Things to do in Perugia
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Il Gufo
The owner/chef gathers ingredients from local markets and cooks up whatever is fresh and in season. Try dishes such as cinghiale (wild boar) with fennel (€12.50) or riso nero (black rice) with grilled vegetables and brie (€12.50). There is always a good selection of salads for €5. Note: no credit cards.
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Sandri
When you enter into your third century of business, something must be right. Known for delectable chocolate cakes, candied fruit, espresso and pastries. Staff wrap all take-home purchases (picked up at the counter but paid for at the till), no matter how small, in beautiful red paper with a ribbon bow.
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Caffè di Perugia
The fanciest sit-down cafe in town, its desserts are worth the high prices. It also serves a fine choice of basic pasta and meat dishes and offers outdoor seating in summer.
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Rocca Paolina
A once-massive 16th-century fortress (Palazzo della Provincia) is now known as the Rocca Paolina. Pope Paolo III Farnese built the monstrosity in the 1540s, wiping out entire sections of what had been a wealthy neighbourhood. Now used as the throughway for the scale mobili, you can still see former homes of Perugia’s powerful medieval families, capped with the bricked-over roof of the papal fortress. Its nooks and crannies are now used for art exhibits throughout the year, and the last weekend of the month sees the antiques market held here.
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Cathedral of San Lorenzo
On the north end of Piazza IV Novembre is the Cathedral of San Lorenzo. Although a church has been on this land since the 900s, the version you see was begun in 1345 from designs created by Fra Bevignate in 1300. Building of the cathedral continued until 1587, and the doorway was built in the late 1700s; however, the main facade was never completed. Inside you’ll find dramatic Gothic architecture, an altarpiece by Signorelli and sculptures by Duccio. The steps in front of the pink facade are where seemingly all of Perugia congregates.
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Fontana Maggiore
In the very centre of the Piazza IV Novembre stands the Fontana Maggiore. It was designed by Fra Bevignate, and father-son team Nicola and Giovanni Pisano built the fountain between 1275 and 1278. Along the edge are bas-relief statues representing scenes from the Old Testament, the founding of Rome, the 'liberal arts', and a griffin and lion. Look for the griffin all over Perugia - it's the city's symbol.
The lion is the symbol for the Guelphs, the Middle Ages faction that favoured rule by the papacy over rule by the Holy Roman Empire.
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Perugina Chocolate Factory
The trick for independent travellers visiting the Perugina chocolate factory is to either call ahead to arrange a guided tour, or simply latch on to a tour group (conducted in either Italian or English). After visiting the simple museum, you’ll wend your way through an enclosed sky bridge, watching as the white-outfitted Oomp...er, factory workers go about their god-granted talent of creating chocolate. Drive through the gates of the humorously nondescript factory entrance marked Nestlé, or take the bus to San Sisto.
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Ipogeo dei Volumni
About 5km southeast of the city is the Ipogeo dei Volumni, a 2nd century–BC Etruscan burial site. An underground chamber contains a series of recesses holding the funerary urns of the Volumnio family. The surrounding grounds are a massive expanse of partially unearthed burial chambers with several buildings housing artefacts that haven’t been stolen over the years. Take a train or APM bus 3 from Piazza Italia to Ponte San Giovanni and walk west from there. By car, take the Bonanzano exit heading south on the E45.
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Oratorio di San Bernardino
After the canonization in 1450 of St Bernardino of Siena, who visited Perugia many times to preach, the local Franciscan order built a church to commemorate the saint. Designed by the Tuscan Agostino di Duccio in 1461, the Oratorio di San Bernardino is one of the best examples of Perugia's early Renaissance masterpieces. The bas-relief is layered with multicoloured marble, limestone and terracotta angels and musicians. Do check out the exterior polychrome façade.
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Augusta Perusia Cioccolato e Gelateria
Giordano worked for Perugina for 25 years. In 2000, he opened his own shop, Augusta Perusia Cioccolato e Gelateria, creating delectables from the old tradition, including baci (hazelnut ‘kisses’ covered in chocolate) from the original Perugian recipe. Delicious handmade chocolate bars come in boxes with old paintings of Perugia – great for gifts – or pick up some of the city’s best gelato for yourself.
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Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria
The Palazzo dei Priori houses some of the best museums in Perugia. The foremost art gallery in Umbria is the stunning Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, entered from Corso Vannucci. It’s an art historian’s dream, with 30 rooms of artwork dating back to Byzantine-like art from the 13th century, as well as rooms dedicated to works from hometown heroes Pinturicchio and Perugino.
