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Books : Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria
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Rating: 
- Umbria Adventure
We used this book for a trip to Umbria with our children ages 9 and 12 and thought it was great, both for the walking and the eating. We have been to Tuscany several times and wanted to branch out to Umbria on this last trip, and can only say we wish we had done so sooner. We stayed in the lovely town of Norcia, and did the "san Eutizio" walk: an amazing adventure with children! Norcia was an easy place to be with kids, the hotel recommended in the book was extremely friendly, the town had such a safe feeling and enough of interest (particularly the gelato bar) to the kids to keep them busy. The walk - one of the longer ones in the book - was an ambitious one for kids, but gave them an exceptional feeling of accomplishment at the end, and they loved the beautiful abbey at San Eutizio, especially enjoyable on our visit because as we ate dinner at the tiny restaurant next door (the only building in the immediate environs) there was a wedding going on, which spilled into the outdoors. While my husband and I lingered over our "vino," the kids went inside the abbey and mingled with the wedding party stragglers, a few of whom - along with our kids of course - crawled through an ancient tunnel behind the altar, an action that is supposed to cure all ills.
We also went up to Castelluccio, the mountain village about 15 miles from Norcia, which was stunningly beautiful, remote, and virtually deserted. There is a small restaurant there which was fabulous, and the sunset behind the austere Sibillini mountains was a stunning backdrop to our outdoor meal. Next time we would plan to stay in this tiny village overnight.
Note: we had the 2005 edition, and the friend who recommended this book says the san eutizio walk wasn't in the original.
Rating:
- Misleading Title
If your plans are for travel to Umbria - find another book. The title here is very misleading. The authors open their section on Umbria by admitting they have little to say about it - and then devote a mere sixty pages out of 387 to it. I've done Tuscany (who has'nt?) and wanted to explore Umbria - to this end, this book has proved useless.
Rating: - Brilliant book
I have just returned from a year in Italy and completed almost every walk in the book. It is a superbly researched, well written book that makes walking in Italy fun. All of the walks were interesting, some of them remote and spectacular, others through a foodies and nature lovers paradise. The book is still up to date.
Rating: - A well researched and useful guide
We spent two weeks in Tuscany in July 2002 and did 4 walks out of this guide. We found the directions very accurate and easy to follow and we enjoyed the walks very much. This is the best way to see and experience the Tuscan countryside. Many walks are from point to point and can be linked to form longer itineraries, but we preferred the ring walks. We also liked the style of writing; it is quite witty and funny at times.
Rating:
- Useful, but a relatively small selection in a huge area
This guide proves most useful and informative if there happen to be any of the walks described near you. Descriptions seem accurate (if complex at times) and there is good information about maps and travel. Finding shops which stock the maps is more difficult.
- Umbria AdventureWe used this book for a trip to Umbria with our children ages 9 and 12 and thought it was great, both for the walking and the eating. We have been to Tuscany several times and wanted to branch out to Umbria on this last trip, and can only say we wish we had done so sooner. We stayed in the lovely town of Norcia, and did the "san Eutizio" walk: an amazing adventure with children! Norcia was an easy place to be with kids, the hotel recommended in the book was extremely friendly, the town had such a safe feeling and enough of interest (particularly the gelato bar) to the kids to keep them busy. The walk - one of the longer ones in the book - was an ambitious one for kids, but gave them an exceptional feeling of accomplishment at the end, and they loved the beautiful abbey at San Eutizio, especially enjoyable on our visit because as we ate dinner at the tiny restaurant next door (the only building in the immediate environs) there was a wedding going on, which spilled into the outdoors. While my husband and I lingered over our "vino," the kids went inside the abbey and mingled with the wedding party stragglers, a few of whom - along with our kids of course - crawled through an ancient tunnel behind the altar, an action that is supposed to cure all ills.
We also went up to Castelluccio, the mountain village about 15 miles from Norcia, which was stunningly beautiful, remote, and virtually deserted. There is a small restaurant there which was fabulous, and the sunset behind the austere Sibillini mountains was a stunning backdrop to our outdoor meal. Next time we would plan to stay in this tiny village overnight.
Note: we had the 2005 edition, and the friend who recommended this book says the san eutizio walk wasn't in the original.
Rating:
- Misleading TitleIf your plans are for travel to Umbria - find another book. The title here is very misleading. The authors open their section on Umbria by admitting they have little to say about it - and then devote a mere sixty pages out of 387 to it. I've done Tuscany (who has'nt?) and wanted to explore Umbria - to this end, this book has proved useless.
Rating:
- Brilliant bookI have just returned from a year in Italy and completed almost every walk in the book. It is a superbly researched, well written book that makes walking in Italy fun. All of the walks were interesting, some of them remote and spectacular, others through a foodies and nature lovers paradise. The book is still up to date.
Rating:
- A well researched and useful guideWe spent two weeks in Tuscany in July 2002 and did 4 walks out of this guide. We found the directions very accurate and easy to follow and we enjoyed the walks very much. This is the best way to see and experience the Tuscan countryside. Many walks are from point to point and can be linked to form longer itineraries, but we preferred the ring walks. We also liked the style of writing; it is quite witty and funny at times.
Rating:
- Useful, but a relatively small selection in a huge areaThis guide proves most useful and informative if there happen to be any of the walks described near you. Descriptions seem accurate (if complex at times) and there is good information about maps and travel. Finding shops which stock the maps is more difficult.