Todi

Todi grew in rings and still shows them: an Etruscan wall, a Roman one outside it and a medieval circuit outside that, so the town's history is legible in its own plan. Piazza del Popolo gathers the cathedral and three medieval civic palaces facing each other, one of the most complete medieval squares in Italy. Below the walls stands Santa Maria della Consolazione, a Renaissance church on a Greek cross plan with four apses, begun in 1508 and taking a century, sometimes attributed to Bramante's circle. In 1991 a study by an American academic named Todi the world's most liveable town, and the town has never stopped mentioning it.

What you actually see

• The three walls - Etruscan, Roman and medieval circuits, one inside the next.
• Piazza del Popolo - cathedral and three civic palaces around one square.
• Santa Maria della Consolazione - a domed Renaissance church below the walls.
• The Roman cisterns - underground reservoirs beneath the main square.

When to go

April to October; the Todi Festival of theatre and music runs in late August. Summer weekends are busy. Winter is quiet with reduced opening.

Honest expectations

Parking is below with a steep climb or a lift and escalator system. The town is compact and seen in half a day. Some museums keep short hours.

Nearby

Orvieto lies southwest; Perugia is north.