# Two nights in Assisi, two and a half hours from Rome: the basilica, the Eremo delle Carceri and the walk to Spello Train from Rome, the city of St Francis by day and empty at night, a walk among olive trees to Spello with a train back, and the hermitage in the woods. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/italy/umbria/assisi/itineraries/two-nights-with-a-walk-to-spello · Revisado: 2026-11-12 Dónde: Assisi On a day trip from Rome, Assisi is basilica, square and back. With two nights it changes: you see the city first thing and at dusk, without the groups, when the stone turns pink; you walk a whole day along the slope of Monte Subasio among olive trees to Spello, and climb up to the hermitage where St Francis withdrew to pray. All without a car. ## How do you get there from Rome? By regional train from Roma Termini to Assisi station, at Santa Maria degli Angeli, direct or changing at Foligno: about two and a half hours. Buy the ticket to "Assisi Centro": the Assisi Link adds the Busitalia bus to the centre for €1.30. By car it is also about two and a half hours on the A1 and the Umbrian dual carriageways; the centre is closed to traffic and the car stays outside, so here you do not need it. ## Where to stay? AccommodationAreaWho it suits Hotel PallottaBeside Piazza del ComuneThose arriving by train who want everything on foot Giotto Hotel & SpaBeside the basilicaThose who want valley views, a spa or parking Agriturismo MalvarinaIn the countryside, to the south-eastThose coming by car who want to dine at a Slow Food osteria ## Where to eat Trattoria Pallotta for classic Umbrian cooking, La Locanda del Cardinale for the special dinner and Pasticceria Sensi for breakfast or an afternoon snack, from 7:00. If you sleep at Malvarina, dine at its osteria: the full set menu of the day costs €35. ## What if I have one more day? Carry on by train towards Perugia, on the same line, or south to Orvieto, with its cathedral and underground city. ## El plan ### Friday · 08:00 · Train from Rome Regional from Termini. You reach Assisi station around 10:30. ### Friday · 10:30 · The Porziuncola A few minutes' walk from the station: the tiny chapel under the dome of Santa Maria degli Angeli. 45 minutes; free. ### Friday · 12:00 · Check-in and lunch at Trattoria Pallotta Take the bus up to the centre and leave your bag at Hotel Pallotta. Lunch under the Volta Pinta arch: strangozzi, rabbit cacciatora. Book by WhatsApp. ### Friday · 15:30 · The Basilica of St Francis Lower church, crypt and the upper church with the frescoes of the saint's life. Free. The upper church closes at 18:00. ### Friday · 18:30 · Dusk stroll The square, Santa Chiara and the walls without people. ### Saturday · 08:30 · From Assisi to Spello on foot 13.5 km along the Via di Francesco, from the basilica to Porta Montanara, among the olive trees of the Subasio: about 4 h 30 with some 340 m of ascent in short stretches. Have lunch in Spello and return by regional train to Assisi station and by bus to the centre. ### Saturday · 20:00 · Dinner at La Locanda del Cardinale Over the remains of a Roman house from the first century BC, on Piazza del Vescovado. Book on TheFork. ### Sunday · 09:00 · The Eremo delle Carceri Walk up by path 350 from the Rocca Minore, along a dirt track mostly in the woods, to the hermitage. Come back the same way. ### Sunday · 13:00 · The Rocca Maggiore and rocciata at Sensi The fortress with views over the whole valley, €8, and on Corso Mazzini a rocciata for the train. ### Sunday · 16:30 · Back to Rome Bus to the station and a regional to Termini. ## Consejos ### Check the Spello trains Before setting out to walk, check the return timetable from Spello to Assisi. ### Water and a hat The route to Spello and the one to the Eremo have stretches in the sun. ### Book meals At weekends, Pallotta and the Locanda fill up. ## Cuándo no ir Going up to the Eremo by the road at midday: it is asphalt in the sun and with cars. Path 350 is more pleasant. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### Do you need a car? No. Train from Rome, bus to the centre and, within Assisi and as far as Spello, on foot. ### How long is the walk to Spello? About 13.5 km, around 4 h 30, with some 340 m of ascent in short stretches. Return by train. ### Where should you stay? In the centre, at Hotel Pallotta or Giotto Hotel & Spa; in the countryside, at Agriturismo Malvarina. ### Which days work best? Thursday to Sunday, so that La Locanda del Cardinale is open at midday and to avoid Tuesday. ## Dónde dormir without a car - **Giotto Hotel & Spa**: A four-star a few steps from the basilica The Giotto Hotel & Spa is at Via Fontebella, 41, the street that runs down from Piazza San Francesco towards Porta San Francesco, on the western edge of the historic centre. It is a four-star hotel with relais status, with a main building and an annexe, and is designed for those who want to sleep inside the walls but with parking at the