Trevi

Trevi is one of the most photogenic hill towns in Umbria, its houses spiralling in tight concentric rings up a steep conical hill on the flank of Monte Serano, above a vast sea of silvery olive groves that cloak the slopes down to the Valle Umbra. Ranked among the Borghi più belli d'Italia, Italy's most beautiful villages, it is best explored slowly on foot, climbing the narrow stepped lanes that curl up to the summit, where the church of Sant'Emiliano and panoramic terraces look out over the plain towards Spello, Assisi and Montefalco. Along the way the town offers a clutch of cultural sights: the Complesso Museale di San Francesco, which combines the municipal picture gallery, an archaeological collection and, fittingly for Trevi, the Museo dell'Olivo e dell'Olio, devoted to the olive and its oil; the church of San Francesco itself; and the Flash Art Museum of contemporary art. Trevi is renowned for its olive oil, among the finest in Umbria, and the surrounding groves, some with ancient trees, are a defining feature of the landscape. A visit usually takes an hour and a half to two hours, longer with the museums or a walk among the olives. The town is at its most atmospheric in autumn around the November olive harvest and the oil festivals, when new oil is pressed and tasted, and in the soft light of late afternoon. Trevi sits above the Valle Umbra near Foligno and is reached by car, or by train to Trevi station in the valley followed by a bus up the hill, in central Umbria.