩︎
- Roberto E. Wirth is a representative of the fifth generation of Swiss hoteliers.His parents Oscar Wirth and Carmen Bucher Wirth are descendants of two hotelier families: The Bücher family from the Lucerne region of Switzerland and the Wirth family from Maulach, Germany. ↩︎
Where to stay in Umbria?
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