door. From the entrance you walk to the basilica in a few minutes, along the same street, and to Piazza del Comune going up through the centre. Its strong point is the slope: almost all the rooms in the main building look onto the Umbrian valley, towards Santa Maria degli Angeli and the plain. At sunset, from the terrace of the Belvedere bar, you see the lights of the valley come on. If you sleep here, you can enter the lower basilica first thing, before the groups arrive. The rooms There are standard rooms, from 18 to 20 m², with a view of the valley, the city or the alleys, depending on whether they are in the main building or the annexe. Above them, the Charme Superior have 28 m² and a 40 m² terrace with a porch, and the junior suites (35 m²) and suites (50 m²) take up to three people. The two largest suites have terraces of 60 and 70 m² above the valley. Beware of some junior suites and suites on the top floor: they are reached by stairs and have no lift. If you are travelling with someone who cannot climb stairs, ask for another when you book. Spa, breakfast and restaurant The La Sorgente spa is small and private, for a few people at a time, with treatments and massages that are booked; the website does not publish hours or prices. Breakfast is a buffet, sweet and savoury, cold and hot, with attention to special diets. The hotel has its own restaurant, L'Estasi, and rooms for weddings and events, so on some weekends there are celebrations. Getting there and parking The centre of Assisi has restricted traffic, but the hotel has private parking in front of the entrance: €20 per car per night, by reservation and until it is full. If there is no space, reception will point you to the nearest public car park. Without a car, from Santa Maria degli Angeli station a city bus goes up to the centre and you walk down Via Fontebella. - **Hotel Pallotta**: An old house next to the square The Hotel Pallotta occupies a restored old house at Via San Rufino, 6, the street that climbs from Piazza del Comune towards the cathedral of San Rufino. It is a small family hotel: it is looked after by Elsa and, as the house tells it, the jam tart at breakfast has been made here for three generations. It shares a surname and family with the Trattoria Pallotta, which is a few steps away, under the arch of the Volta Pinta. It is a good base if you are going without a car and want to have everything at hand: the main square with the temple of Minerva round the corner, Santa Chiara and San Rufino five minutes away, the basilica of St Francis a downhill walk and the Rocca Maggiore uphill. At night, when the excursion coaches leave, the centre is quiet. The rooms There is a single, doubles and, in an annexe building, a double and two quadruples, useful for families. They have terracotta floors, a private bathroom with a small shower tray, television, telephone and heating with its own thermostat; the website also mentions air conditioning and free wifi. Some have windows over the rooftops. On the third floor there is a viewing platform with views of the city, and on the first a corner with wifi and a computer. You can enter your room on your own, without depending on reception. Breakfast is optional and is served from 8:00 to 10:00: tea, coffee, cappuccino, bread, cereals, jams, cheeses, yoghurt, juice and home-made tarts. Getting there and parking The centre is a limited traffic zone: you can drive in for a moment to unload your luggage and then leave the car outside. The hotel has no parking of its own. The nearest is the covered one at Piazza Matteotti, paid (€12 a day), about 300 metres away; there is also free parking on Via della Rocca, at a similar distance. Without a car, the bus that climbs from Santa Maria degli Angeli station drops you in the centre. The conditions are simple: free cancellation up to one day before arrival, no deposit, and you pay on arrival. The website does not publish prices or check-in and check-out times; ask when you book on WhatsApp or from its booking system. ## Dónde dormir if you're driving - **Giotto Hotel & Spa**: A four-star a few steps from the basilica The Giotto Hotel & Spa is at Via Fontebella, 41, the street that runs down from Piazza San Francesco towards Porta San Francesco, on the western edge of the historic centre. It is a four-star hotel with relais status, with a main building and an annexe, and is designed for those who want to sleep inside the walls but with parking at the door. From the entrance you walk to the basilica in a few minutes, along the same street, and to Piazza del Comune going up through the centre. Its strong point is the slope: almost all the rooms in the main building look onto the Umbrian valley, towards Santa Maria degli Angeli and the plain. At sunset, from the terrace of the Belvedere bar, you see the lights of the valley come on. If you sleep here, you can enter the lower basilica first thing, before the groups arrive. The rooms There are