Day trip from Florence to Assisi by regional train

Outbound 2 h 53 minAbout 4.5 h for your visit in Assisi
Costs for the dayabout €62.80 to €72.80 per person2 adults, recommended sights, with AI Tour Guide and foodWork out your costs ↓
Start the Assisi tourSee the day plan
Assisi

Assisi works as a day trip from Florence, but it is a long day: the direct regional train takes close to three hours each way, and only one of them leaves in the morning. Catch it and you get around four and a half hours in Assisi, enough to walk the tour from the Basilica di San Francesco to the Cattedrale di San Rufino with an unhurried lunch in between, and on towards the Rocca Maggiore and Santa Chiara if time allows.

Is a day trip from Florence to Assisi worth it?

Assisi gives you something Florence cannot: a small walled hill town in Umbria, quiet after the crowds of the Duomo, where the whole visit revolves around Saint Francis and Saint Clare. The Basilica di San Francesco with Giotto's frescoes and the saint's tomb is reason enough on its own, and the old town is compact enough to see properly on foot in an afternoon. The main churches are free, so the day stays affordable.

The price is travel time. Assisi is off Italy's main north to south line, so direct trains are few, and the station sits in the valley at Santa Maria degli Angeli, about 5 km below the old town, which adds a bus ride at each end. Count on around six hours of travel for around four and a half hours on the ground. If you go, keep it to Assisi alone: adding Perugia or Spoleto turns both into hurried glimpses.

Who this day trip suits

  • Pilgrims and spiritual travellers: the Franciscan sites are the core of the town, and they move many visitors who are not religious.
  • Art lovers: Giotto's frescoes in the Basilica di San Francesco are a reason to make the trip.
  • Anyone who needs a break from Florence: Assisi is small, calm and rural by comparison.
  • Budget walkers: the basilicas are free, the old town is walkable, and the Rocca Maggiore is the only paid stop on the tour.
  • Travellers with four or more days in Florence, who can give up one full day to the road and rail.

Go if Saint Francis, Giotto or a quiet hill town draw you and you have more than three days in Florence; with only two or three days or little interest in churches, pick Siena, Pisa or Bologna instead.

Other day trips from Florence

How to get from Florence to Assisi by train

The direct Trenitalia regional train from Firenze Santa Maria Novella to Assisi is the way to do this trip: no change, no driving, and it arrives at the station from which the bus climbs to the old town. FlixBus also runs from Villa Costanza to Santa Maria degli Angeli a few times a day, but its return departures come too early in the afternoon for a full day.

Train: Trenitalia Regionale

Direct Regionale and Regionale Veloce trains leave from Firenze Santa Maria Novella and take close to three hours to Assisi station in Santa Maria degli Angeli. There are only a handful of direct trains a day: one early in the morning, then the next around midday and roughly every two hours after that, so the morning train is the only one that gives you a full day. On weekdays it can run a few minutes longer than its timetable. Buy through Trenitalia; fares are dynamic, so booking a few days ahead usually helps, and the booking screen shows whether your train carries a reservation requirement, which some regional services do.

Operator
Trenitalia Regionale
Route
Firenze Santa Maria Novella → Assisi
Journey time
2 h 53 min
Morning departures
Monday to Sunday: 2 departures
Travel fare
Outward €17.60; return €17.60 (€35.20 return total)

Tickets at Trenitalia ↗

Assisi station is in the valley, not in the old town. Right outside it, the Busitalia Assisi Link, urban Line C, climbs to the historic centre in about ten minutes; an ordinary urban ticket is valid for 90 minutes and can also be bought on board. Count on around 40 minutes from the train to the Basilica di San Francesco, including the wait for the bus.

