Autumn Immersive Umbria

Highlights of our Autumn Immersive Umbria tour:

Participate in the vendemmia (grape harvest) or raccolta delle olivi (olive harvest)
Share a bountiful lunch for the hard-working harvesters
Help process the grapes, or visit an oil mill to watch the olives be pressed
Sample porcini mushrooms, chestnuts, and more

LENGTH

8 days/7 nights

HIGHLIGHTS

Help with a grape or olive harvest, learn about Umbria’s rural culture, and cook with seasonal ingredients

DATES

2024:
Oct 12-19
2025:
Sep 27-Oct 4, Oct 11-18

TRIP SIZE

Up to 10 guests

Visit Umbria in our favorite season

SALE: $4099 (Regularly $4,499)

Per person, based on double occupancy
Maximum of 10 travelers
Single supplement available

Fall may be our favorite time of year in Umbria, in large part because of two major harvests that take place — grapes and olives. This 8-day tour gives you a chance to harvest one or the other and see and taste the fruits of your labors, in between exploring nearby hill towns and points of interest.

Day 1: Arrivals & settling in

Liz and your driver will meet you at Rome Fiumicino airport (FCO) for minibus transfer to Allerona — about a 2-hour drive. Along the way, we’ll give you an introduction to the week ahead.

Check into your rooms and find lunch waiting, and have a few hours to rest and chill. This is your home for the week!
We’ll take an early evening tour of Allerona, where you’ll learn about the history of the village and some of its special places and hidden corners.
We’ll enjoy a welcome aperitivo, followed by dinner in a private cantina in town.

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Welcome lunch, dinner

Day 2: Orvieto

On this full day, we’ll get to know Orvieto, the beautiful medieval city with Etruscan roots and a magnificent 14th-century cathedral. On the 20-minute ride to Orvieto, we’ll explain a little of the city’s history (and maybe a little about how Liz and Paolo met here!)

We’ll meet our guide for a tour of Orvieto’s centro storico (historic center) followed by a visit to the Duomo.
Lunch at our favorite trattoria in Orvieto
After lunch, we’ll visit one of Orvieto’s many underground caves, carved out over the millennia for storage, shelter and raw materials, and do a ceramics workshop.
Return to Allerona for the evening and dinner at our lovely fine-dining restaurant

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Day 3: Harvesting & village life

We’ll stay close to home and get a taste of rural life and traditional Umbrian cooking, family style:

Depending on seasonal conditions, we’ll get an early start for grape or olive picking. If harvest timing doesn’t align (it changes year to year), we’ll sub this with mushroom hunting or some other outdoor activity, weather permitting.
Bring your appetites to a private lunch, prepared and hosted by Paolo’s mom, Franca, and sister, AnnaRita. Friends who’ve visited us recall “lunch with Franca” as the highlight of their stay.
Free time after lunch to rest and relax.
Tour of a village palace, the ancestral home of a local family, followed by tasting of local olive oil, wine and other products, including a bruschetta-making lesson.

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Day 4: A little bit of Lazio

We’ll dip into Lazio, one of the region’s bordering Umbria, and visit one of the area’s most enigmatic sights.

Civita di Bagnoregio (la città che muore, or the dying city) sits on a dramatic tufa plateau just a short distance from Orvieto. We’ll walk across the long bridge — the only way to access the nearly-deserted town — and spend some time exploring and taking photos.
We’ll have lunch at Civita, then stop for a fantastic photo op of Orvieto.
On the way back to Allerona, we’ll stop for a wine tasting at a cantina with cellars built by the Etruscans.
This evening, those who still have some energy and appetite can join us at the bar just outside of town for drinks and snacks (walking, or transport provided). Otherwise, you can just rest and relax with snacks at your guesthouse.

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Day 5: Cooking with Franca

Sleep in, or take a morning walk along the strada bianca, the gravel road that runs through the countryside. Liz will provide directions and maybe give you a dog to walk!

Mid-morning, we’ll head to Franca’s kitchen for a cooking lesson. Handmade pasta and roast chicken are on the menu.
At lunch, we’ll dine on the delicious food we prepared earlier, followed by a grappa tasting.
Your afternoon is free to rest and digest.
In the evening, we’ll provide snacks, or you can dine on your own at our restaurant in town.

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, evening snacks

Day 6: Tuscany and the Umbrian bosco

Weather permitting, we’ll spend most of the day outdoors, learning about the ancient Etruscans, thermal baths and foraged foods.

Midmorning, we’ll head up to Parco di Villalba and meet our friend Adio for coffee, followed by a ~2-hour nature hike, where he’ll offer an informal lesson on edible wild plants and herbs.
We’ll end our walk at the cozy, wooded Hosteria di Villalba, for a lunch of traditional Umbrian specialties and local wine.
After lunch, we’ll ride about 20 minutes to San Casciano dei Bagni for a tour of the major Etruscan and Roman archaeological site that’s come to light there. Then we’ll head up the hill to take a dip in the thermal pools of a luxury spa, where water bubbles from underground at a constant 104F.
This evening, it’s pizza party time!

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Day 7: Orvieto and farewell dinner

On our last day in Umbria, you’ll have time to shop for souvenirs in Orvieto and make one of your own.

We’ll start with a handmade marbleized papermaking session with our friend Lamberto.
Lunch and the afternoon in Orvieto are on your own.
Late afternoon, we’ll meet at Piazza Cahen and take the funicular — a one-of-a-kind experience — down to our waiting van.
This evening, we’ll enjoy a festive cookout and say arrivederci to Allerona.

Accommodations: A private room in a comfortable guesthouse in Allerona
Meals: Breakfast, dinner

Day 8: Goodbyes and transfers

After breakfast, we’ll say our farewells and, depending on your onward schedule, get you transferred to Rome airport of the Orvieto train station.

Meals: Breakfast

INCLUDED:

Rome airport pick up/drop off, or pick up/drop off at Orvieto train station
7 nights accommodation with breakfast
Almost all meals and wine, except where indicated
Ample snacks on the nights we don’t do dinner
Local transportation via minibus with driver
Private dinners and tastings and a cooking lesson
Private tours

EXCLUDED:

Airfare or train fare to or within Italy
Travel insurance (strongly recommended)
Tips for drivers and guides
Optional meals and drinks not included in the tour itinerary
Souvenirs and incidentals