standard rooms, from 18 to 20 m², with a view of the valley, the city or the alleys, depending on whether they are in the main building or the annexe. Above them, the Charme Superior have 28 m² and a 40 m² terrace with a porch, and the junior suites (35 m²) and suites (50 m²) take up to three people. The two largest suites have terraces of 60 and 70 m² above the valley. Beware of some junior suites and suites on the top floor: they are reached by stairs and have no lift. If you are travelling with someone who cannot climb stairs, ask for another when you book. Spa, breakfast and restaurant The La Sorgente spa is small and private, for a few people at a time, with treatments and massages that are booked; the website does not publish hours or prices. Breakfast is a buffet, sweet and savoury, cold and hot, with attention to special diets. The hotel has its own restaurant, L'Estasi, and rooms for weddings and events, so on some weekends there are celebrations. Getting there and parking The centre of Assisi has restricted traffic, but the hotel has private parking in front of the entrance: €20 per car per night, by reservation and until it is full. If there is no space, reception will point you to the nearest public car park. Without a car, from Santa Maria degli Angeli station a city bus goes up to the centre and you walk down Via Fontebella. - **Agriturismo Malvarina**: A farm in the hills of Assisi Malvarina is a farm stay at Via Pieve di Sant'Apollinare, 32, in the countryside south-east of Assisi, among olive trees and woodland. It is run by a family agricultural company with an organic farm: extra virgin olive oil, honey and preserves that are sold at the house and used in the kitchen. It is for those who prefer to sleep in the countryside, with a car, and go up to Assisi for the day; the centre and the basilica are a few minutes by car. What weighs most here is the table. The Malvarina osteria is in the Slow Food guide Osterie d'Italia: family Umbrian cooking, with recipes by Patrizia, the cook, and produce from the farm or from small producers in the area. Torta al testo, cardoon (gobbo) parmigiana, chicken cacciatore and rocciata for dessert. The menu of the day is published on the website: for example, a first course of €15, a main course of €20 and a dessert of €7, or the full menu of the day at €35 per person with water. On Sundays there is a traditional family lunch. Always book by phone: the closing day changes with the season. Rooms and cottages There are double, triple and quadruple rooms (in the last two, a double bed goes on a mezzanine) and independent ground-floor cottages with an equipped kitchen, a sitting room with a sofa bed, a double bedroom, a bathroom with shower and a private garden with a table and chairs. All have heating, free wifi, a private bathroom with towels and toiletries. There is no television, on purpose. They are tidied every day, with a change of bed linen and a thorough weekly clean. What to do from here Malvarina hires electric bicycles, a good way of getting around the plain and the hills between Assisi, Spello and the plain of Santa Maria degli Angeli. For the basilica and the centre, the convenient thing is to go by car and leave it in an outer car park, such as Piazza Matteotti. The website does not publish room prices, check-in and check-out times or rules on animals: you see them in its booking system or by asking. ## Dónde dormir if you're flying - **Giotto Hotel & Spa**: A four-star a few steps from the basilica The Giotto Hotel & Spa is at Via Fontebella, 41, the street that runs down from Piazza San Francesco towards Porta San Francesco, on the western edge of the historic centre. It is a four-star hotel with relais status, with a main building and an annexe, and is designed for those who want to sleep inside the walls but with parking at the door. From the entrance you walk to the basilica in a few minutes, along the same street, and to Piazza del Comune going up through the centre. Its strong point is the slope: almost all the rooms in the main building look onto the Umbrian valley, towards Santa Maria degli Angeli and the plain. At sunset, from the terrace of the Belvedere bar, you see the lights of the valley come on. If you sleep here, you can enter the lower basilica first thing, before the groups arrive. The rooms There are standard rooms, from 18 to 20 m², with a view of the valley, the city or the alleys, depending on whether they are in the main building or the annexe. Above them, the Charme Superior have 28 m² and a 40 m² terrace with a porch, and the junior suites (35 m²) and suites (50 m²) take up to three people. The two largest suites have terraces of 60 and 70 m² above the valley. Beware of some junior suites and suites on the top floor: they are reached by stairs and have no lift. If you are travelling with someone who cannot climb stairs, ask for another when you book. Spa, breakfast and restaurant The La Sorgente spa is