Italy with Stefano – Food and Culture tour to Umbria *Book now for 2026*

Day 1: Arrival in Rome and Transfer to Umbria

Approx 1.30pm (time TBC) – Meet Stefano and fellow guests at Rome airport to enjoy a Minibus transfer to your Villa – Stefano will be waiting for you in the arrival area.

Welcome to Umbria! Upon arrival at our villa in Umbria, enjoy a welcome refreshment prepared by Carmine Estate chef on arrival.

Free afternoon to relax at the villa with a glass of wine and enjoy the surrounds of the villa, including the heated swimming pool, gardens, vineyard, olive grove and numerous walking tracks.

7pm – Welcome dinner at Villa – traditional Umbria dinner prepared by local chef using estate grown local produce and tasting estate grown Wines.

Day 2: Truffle Hunting at the estate and Gubbio Tour

7:30am – 9:30am – Breakfast at the villa by staff.

9:30am – Truffle Hunting at the estate

12pm – Lunch and wine tasting at Vineria del Carmine

3pm – Departure for Gubbio for a tour of the town that includes Palazzo Ducale and Amphitheatre.

Dramatically perched on a hill overlooking the ruins of its 1st A.D. Roman theatre, here in Gubbio time seems to have quite literally stopped in the Middle Ages. Gubbio’s “detachment” from today’s world is also a reality: the town is not on a railway line – here, one feels in a world apart. The visit of Gubbio starts with a stop at to pay homage to World War II martyrs at a revered local shrine.
You will be taken through Gubbio’s most stunning (and hidden!) medieval backstreets to the
imposing 14th c. Palazzo dei Consoli, said to rival Palazzo Vecchio in Florence in its beauty.

7pm – Dinner in Gubbio before returning to the villa
(B,L,D)

Day 3: Monterchi and Sansepolcro

7:30am – 9:00am – Breakfast at the villa by staff.

9:00am – Monterchi and Sansepolcro day to visit famous artworks by Piero della Francesca.

Today we will visit Monterchi chapel, Duomo di San Sepolcro and Museo Civico Sansepolcro.
Lunch in Sansepolcro and then return to villa.

7pm – Pizza night at the villa by staff
(B,L,D)

Day 4: Porchetta Cooking class and Perugia tour

7:30am – 9:00am – Breakfast at the villa by staff.

9:00am – Porchetta Cooking class at the villa (porchetta will be served for dinner)

Departure for Perugia for lunch and guided tour

Called by Henry James, “city of the infinite view”, Perugia’s Etruscan glory lives on in the Etruscan city gate of the 3rd c. B.C. – hidden away in the massive Papal fortress of the 16th- c. This reach across the ages synthesizes Perugia, a stunning medieval hill town of “layers.”

4pm – Option visit to Cashmere factory Rocco Ragni on the way back to the villa

7pm – Dinner at the villa by staff (including the Porchetta from today’s cooking class)           (B,L,D)

Day 5: Arezzo and Cortona

7:30am – 9:00am – Breakfast at the villa by staff.

9:00am – Departure for Arezzo to once again marvel at some amazing artwork from Piero della Francesca at the Basilica of San Francesco and the Cathedral.

1pm – Lunch in Arezzo

4pm – Stop in Cortona for a visit of the town (made famous due to the movie, Under the Tuscan Sun)

7pm – Dinner at the villa by staff
(B,L,D)

Day 6: Umbertide Market and optional Cooking with Stefano

7:30am – 9:30am – Breakfast at the villa by staff.

Visit to Umbertide Market to choose fresh produce for cooking class with Stefano at the villa
Free day to enjoy the surrounding areas or sit and relax at the villa.

Or for those that wish, spend the day cooking with Stefano – preparing both Lunch and Dinner.   (B,L,D)

Day 7: Assisi and Spello

7:30am – 9:30am – Breakfast at the villa by staff.

10am – Assisi & Spello full day

Assisi – justly acclaimed “crown jewel of the medieval hill towns” – encompasses its rich historical and artistic heritage. We start in the stunning 3-level Romanesque/Gothic Basilica di San Francesco built in the 13th c. to house the body of St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of Italy and most beloved of all saints for the Italians.

Lunch at a local restaurant in Spello

Visit of Spello including visit Baglioni Chapel in Spello, featuring Pinturricchios’s fresco.

6pm – Return to the villa

7pm – Dinner at the villa by staff                                                                                                      (B,L,D)

Day 8: Orvieto

7:30am – 9:30am – Farewell breakfast at the villa by staff.

9:30am – Departure for Orvieto for a visit of the city and Cathedral

Orvieto sits on a volcanic tufa-rock plateau, an impregnable position cleverly selected by the Etruscans, probably its first inhabitants.

After exploring the Etruscan tombs outside the city, a funicular up the tufo plateau takes you to the centro storico of Orvieto. A walk up one of the main streets takes you past the workshops of many an artisan, winding past the 13th c. municipal palace. Not far way, uncover Etruscan ruins in a medieval church and stop to visit the workshop of a famed wood-worker.

You’ll want to take in the wonders of Orvieto’s zebra-striped Gothic Duomo – and not just the famous splendid Renaissance fresco cycle of Luca Signorelli.

A masterpiece of the “international Gothic” style adorns the cathedral and 13th-century relics fascinate the visitor, as well as one of the finest existing examples of Sienese goldsmith/inlay work of the 14th -c.

Lunch and wine tasting at Locanda Palazzone

Departure from Palazzone after lunch and transfer to Rome centre (drop off point TBC), arrival late afternoon.

Conclusion of tour and time to bid farewell.
(B, L)

Arrivederci e Buon viaggio!