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Nobile Collegio del Cambio
The Nobile Collegio del Cambio is considered by some as the most beautiful bank in the world. It has three rooms: the Sala dei Legisti (Legist Chamber), with wooden stalls carved by Giampiero Zuccari in the 17th century; the Sala dell’Udienza (Audience Chamber), with frescoes by Perugino; and the Chapel of San Giovanni Battista, painted by a student of Perugino’s, Giannicola di Paolo.
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Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell’Umbria
The Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell’Umbria will boggle the mind with its collection of Etruscan and prehistoric artefacts – carved funerary urns, coins, Bronze Age statuary – dating back to the 16th century BC. The Cippo Perugino (Perugian Memorial Stone) has the longest Etruscan-language engraving ever found, offering a new window into the language.
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Chiesa di San Pietro
Just past the Porta di San Pietro is the 10th-century Chiesa di San Pietro, entered through a frescoed doorway in the first courtyard. The interior is an incredible mix of gilt and marble and contains a pietà (a painting of the dead Christ supported by the Madonna) by Perugino. Many of the paintings in this church feature depictions of biblical women.
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Pizzeria Mediterranea
Perugini (Perugians) know to come here for the best pizza in town. A spaceship-sized wood-fired brick oven heats up pizzas from the simplest margherita to the 12-topping ‘his and hers’. Add delectable mozzarella di bufala (buffalo mozzarella) to any pizza for an additional €1.60. It gets busy enough to queue, especially Thursday and Saturday nights.
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Enone
The trendy hot spot on the Perugian dining and drinking scene, Enone is a mix between a wine bar, restaurant and club. The vaulted brick walls hide all sorts of goings-on, such as live music (usually Monday) and sushi made by a Japanese chef (usually Thursday). The regular menu features funky dishes like carrot and black truffle gnocchi in a Parmesan basket.
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Ristorante dal Mi’Cocco
Don’t ask for a menu because there isn’t one at this most traditional Perugian restaurant. Diners receive a set menu of a starter, main course, side dish and dessert. You may receive asparagus risotto in May, or tagliatelle (long, ribbon-shaped pasta) with peas and ham in November. Extremely popular with students, it’s best to call ahead.
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Università per Stranieri
This is Italy’s foremost academic institution for foreigners, offering courses in language, literature, history, art, music, opera and architecture, to name a few. A series of degree courses is available, as well as one-, two- and three-month intensive language courses starting at €300 a month and semester-long accredited programs for students.
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Ristorante Nanà
It’s a good sign when approximately 47 members of the same family run a 15-table restaurant. Simply furnished with a small menu, the food is ‘ nuovo italiano ’: pâté with Sardinian flatbread (€7) or gnochetti (little gnocchi) in a pepper and radicchio cream sauce (€6.50). The wine list is equally impressive and affordable.
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Mercato Mensile Antiquariato
If you're lucky enough to be in Perugia on the fourth weekend of the month, spend a few hours in the Mercato Mensile Antiquariato around the Piazza Italia and in the Giardini Carducci. It's a great place to pick up old prints, frames, furniture, jewellery, postcards and stamps. Open from 09:00 until 6 or 19:00, or when it rains.
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Al Mangiar Bene
Ahead of its time, this underground pizza and pasta restaurant is Umbria’s first almost entirely organic restaurant. Pizzas and calzones, baked in a hearth-like brick oven, are all made with organic ingredients, including organic flour from the agriturismo Torre Colombaia. Even the beer and local wine are organic.
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Museo di Palazzo della Penna
The modern art museum Museo di Palazzo della Penna is as stunning for its palatial surroundings as for its artwork. Frescoes from the 18th and 19th centuries share space with 20th-century futurist Gerardo Dottori and German painter and sculptor Joseph Beuys, a radical ideologist whose artwork transcends social boundaries.
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Chiesa di San Domenico
The city’s largest church is the early-14th-century Chiesa di San Domenico. It has a Romanesque interior, lightened by the immense stained-glass windows, that was replaced by austere Gothic fittings in the 16th century. Pope Benedict XI, who died after eating poisoned figs in 1325, lies buried here.
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Chiesa di Sant’Angelo
Via del Tempio branches off to the Romanesque Chiesa di Sant’Angelo, one of Italy’s oldest churches, dating back to the 5th and 6th centuries. However, the remnants are even older; it’s said to stand on the site of a pagan temple, and several of its inside columns were taken from Roman structures.
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Lunabar
Atmospherically equidistant between New York and Umbria, the city centre lounge off Corso Vannucci spins together frescoed, Venetian plaster walls with a grey and onyx bar and space-age restrooms. Smokers enjoy their own room and the hungry will appreciate the good aperitivo (happy hour snacks) selection.
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