Gubbio Travel Guide: Sights, Cable Car, Getting There

Gubbio is a medieval town of grey limestone climbing the slope of Monte Ingino, north-east of Perugia, and it is worth a full day for its Piazza Grande with the towering Palazzo dei Consoli, the open basket cable car to the Basilica of Sant’Ubaldo, and its Roman theatre. There is no railway station, so you arrive by regional bus from Perugia or by car. Every year on 15 May, the town hosts the Corsa dei Ceri, a traditional festival of rare intensity.

Gubbio at a glance

Where	North-eastern Umbria, below Monte Ingino
Getting there	Regional bus from Perugia, or car
Time needed	One full day
Highlights	Piazza Grande, Palazzo dei Consoli, Iguvine Tablets, cable car
Key date	Corsa dei Ceri, 15 May

Piazza Grande and the Palazzo dei Consoli

Gubbio’s main square is a broad terrace built out over the slope on great arches, so it seems to hang above the lower town. On one side stands the Palazzo dei Consoli, a tall, severe 14th-century palace with a slender bell tower. Inside, the Museo Civico keeps the Iguvine Tablets (Tavole Eugubine), seven bronze tablets with religious texts in the ancient Umbrian language, written partly in Etruscan-derived and partly in Latin script. They are among the most important sources for the languages of pre-Roman Italy.

Across the square, the Palazzo Pretorio houses the town hall. From the parapet you look out over the roofs to the plain below.

Streets and churches

Gubbio is best explored slowly. The town is laid out in long, parallel streets following the contours of the hill, linked by steep lanes and stairs.

• Via dei Consoli runs from the main square past medieval houses, many with a narrow second door beside the main one, often called the ‘door of the dead’ in local lore.
• The cathedral, higher up, has a single nave spanned by stone arches.
• The Palazzo Ducale, opposite the cathedral, was built for the Montefeltro dukes of Urbino and shows the refined courtyard style of their court.
• San Francesco, in the lower town, is linked to Francis’s time in Gubbio, and the town’s best-known legend tells of the saint taming a wolf here.

Roman theatre

Below the walls, in the meadows at the foot of the town, lie the remains of a Roman theatre. The setting is quiet and makes a good start or end to the day if you arrive by bus or park nearby.

The cable car to Sant’Ubaldo

The Funivia Colle Eletto carries visitors up Monte Ingino in small open metal baskets, each holding one or two people standing. It is short, unusual and memorable. At the top stands the Basilica of Sant’Ubaldo, where the body of the town’s patron saint lies and where the three Ceri are kept for most of the year. Paths lead further up the mountain for views across the Apennines. Hours vary by season and the cable car may close in strong wind; check the municipality’s website or ask locally.

The Corsa dei Ceri

On 15 May, the eve of the feast of St Ubaldo, the people of Gubbio carry three huge wooden structures, the Ceri, each topped by a statue of a saint, through the streets at running pace and finally up the mountain to the basilica. The day is full of ritual and loyalty to the three teams; it is not staged for tourists. If you want to experience it, arrive early, follow local advice on where to stand and expect very dense crowds. Other dates in Gubbio’s calendar include a crossbow contest in May and celebrations in the Christmas season. Our festival calendar lists events across Umbria.

Getting there

By bus: regional buses connect Perugia’s Piazza Partigiani with Gubbio. The journey takes over an hour depending on the service. Return buses are limited in the evening and on Sundays, so check times first.

By car: the road from Perugia crosses the hills north-east of the city. Park in the car parks below the walls; the centre is a restricted traffic zone.

By train: the nearest station is in Fossato di Vico, on the Rome to Ancona line, with an onward bus. From Perugia, the direct bus is simpler.

Where to stay

A night in Gubbio lets you see the main square at dusk and catch the first cable car in the morning. Look for accommodation inside the walls with parking nearby, or a farm stay in the surrounding hills.

Combining Gubbio with other places

Gubbio fits neatly into a route through northern Umbria or as a day out from Perugia; see our day trips from Perugia. In a longer trip, follow it with Assisi or continue south towards Spoleto. Our seven-day Umbria itinerary shows one way to fit it in.