Gubbio

Gubbio is among the best-preserved medieval towns in Italy, a gray-stone terrace of palaces, towers and arches climbing the slope of Mount Ingino in northeastern Umbria. Where Perugia and Assisi are soft and golden, Gubbio is austere and vertical, with narrow lanes, external staircases and stout stone houses that seem to grip the hillside. The town was a major Umbrian center in antiquity, as shown by the Iguvine Tables, seven bronze tablets from around the third to first centuries BC that record Umbrian religious rites and are among the most important texts in an ancient Italic language. They are kept in the Palazzo dei Consoli. That palace is the architectural star. The Palazzo dei Consoli, begun in the 1300s, rises over Piazza Grande, a huge terrace built on vaults above the town, and its crenellated facade is one of the great sights of medieval Italy. Inside, a civic museum and art gallery house the tables and a collection of paintings and archaeology. Below the town, the Roman theatre dates from the first century AD, a reminder that the area was a Roman municipality, and is still used for summer performances.

Two traditions animate the town's calendar. On 15 May the Festa dei Ceri sees teams of men race through the streets carrying three giant wooden structures topped with statues of saints, a thrilling, rowdy, centuries-old ritual that is the town's identity. And from early December to early January, a huge lit tree in the shape of a Christmas tree is lit up on the slope of Mount Ingino, billed as one of the largest of its kind in the world.

Gubbio also has a gentle Franciscan story. According to legend, Francis tamed a fierce wolf that terrorized the town, making peace between the animal and the people, and the church of San Francesco della Pace marks the spot. The tale sums up the place, a town of tough stone and human kindness. A cable car, shaped like an open basket, climbs from the town's edge to the Basilica of Sant'Ubaldo on the mountain top, a ride that is a highlight for many visitors and offers panoramic views.

Gubbio is about 40 minutes from Perugia by car, longer by bus, and is best as a full or half-day trip. A private walking tour is a good way to see the medieval palaces and streets, with commentary on the Iguvine Tables and the town's rivalries. Add a lunch of truffle pasta or local game, and a walk through the lanes.

The ceramics tradition is strong here, with shops selling hand-painted lusterware. Gubbio is best enjoyed slowly, and many choose to overnight to see the stone lit at night, when the day trippers have left and the hillside glows. It is Umbria at its least polished and most atmospheric.

Food and craft stops add pleasure to the visit. Look for the town's lusterware ceramics, a technique perfected in the Renaissance, in workshops that still fire pieces by hand. Local specialties include crescia flatbread, truffle pasta, game and sweet pastries. Plan lunch around mid-afternoon, when the day groups thin out, and linger over a glass of local wine. If you stay overnight, an evening walk along the illuminated medieval streets is a quiet reward and a chance to listen to the town's bell towers.