The drive time seems to be close to 2 hours---too far for my taste but maybe not yours. It really is a personal decision.

I agree with Bob, but I think Ascoli Piceno is less drive time. The scenery is beautiful but will the kiddies go crazy sitting in the car so long?

There was a recent trip report (or maybe just a long discussion) about driving around/near Monti Sibilini from a base in Umbria. I'll see if I can find it.

Perhaps these threads will be helpful:

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/utterly-umbriafeedback-on-my-itinerary-for-a-week-in-spello-please.cfm

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/heavenly-2-week-retreat-in-umbria.cfm

Hi, dollster,

i can't help with your immediate questions, but I found this website which might help with drives and other things you can do at Spoleto:

http://www.bellaumbria.net/en/itinerary/

I've driven between Spoleto and Ascoli Piceno, and the road is generally slow going. It's possible I made it longer by taking a secondary road near the river, but it's not like zipping around central Umbria.

One of things you should bear in mind is the rhythm of the Italian day, which often makes "daytrips" to small towns something of bust, and in particular if the drive time is long-ish. Unless you get up at the crack of town and skip breakfast Italian style, by the time you reach Ascoili Piceno, just about everything will be closing up for the 3-4 hour midday break. For a town like Ascoli Piceno, whose chief glory is not merely the picturesque qualitites of its beautiful central piazza but the way in is so well used by town residents, it is a pity to be there when it is "empty." Likewise, the town is THE shoemaker of Italy, and even if you are only interested from a sociological standpoint, it is a pity to be there when all the stores are closed.

When I want to see a lot in Italy, I take road trips for just this reason: I want to pull into town at 4pm and stay until the next day's lunch., then leave and head someplace else only an hour or two away. That may not work for you, especially if you are traveling with kids, but the midday closure is something to keep in mind as you think about day trips. Remember it can sometimes make sense to go in the afternoon, not the morning.

So personally, I can really see the point of relocating to Le Marche after your 2 weeks in Spoleto.

That said, maybe you also don't realize how many towns and sights of interest you would be zipping by to get to the destinations you mentioned. For instance, the lovely town of Visso is half the distance to Macerata, and Norcia is also about half the distance to Ascoli Piceno. From Spoleto you can also go south into Lazio to a historic town like Leonessa.

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Rieti/Leonessa/Leonessa/home.html

There is also rafting in the area, and waterfalls (that are actually mechanically turned on every day at a fixed hour.)

If you don't already own the Cadogan guides for Umbria and Lazio and Le Marche, I recommend you invest in them. They really are exhaustive when it comes to the variety of sights in a region, so you don't end up imagining there are 7 "highlights" in Umbria and otherwise you need to be moving on.

Another good website in addition to Bella Umbria is the Marche Voyager website, but it really helps to have a detailed guidebook, not just use the web.