Into the centre: €1.30 per ride

Timetable

departures by weekday
RouteDaysDepartureArrivalDuration
Firenze Santa Maria Novella → AssisiMonday to Sunday · Trenitalia08:0210:552 h 53 min
Florence (Villa Costanza) → Assisi (Santa Maria degli Angeli)Monday to Thursday · FlixBus09:0012:053 h 5 min
Florence (Villa Costanza) → Assisi (Santa Maria degli Angeli)Monday and Thursday · FlixBus11:5014:152 h 25 min
Firenze Santa Maria Novella → AssisiMonday to Sunday · Trenitalia12:1415:002 h 46 min

Timetable: Trenitalia, as of 22 October 2026

Timetable: FlixBus, as of 22 October 2026

departures by weekday
RouteDaysDepartureArrivalDuration
Assisi → Firenze Santa Maria NovellaMonday to Sunday · Trenitalia13:0915:482 h 39 min
Assisi → Firenze Santa Maria NovellaMonday to Sunday · Trenitalia15:0417:572 h 53 min
Assisi (Santa Maria degli Angeli) → Florence (Villa Costanza)Monday to Thursday · FlixBus16:0019:053 h 5 min
Assisi (Piazza Unità d'Italia) → Florence (Villa Costanza)Monday and Thursday · FlixBus16:3519:102 h 35 min
Assisi → Firenze Santa Maria NovellaMonday to Sunday · Trenitalia17:1319:522 h 39 min
Assisi → Firenze Santa Maria NovellaMonday to Saturday · Trenitalia19:0621:502 h 44 min

Timetable: Trenitalia, as of 22 October 2026

Timetable: FlixBus, as of 22 October 2026

Florence to Assisi day trip itinerary

Day plan for: Mon–Sun

Everything hangs on the direct train out shortly after eight and the one back shortly after five; in between, lunch sits where Assisi's churches take their midday break.

  1. Morning08:02 – 10:55

    Take the direct train from Firenze Santa Maria Novella shortly after eight, arriving in Assisi just before eleven. Walk out to the bus stop in front of the station and ride Line C up to the old town, then head to the Basilica di San Francesco.

    It is the only direct morning train; the next one leaves around midday and would halve your time in Assisi.

  2. Tour11:45 – 12:45

    At the Basilica di San Francesco, open the walking tour in your browser. The AI Tour Guide greets you and leads you through the basilica, telling the story of Francis and pointing you to Giotto's frescoes, the Upper and Lower Church and the tomb, and asks what catches your interest.

    The basilica is open all day and is the one place to give your full attention to, so it opens the tour while you are fresh.

    1. Basilica di San Francesco in Assisi, stop 1 on the self-guided walking tour1Basilica di San Francesco

    Start the Assisi tour

  3. Lunch12:45 – 13:45

    Have lunch after the Basilica di San Francesco and before the Temple of Minerva, along the walk towards Piazza del Comune. Try Umbrian food: torta al testo, strangozzi with truffle, or focaccia with porchetta from La Bottega dei Sapori near the piazza.

    Casa Natale di San Francesco closes at midday, so this is the hour where a break costs you nothing.

  4. Afternoon13:45 – 16:00

    The guide picks up again at the Temple of Minerva around a quarter to two, then Casa Natale di San Francesco as it reopens around half past two and the Cattedrale di San Rufino around three, where the main part of the tour ends around a quarter past three. The Rocca Maggiore and the Basilica di Santa Chiara form the tour's optional end: with the 45 minutes left before you head back, the guide carries on towards them as far as the time allows.

    This order follows the walk through town and reaches Casa Natale after its midday break; the last two stops are a bonus, not a must. Monday to Saturday, a later direct train in the early evening leaves room for both.

    1. Temple of Minerva in Assisi, stop 2 on the self-guided walking tour2Temple of Minerva
    2. Casa Natale di San Francesco in Assisi, stop 3 on the self-guided walking tour3Casa Natale di San Francesco
    3. Cattedrale di San Rufino in Assisi, stop 4 on the self-guided walking tour4Cattedrale di San Rufino
  5. Return16:00 – 19:52

    Leave the Cattedrale di San Rufino by four, head back down to the station and board the direct train shortly after five, which reaches Firenze Santa Maria Novella just before eight.

