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An exclusive week in Orvieto… a stay at Palazzo Misciattelli
Spending a week in beautiful Orvieto allows to you avoid the hordes of tourists overwhelming the larger Italian cities while having a wonderful vacation full of food, wine, cultural, and active experiences. And when you stay at the exclusive Palazzo Misciattelli, you have a luxurious base just steps from restaurants, cafes, cultural sites, shopping, and bars. Travel doesn’t get any better than this!
image credit: valtercirillo
How can you spend a week in Orvieto? Will there be enough to do? Read on!
We recently had some New Yorkers with us and before they arrived their main question was “Will there be enough to do?”
Our response is: “Eccome!” as we say in Italian, or “And how!”
And the end of their week long stay, the New Yorkers described Orvieto as “bustling” and their time as relaxing. And they didn’t even see or do all the experiences available.
Orvieto has nine major historical sites, all visitable via one ticket called the Carta Unica. The most famous are the stunningly beautiful Duomo (cathedral), the Pozzo di San Patrizio (St Patrick’s well), and the Orvieto Sotterranea (Underground). The first two are medieval feats of engineering, and the third requires scheduling with a group guide that takes you on an hour long tour underground.
And aside from cultural experiences, we offer a vast variety of active and culinary experiences, from walks, hikes, e-biking, golf, horseback riding, cooking classes, wine tastings, truffle hunts, private dinners in Palazzo Misciattelli and much more.
Our family has been here in Orvieto for centuries so we know where to advise you to go, and what to avoid not just in Orvieto but in all of Italy!
Palazzo Misciattelli provides one of the most exclusive stays in all of Italy – while most five star hotels allow anyone to walk into their lobby or to have a drink at their bar, at Palazzo Misciattelli only overnight guests can pass through the main doors into a very exclusive behind the scenes world.
Check out our sample itinerary below for a week long stay, or just do a few days – it’s up to you – you choose!
Day 1: Arrive Orvieto from Rome or Florence. We make your arrival seamless, whether by train, private driver, or rental car.
You are welcomed by your Italian and American hosts who come from a long line of aristocrats in Orvieto, and who have lived in this palazzo for generations, and in this area for 1000 years…
Relax into your own beautiful and spacious residence with your own private dining, kitchen, laundry, and bedroom/bath.
Your hosts will advise you on fabulous pre-dinner cocktail options, like Febo or Bottega Vera and its sister bar Cantina Vera.
After pre-dinner cocktails, head to dinner at one of the top restaurants in Orvieto for a very special welcome, tasting some of the traditional delicacies of the area.
Post dinner, take a stroll past the magical Duomo, lit up by night, as you head back to your residence.
Your spacious residence welcomes you for a relaxing end to your evening and a wonderful night’s sleep in 5 star linens, bedding, and mattresses.
Day 2 ORVIETO – JEWELS OF THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD
Today you’ll visit a few of the 9 cultural highlights of Orvieto which are treasures from the Medieval period:
But first, a leisurely morning. Breakfast at exclusive Palazzo Misciattelli complete with all your requests as well as special local delicacies savory and sweet.
After breakfast, guests who want to start the morning with some exercise can choose to visit our fabulous private Technogym in the Palazzo. Or, we escort guests to the start of the 5k belt path which goes around the perimeter of Orvieto for a short or long walk or run.
Some guests may want a more leisurely start to their day. Your host, an aristocrat who grew up in Orvieto, will escort you on foot 5 minutes into the most central part of Orvieto. Your host will then spend about 30 minutes walking with you to point out the culinary, shopping, and cultural highlights of the city so you can orient yourself to all the wonderful offerings of the city.
Before lunch, you’ll visit one of the biggest cultural highlights of Orvieto either on your own or with a private licensed guide: the Duomo, our cathedral. An incredible feats of medieval engineering, it’s beauties inspired Michelangelo to study it to prepare himself for the Sistine Chapel in Rome.
image credit: Danijel Škabić
It’s now time for lunch! In one of the dozens of fantastic restaurants we will recommend to you.
And don’t miss a glance at the clock “Maurizio” from the 1200s, still functioning well, in the piazza of the Duomo, which allowed medieval workers to measure their work day for lunch breaks and the starts/ends of the day!
image credit: Tama66
After lunch head back to your spacious private living areas in Palazzo Misciattelli to rest and unwind. You might choose to relax on the roof terrace or in the gardens, using the sauna and plunge pool.
In the late afternoon, take a walk through town to the medieval Torre del Moro, at the main crossroads of the city. It’s one of a few remaining medieval towers, and if you are fit you might choose to walk up the 236 steps to the top for breathtaking views.
Take one of the Orvieto Underground tours which are only available with a guide, either private or group. Here you’ll explore the underground tunnels and caverns which create another city underneath the city of Orvieto, created originally by the Etruscans and also used extensively in medieval times.
At the end of the tour, take a look at the Papal Palace sitting next to the Duomo and imagine the 10 Popes who resided there in the 1200s and 1300s.
Before dinner, it’s time for a private exclusive wine tasting in Palazzo Misciattelli featuring the owner’s spectacular local favorites. Per your request, this will occur either on the roof terrace or in one of the spectacular historical salons.
