🇮🇹Umbria

Umbria is Italy's Green Heart: a family-friendly region of medieval towns, outdoor adventures, lake activities, and incredible food, all away from the tourist trail.

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Your family guide

Umbria: Italy's Green Heart, waiting for your family to discover it

“Cobbled streets, cascading waterfalls, and truffle-scented air: Umbria is the Italy you always dreamed of, without the crowds.”

— San & Jo

Umbria is one of those rare places that feels like a secret, even though it has been here for thousands of years. Tucked into the centre of Italy, this landlocked region is draped in forested hills, dotted with medieval hilltop towns, and cut through by river valleys and shimmering lakes. If your family has ever wanted to step inside a real-life fairy tale, Umbria is it.

What makes Umbria so special for families is the sheer variety packed into a compact region. One morning you can stand beneath the soaring frescoes of Assisi's Basilica of St. Francis, and by afternoon you can be kayaking on Lake Trasimeno or hiking through wildflower meadows in the Monti Sibillini National Park. The pace here is gentler than Rome or Florence, the streets are quieter, and the locals are genuinely welcoming.

Known as the Green Heart of Italy, Umbria rewards curious families who love history, nature, and incredible food in equal measure. The medieval towns feel untouched by mass tourism, the landscapes are breathtaking in every season, and the food, truffles, handmade pasta, and crispy porchetta, is the kind your kids will still be talking about years later.

Central ItalyLandlocked region, bordered by Tuscany, Lazio, and Marche

Best April to OctoberWarm summers, mild springs, and golden autumn colours

Historic townsAssisi, Perugia, Orvieto, Gubbio, Spoleto, and more

Cities and places in Umbria

1 place

Assisi

Assisi is a UNESCO World Heritage hilltop town in Umbria, Italy, packed with medieval history, stunning basilicas, and hearty local food that the whole family will love.

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What makes it special

Why families keep coming back to Umbria

Medieval towns that feel genuinely alive

From Assisi's UNESCO-listed basilica to Gubbio's towering Palazzo dei Consoli and Orvieto's jaw-dropping Gothic cathedral, Umbria's hilltop towns are packed with history your kids can actually see and touch. These are not reconstructed tourist sets: they are real, lived-in places with cobbled streets and ancient stones around every corner.

Waterfalls, lakes, and outdoor adventures

The Cascata delle Marmore is one of Europe's tallest waterfalls at 165 metres, and it is every bit as dramatic as it sounds. Lake Trasimeno, Italy's fourth-largest lake, is perfect for a relaxed family day of boating, kayaking, and island-hopping. For hiking families, the Monti Sibillini National Park offers trails through wildflower meadows that feel like walking through a painting.

The Green Heart of Italy

Umbria's nickname is well earned. Lush forested peaks, rolling valleys, and rich wildlife, including wild boar roaming the forests and abundant birdlife around Lake Trasimeno, make this a genuinely green and nature-filled destination. It is a wonderful place to slow down and let your family breathe.

Festivals and living traditions

Umbria's traditions are not museum pieces. Gubbio's Festa dei Ceri, held every May, is one of Italy's oldest and most spectacular festivals, with a raw energy that children find absolutely mesmerising. Throughout the year, local sagre (food festivals) celebrate truffles, porchetta, and regional produce in a way that pulls your whole family right into the heart of Umbrian life.

Food your whole family will love

Umbrian cuisine is honest, hearty, and deeply satisfying. Handmade pasta, slow-roasted porchetta, black truffles, and crispy flatbreads filled with cured meats: this is the kind of food that makes everyone at the table happy, from toddlers to teenagers. And because Umbria is less touristy than Tuscany, the food is often more authentic and better value too.

Your kind of holiday

History and culture explorers

Umbria is a living open-air museum. Assisi, Perugia, Orvieto, Gubbio, and Spoleto each tell a different chapter of Italy's story, from Roman remains and Etruscan artefacts to Renaissance frescoes and Gothic masterpieces. Your family can wander through centuries of history without ever feeling rushed or overwhelmed.

Outdoor adventure seekers

Between the Cascata delle Marmore, Lake Trasimeno, and the trails of Monti Sibillini National Park, Umbria offers a full menu of outdoor fun. Kayaking, rafting, hiking through wildflower meadows, birdwatching, and cycling through valley landscapes: there is always something active to fill your days.

Food and slow travel lovers

If your family travels on its stomach, Umbria will not disappoint. This is a region where you take your time, linger over long lunches, visit local markets, and discover what Italian food really tastes like away from the tourist trail. Truffle hunts, porchetta stops, and handmade pasta workshops make food a central part of the adventure.

Fun facts

Things your kids will love knowing about Umbria

The only Italian region with no sea and no foreign border

Umbria is completely surrounded by other Italian regions: no coastline, no border with another country. It is the only region in all of Italy with this distinction, which makes its rich rivers, lakes, and waterfalls even more important to the people who live here.

A waterfall that humans built, and then nature took over

The Cascata delle Marmore, one of Europe's highest waterfalls, was actually created by the ancient Romans in 271 BC to drain a marshy lake. Over two thousand years later, it is 165 metres of thundering natural beauty that looks like it has always been there.

The oldest writing in the Umbrian language lives in Gubbio

The Eugubine Tables, kept in Gubbio's Palazzo dei Consoli, are ancient bronze tablets inscribed in the Umbrian language: the oldest known documents ever written in Umbrian. They are over 2,000 years old and give us a unique window into the lives of the people who called this region home long before Italy even existed.

Taste Umbria

What to eat with your family in Umbria

Torta al testo

A soft, unleavened flatbread cooked on a hot stone and stuffed with cured meats and cheeses. Think of it as Umbria's version of a sandwich, and it is absolutely delicious. Kids tend to love it, and you will find it at markets and bakeries across the region.

Kids love it

Porchetta

Umbria's most iconic meat dish: a whole pig slow-roasted with fennel, garlic, and pepper until the skin is perfectly crispy. It is traditionally sliced and served in a bread roll, and the smell alone will stop your whole family in their tracks at any market.

Must try

Pasta alla Norcina

Named after the Umbrian town of Norcia, this creamy pasta combines pork sausage, white wine, Pecorino cheese, and sometimes shaved black truffle. It is rich, comforting, and the kind of dish that makes everyone at the table go quiet for a moment.

Local favourite

Crostini al tartufo

Toasted bread topped with a spread of black truffle, anchovies, and olive oil. This is the classic Umbrian starter, and even if your kids are not sure about truffles at first, one bite usually changes their mind. A great way to introduce little ones to one of Italy's greatest ingredients.

Safe choice

Zuppa di farro

A hearty, warming soup made with farro grains and seasonal vegetables. It is simple, nourishing, and deeply rooted in Umbrian tradition. On a cool evening after a day of exploring hilltop towns, this is exactly what your family needs.

Daily treat