Assisi and the Basilica of St Francis

Assisi climbs its Umbrian hillside in pink-tinged stone, and at its western end stands one of Christianity's great buildings: the Basilica of San Francesco, begun in 1228, just two years after the death of Francis - the merchant's son who embraced poverty, preached to birds and became Italy's patron saint. The basilica stacks two churches: the dim Romanesque lower church, frescoed by Sienese masters over the crypt where Francis lies, and the soaring Gothic upper church, whose walls carry the celebrated Life of St Francis cycle attributed to Giotto - painting that helped turn European art toward the human. The 1997 earthquake brought part of the vault down; the restoration is its own quiet miracle. Beyond the basilica, Santa Chiara holds St Clare, the Rocca Maggiore fortress tops the town, and the forested Eremo delle Carceri hermitage above keeps the saint's silence better than anywhere.

What you actually see

• The upper church frescoes - the Life of St Francis cycle in Gothic light.
• The crypt - the plain stone tomb of the saint below the lower church.
• The lower church - Sienese frescoes glowing in the half-dark.
• Eremo delle Carceri - the forest hermitage in the oak woods above town.

When to go

Spring and autumn for pilgrim-comfortable weather and the Umbrian plain in colour; the feast of St Francis around 4 October fills the town with ceremony. Summer middays bring heat and coach groups; early morning in the upper church is the connoisseur's slot.

Honest expectations

This is a working pilgrimage site - dress codes are enforced, silence is requested and Sundays belong to services. The town is steep; comfortable shoes matter more than usual. Souvenir religiosity crowds the main streets, but two lanes uphill Assisi turns medieval and calm.

Nearby

Perugia is half an hour away; Spello, Spoleto and the Umbrian hill-town circuit continue south.