Since you’re staying a week, the complimentary private dinner has been arranged for tonight, so you just step downstairs into one of the Palazzo’s historic salons where you dine and relax.
Day 3 – ORVIETO – EXCLUSIVE WONDERS FROM ETRUSCAN TIMES – PART 1
Today you’ll have a look at the pre-Roman history of Orvieto from 2500-3000 years ago, focusing on:
- Pozzo di San Patrizio / St Patrick’s Well
- Museo Archeologico Nazionale
- Museo Etrusco C. Faina
You’ll start your morning in your preferred way, perhaps some exercise in Palazzo Misciattelli’s private Technogym, or with a walk or run in town or around the belt path on the cliffs.
Then proceed to visit the Well and the two Archeology museums.
For guests less interested in history, we can arrange a private walk and lunch in the countryside.
In the late afternoon, visit one of the many either classic or hip energetic cocktail bars, like Febo or Bottega Vera.
Dine in one of our suggested restaurants for a local traditional experience.
Then after dinner, have a digestivo drink on the exclusive guests-only rooftop bar of Palazzo Misciattelli as you gaze at the stars.
Day 4 – EXCURSION – Countryside – Winery or Private 350 acre private countryside property
Today your exclusive stay continues – the owners of Palazzo Misciattelli personally escort you to their 350 acre private lands in the countryside, including a private white truffle forest, vineyards, olive groves, and ancient million year old fossil fields from the Pliocene sea that existed here five million years ago.
And/or, a visit to a fabulous local winery with delicious red and white wine as well as views of Orvieto!
Seasonally we can arrange visits to the olive oil press for new olive oil tastings or a white truffle hunt with the hunter and his dogs on our private white truffle reserve (October – December).
In other months, you might choose to have a picnic in the olive grove with white table cloths, or a fossil hunt, or a walk in the vineyards.
Lunch can be at a traditional restaurant where the chef takes you on a brief wild-herb gathering walk in the forest before preparing what you have gathered.
In the afternoon return to Palazzo Misciattelli and Orvieto to relax and have some unstructured time. You might use the sauna and plunge pool or the Palazzo’s private Technogym.
Just before dinner, have an exclusive visit to Palazzo Misciattelli’s private cantinas and grottoes where you can taste wine from a local winemaker and also explore the 4 stories-deep cantinas and grottoes carved out by the Etruscans 3000 years ago. All just directly underneath Palazzo Misciattelli.
Dinner is a exclusive cooking class with a local signora who learned to make pasta from her nonna! She will show you all the tips and tricks.
After dinner, head out for a nightcap at one of Orvieto’s many fun bars before retiring to your airy residence for a delicious night’s sleep at gorgeous Palazzo Misciattelli.
Day 5 – EXCURSION OR RELAX – CHOICE of Shopping, Cafes, Golf, or Horseback riding
So many options today! You might even choose just to relax all day at a spa or at the Palazzo with an in-house massage. Or fit in one of the 9 cultural sites you missed so far!
Others may choose to go hiking or golfing…or an exclusive excursion into one of the villages in Tuscany…
And for those who choose to go shopping, we have special privileges for our guests at The Mall just outside Florence. We can also take you to our favorite Orvieto shops where we have personal friendship with the owners for decades..
Before dinner, a private guide or your host take you on a complimentary walking tour of Orvieto to taste all of the local delicacies in various specialty shops.
You might then choose either to relax on the roof top terrace with a glass of wine, or to work out in Palazzo Misciattelli’s Technogym.
Soon, a Michelin starred chef arrives at Palazzo Misciattelli to begin preparing a private exclusive catered dinner for your pleasure.
Day 6 – EXCLUSIVE WONDERS FROM ETRUSCAN TIMES – PART 2
There’s always so much to see and do in Orvieto!
Today you can have a very real active experience with Etruscan times, exploring on your own the underground Labyrinth of Adriano, the Pozzo della Cava and the Pozzo di San Patrizio. And don’t forget the short walk to actual Etruscan tombs, or necropoli, on the side of the Rupe cliff!
Others might prefer an excursion to a different winery famous for their particular clay soil.
For dinner, walk 4 minutes to a traditional elegant restaurant serving the local specialties of pasta and wine….
Day 7 – EXCURSION OR RELAX
Another morning of an amazing assortment of choices. Either e-biking in the countryside, or horseback riding, or a visit to a local goat farm which produces gourmet cheeses.
Or, a short excursion and day trip to the gorgeous town of Bolsena perched with its castle on a clear spring fed lake. And just 20 minutes from Bolsena is Civita di Bagnoregio, the Dying City, famous and fascinating in its own right.
In the evening, enjoy a brief aperitivo with a ceramics artisan who will show you how to make terracotta flowers in her workshop just steps from Palazzo Misciattelli.
Before dinner, enjoy Palazzo Misciattelli’s sauna, plunge pool, and gym.
Day 8 – Departure from Orvieto
We make your departure easy with either a complimentary transfer to the train station, or assisting you with your departure rental car or private driver.
image credit: Explore_With_Mohini