    The way down, the wait and a short buffer at the station take over an hour, and this train runs every day, Sunday included, when it is the last direct one.

Arrival to return departure: 6 h 18 min. Time for your visit: about 4.5 h.

Arrival 10:55, tour start 11:45: 45 min to walk to the start, 5 min spare.

Realistically you get around four and a half hours in Assisi, about two and a half of them on the tour; if you arrive late, drop the Rocca Maggiore and Santa Chiara at the end rather than rushing the basilica.

Best day to visit Assisi from Florence

  1. Monday: recommended
  2. Tuesday: recommended
  3. Wednesday: recommended
  4. Thursday: recommended
  5. Friday: recommended
  6. Saturday: recommended
  7. Sunday: recommended

Assisi walking tour in one day: from San Francesco to Santa Chiara

The walking tour is how you see Assisi on this day: it starts at the Basilica di San Francesco, crosses the old town to Piazza del Comune, climbs to the Rocca Maggiore and ends at Santa Chiara, 1.6 km and under half an hour of pure walking, about two and a half hours with the visits. The AI Tour Guide leads the walk as a conversation, so between the churches you hear who Francis and Clare were and how the town grew around them.

The Assisi tour: your guide leads you from stop to stop.
  1. Basilica di San Francesco
  2. Temple of Minerva
  3. Casa Natale di San Francesco
  4. Cattedrale di San Rufino
  5. Rocca Maggiore
  6. Basilica di Santa Chiara

Start the Assisi tour

Opening hours as of 21 October 2026.

  1. Basilica di San Francesco in Assisi, stop 1 on the self-guided walking tour
    1Stop 1

    Basilica di San Francesco

    The mother church of the Franciscan friars, built over the tomb of Saint Francis and painted by Giotto and his contemporaries.

    Hours
    Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun: Lower Church 06:00–18:30 · Upper Church 08:30–18:00 · Tomb 06:00–18:15
    Wed: Lower Church 06:00–17:30 · Upper Church 08:30–18:00 · Tomb 06:00–18:15
    Price
    Free
  2. Temple of Minerva in Assisi, stop 2 on the self-guided walking tour
    2Stop 2

    Temple of Minerva

    A Roman temple front from the first century BC on Piazza del Comune, still standing as the façade of the church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva.

    Hours
    Daily: 08:00–20:00
    Price
    Free
  3. Casa Natale di San Francesco in Assisi, stop 3 on the self-guided walking tour
    3Stop 3

    Casa Natale di San Francesco

    The Chiesa Nuova, built in 1615 over the presumed house of Pietro di Bernardone, where Francis was born.

    Hours
    Daily: 08:00–12:30, 14:30–18:00
    Price
    Free
  4. Cattedrale di San Rufino in Assisi, stop 4 on the self-guided walking tour
    4Stop 4

    Cattedrale di San Rufino

    Assisi's cathedral, dedicated to the town's first bishop Saint Rufinus, with a crypt, diocesan museum and bell tower you can add for a fee.

    Hours
    Daily: 07:30–19:00
    Price
    Optional entry · Cattedrale di San Rufino: €4
    Price
    Optional entry · Cattedrale di San Rufino: €5
  5. Rocca Maggiore in Assisi, stop 5 on the self-guided walking tour
    5Stop 5

    Rocca Maggiore

    The castle that guarded Assisi and the Tescio valley for more than eight hundred years, looking down over the town and the plain.

    Hours
    Daily: 10:00–17:00
    Price
    Optional entry · Rocca Maggiore: €8
  6. Basilica di Santa Chiara in Assisi, stop 6 on the self-guided walking tour
    6Stop 6

    Basilica di Santa Chiara

    The church of Saint Clare, begun in 1257, four years after her death, next to the convent of her sisters.

