Urbino is a whole hill turned into an idea. In the fifteenth century Federico da Montefeltro, a professional soldier who earned a fortune leading other people's armies, used it to build one of the most refined courts in Renaissance Italy, and the town that grew around his palace is still almost entirely brick and stone of that age. It was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1998, and it remains a lively university town rather than a museum.
The Palazzo Ducale is the reason to come. Its façade with the twin towers looking west over the hills is one of the great images of Italian architecture, and inside, the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche holds Piero della Francesca's mysterious Flagellation of Christ and the famous Ideal City panel. Federico's studiolo, a tiny study lined with inlaid wood creating illusions of cupboards, books and instruments, is one of the most perfect rooms anywhere. Raphael was born in Urbino in 1483, and his father's house is open to visitors.
Riding into Urbino is a pleasure, because the hills of the Montefeltro roll in all directions with small roads following the ridges. The SS73bis from Fermignano and the road from Urbania along the Metauro are flowing and scenic, while the ride north-west to San Leo, with its fortress on a sheer rock where the adventurer Cagliostro died a prisoner, is one of the finest short rides in central Italy. Further south, the Furlo gorge carries the ancient Via Flaminia through a narrow limestone cleft and a tunnel the Romans cut in the first century.
Inside the walls the streets are steep, often cobbled or paved with brick, and closed to most traffic. Park at the Borgo Mercatale below the palace and take the lift or the spiral ramp designed by Francesco di Giorgio Martini, which was built so that horses could climb to the palace stables. Summer days are hot; the hills catch a breeze, and the evenings are wonderful.
Fuel is available on the approaches and around Fermignano. For food, try crescia sfogliata, the flaky local flatbread filled with cheese, ham or greens, which students eat by the hundred, and the local truffles and cheeses of the Montefeltro. Urbino is small enough that you can see the essentials in half a day and long enough to make you want to stay the night.