HISTORY OF SPOLETO:
Spoleto was settled in prehistoric times, and it became an important Umbrian center during the Iron Age, a fact confirmed by numerous findings dating back to that period. In 241 BC, Spoletium became a Roman colony, and supported Rome in the Punic Wars. Read More [...]
The Duchy of Spoleto was established in 571 by the Lombard leader Faroald I, and the town remained independent until 729 AD, when it was subjugated by the Lombard king Liutprand. Later, Spoleto became part of the Frankish Empire.
In 1362, the cardinal Egidio Albornoz chose Spoleto as a stronghold of the States of the Church, and commissioned the architect Matteo Gattaponi to build the Rocca Albornoziana fortress.
Spoleto had another period of glory during the Napoleonic Empire, between 1808 and 1815, when it was the capital of the Trasimene Department. In 1860, Spoleto was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy.
GEOGRAPHY OF SPOLETO:
Spoleto is a town of about 38,000 inhabitants in the province of Perugia, part of the Italian region of Umbria. The town is built on the Sant'Elia Hill, a promontory at the foot of Monte Luco, part of the Apennine Mountains. Read More [...]
The town is located 42 kilometers south of Assisi, 69 kilometers southeast of Perugia, 82 kilometers east of Orvieto, 115 kilometers northeast of Rome, 127 kilometers southeast of Arezzo, 200 kilometers southeast of Florence, 290 kilometers southeast of Bologna, 310 kilometers northwest of Naples, and about 500 kilometers southeast of Milan.
TRANSPORT TO SPOLETO:
The closest airport is the San Francesco d'Assisi International Airport, the main airport of Umbria, located about 50 kilometers to the north. Read More [...]
From the airport, you can take the bus Line E007 to Perugia. A ticket costs 2.50€ at the ticket office or 3.50€ if bought on board, and the trip takes about half an hour. Then, you can take a train from the Perugia railway station to Spoleto. A trip takes about 1 hour, and the cheapest ticket costs 6.00€.
You can get to Spoleto by train, from Rome, to the south, or from Florence, to the north. The cheapest train ticket from Rome costs 9.30€ and the trip takes about one hour and a half. From Florence, the trip takes about 3 hours and a half, and the cheapest ticket costs 17.45€.
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS IN SPOLETO:
The most important tourist attractions in Spoleto are the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta (Duomo di Spoleto), the Rocca Albornoziana citadel, the Teodelapio, an impressive sculpture by Alexander Calder, and the beautiful Fontana di Piazza del Mercato.
EVENTS IN SPOLETO:
Spoleto is known for the Festival of the Two Worlds (Festival dei Due Mondi), an art festival which gathers every summer, starting with 1958, the most interesting artists of classical music and dance.