    Hours
    Mon–Fri: 06:30–12:00, 14:00–17:45
    Sat, Sun: 06:30–17:45
    Price
    Free
AI Tour Guide in Assisi

Your guide for the Assisi tour

At the Basilica di San Francesco you open the tour in your browser and the AI Tour Guide takes over: it greets you, tells the story of Francis from his family's house to his tomb and asks what you want to know more about. If Giotto's frescoes or Clare's life catch your interest, it remembers and picks up the thread at the later stops, and you can interrupt it whenever you like.

stops
6
route
1.6 km
walking only
27 min
with visits
2 h 22 min
  • 100 free credits to start
  • €19.99 once for the whole group
  • Travel and admission tickets are not included
Start the Assisi tourSee the whole tour →

Florence to Assisi day trip cost

The train is the biggest item, plus the bus up from the station each way; on the tour itself the basilicas are free, and the Rocca Maggiore, the only paid stop, sits at the optional end, so no admission is preselected. Food in Assisi is simple and filling, so a sandwich or torta al testo at lunch keeps the day cheap.

Adults
Children

One device is enough for the whole group: two people listen on two connected headphones, larger groups use the phone speaker.

Cost breakdown

Costs for 2 adults · planned visits

Travel there and backTrenitalia Regionale2 adults × €35.20€70.40
Local transport (bus)2 adults × 2 rides × €1.30€5.20
AI Tour Guide touronce for the whole group€19.99
Food (estimate)€15 to €25 per person€30 to €50
Total€125.59 to €145.59
Split between peopleabout €62.80 to €72.80 per person
Sights
  • €4
  • €5
  • €8
  • Combined ticket (Rocca Maggiore)The calculator automatically picks the cheapest combination ticket that fits.€14
Buffer and private guide

If you add the Roman Forum or the Municipal Art Gallery to the Rocca, take the combined ticket that covers all of them instead of buying each separately.

Prices as of October 2026.

Getting back from Assisi to Florence

The way back mirrors the morning: bus down from the old town to Assisi station, then the direct train to Firenze Santa Maria Novella. Leave the Cattedrale di San Rufino by four for the train shortly after five, which gives you time for the way down, the wait at the stop and a short buffer on the platform, and you are back in Florence just before eight.

If you run late, drop the Rocca Maggiore and Santa Chiara first. Monday to Saturday one more direct train leaves in the early evening; on Sundays the train shortly after five is the last direct one, and the first direct trains back leave early the next morning, so missing it means a night in Assisi.

Recommended returnTrenitalia: departs 17:13, arrives 19:52Leave the last stop of the tour by 16:00

Latest return that fits the day: 17:13

  • Trenitalia from Assisi, Sunday: departs 17:13, arrives 19:52
  • Trenitalia from Assisi, Monday to Saturday: departs 19:06, arrives 21:50

Questions about the day trip from Florence to Assisi

What should I wear for the churches in Assisi?

Cover knees and shoulders: shorts and sleeveless tops are not appropriate in the basilicas. Comfortable shoes matter too, since the old town is hilly and cobbled.

Can I add Perugia or Spoleto on the same day?

Not sensibly. With close to three hours of train each way, a second town turns both visits into short glimpses; keep the day for Assisi.

Is the bus from the station included in the train ticket?

No. The bus up to the old town needs its own urban ticket, valid for 90 minutes, which you can also buy on board.

Will Assisi be busier in 2026?

Yes, expect more visitors and events: 2026 marks 800 years since the death of Saint Francis.

Is the day manageable with children?

The walk itself is short, but the long train ride makes it a tiring day for young children. Children up to eight enter the Rocca Maggiore and the civic museums free.

More day trips from Florence

Rome in a day 1 h 25 min Pisa in a day 50 min Venice in a day 2 h 14 min Siena in a day 1 h 15 min Bologna in a day 37 min Lucca in a day 1 h 20 min San Gimignano in a day 1 h 30 min Perugia in a day 2 h Orvieto in a day 2 h 10 min

Sources

Timetables, fares and opening hours come from these operators:

Image credits
AI Tour Guide
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