small and private, for a few people at a time, with treatments and massages that are booked; the website does not publish hours or prices. Breakfast is a buffet, sweet and savoury, cold and hot, with attention to special diets. The hotel has its own restaurant, L'Estasi, and rooms for weddings and events, so on some weekends there are celebrations. Getting there and parking The centre of Assisi has restricted traffic, but the hotel has private parking in front of the entrance: €20 per car per night, by reservation and until it is full. If there is no space, reception will point you to the nearest public car park. Without a car, from Santa Maria degli Angeli station a city bus goes up to the centre and you walk down Via Fontebella. - **Hotel Pallotta**: An old house next to the square The Hotel Pallotta occupies a restored old house at Via San Rufino, 6, the street that climbs from Piazza del Comune towards the cathedral of San Rufino. It is a small family hotel: it is looked after by Elsa and, as the house tells it, the jam tart at breakfast has been made here for three generations. It shares a surname and family with the Trattoria Pallotta, which is a few steps away, under the arch of the Volta Pinta. It is a good base if you are going without a car and want to have everything at hand: the main square with the temple of Minerva round the corner, Santa Chiara and San Rufino five minutes away, the basilica of St Francis a downhill walk and the Rocca Maggiore uphill. At night, when the excursion coaches leave, the centre is quiet. The rooms There is a single, doubles and, in an annexe building, a double and two quadruples, useful for families. They have terracotta floors, a private bathroom with a small shower tray, television, telephone and heating with its own thermostat; the website also mentions air conditioning and free wifi. Some have windows over the rooftops. On the third floor there is a viewing platform with views of the city, and on the first a corner with wifi and a computer. You can enter your room on your own, without depending on reception. Breakfast is optional and is served from 8:00 to 10:00: tea, coffee, cappuccino, bread, cereals, jams, cheeses, yoghurt, juice and home-made tarts. Getting there and parking The centre is a limited traffic zone: you can drive in for a moment to unload your luggage and then leave the car outside. The hotel has no parking of its own. The nearest is the covered one at Piazza Matteotti, paid (€12 a day), about 300 metres away; there is also free parking on Via della Rocca, at a similar distance. Without a car, the bus that climbs from Santa Maria degli Angeli station drops you in the centre. The conditions are simple: free cancellation up to one day before arrival, no deposit, and you pay on arrival. The website does not publish prices or check-in and check-out times; ask when you book on WhatsApp or from its booking system. - **Agriturismo Malvarina**: A farm in the hills of Assisi Malvarina is a farm stay at Via Pieve di Sant'Apollinare, 32, in the countryside south-east of Assisi, among olive trees and woodland. It is run by a family agricultural company with an organic farm: extra virgin olive oil, honey and preserves that are sold at the house and used in the kitchen. It is for those who prefer to sleep in the countryside, with a car, and go up to Assisi for the day; the centre and the basilica are a few minutes by car. What weighs most here is the table. The Malvarina osteria is in the Slow Food guide Osterie d'Italia: family Umbrian cooking, with recipes by Patrizia, the cook, and produce from the farm or from small producers in the area. Torta al testo, cardoon (gobbo) parmigiana, chicken cacciatore and rocciata for dessert. The menu of the day is published on the website: for example, a first course of €15, a main course of €20 and a dessert of €7, or the full menu of the day at €35 per person with water. On Sundays there is a traditional family lunch. Always book by phone: the closing day changes with the season. Rooms and cottages There are double, triple and quadruple rooms (in the last two, a double bed goes on a mezzanine) and independent ground-floor cottages with an equipped kitchen, a sitting room with a sofa bed, a double bedroom, a bathroom with shower and a private garden with a table and chairs. All have heating, free wifi, a private bathroom with towels and toiletries. There is no television, on purpose. They are tidied every day, with a change of bed linen and a thorough weekly clean. What to do from here Malvarina hires electric bicycles, a good way of getting around the plain and the hills between Assisi, Spello and the plain of Santa Maria degli Angeli. For the basilica and the centre, the convenient thing is to go by car and leave it in an outer car park, such as Piazza Matteotti. The website does not publish room prices, check-in and check-out times or rules on animals: you see them in its booking system or by asking.