Assisi Basilica Entrances: Upper Church, Lower Church and the Exit Route

The simplest way to visit the Basilica of Saint Francis is to start on Piazza Inferiore, enter the Lower Church, descend to the Tomb of Saint Francis, then continue upward through the basilica complex to the Upper Church and finish on Piazza Superiore. The two grand façades can make the building look like two separate churches with interchangeable doors, but they are two levels of the same complex. For most independent visitors, understanding the Assisi Basilica entrances before arriving prevents an unnecessary climb, backtrack, or wrong exit.

Which entrance should you use?

There are two obvious public-facing entrances. The Basilica Inferiore opens onto Piazza Inferiore di San Francesco, the long porticoed lower square. The Basilica Superiore has its main doors on Piazza Superiore di San Francesco, directly in front of the famous upper façade and lawn.

For an ordinary sightseeing visit, the Lower Church is the better starting point. The basilica itself recommends beginning from Piazza Inferiore, where you also find visitor information, group reception and public toilets. Its booking system specifically requires organized group visits without a guide to begin in the Lower Church.

If you walk down Via San Francesco from the historic center, you may naturally arrive closer to Piazza Superiore first. That does not mean you have chosen the wrong approach. To follow the lower-to-upper sequence, use the outdoor connection beside the basilica to descend to Piazza Inferiore. There are stairs and a paved sloping route linking the two levels.

If you are approaching from the lower side of Assisi, including the area around Porta San Francesco and Piazza Giovanni Paolo II, Piazza Inferiore is already the logical entrance. Continue uphill along Via Frate Elia until you enter the porticoed square, then walk toward the ornate Lower Church portal at the far end.

The normal route through the basilica

1. Enter from Piazza Inferiore. Look for signs for Basilica Inferiore. Individual visitors currently enter free of charge and do not need a normal admission ticket.
2. Visit the Lower Church. This is the darker, lower vaulted church containing the major frescoed chapels and the papal altar.
3. Go down to the Tomb. Follow signs for Tomba di San Francesco or Cripta. The crypt is below the Lower Church, not underneath the Upper Church entrance.
4. Return to the Lower Church level. Do not assume the crypt exit leads directly outside.
5. Follow the route upward. The traditional internal connection passes by the cloister area, including the Chiostro Sisto IV, with stair connections leading toward the Upper Church. Follow the visitor signs and staff directions rather than trying to find a particular unmarked doorway beside the altar.
6. Visit the Upper Church. You emerge at the brighter Gothic church with the large fresco cycle along the nave.
7. Finish on Piazza Superiore. The practical through-route ends through the Upper Church façade onto the upper square. From here, Via San Francesco leads back toward central Assisi.

The exact internal flow can be altered for Masses, major pilgrimages, security arrangements, restoration work or special events. If ropes or temporary signs send visitors a different way, follow them. The basilica is an active sanctuary first and a visitor attraction second.

Can you enter directly through the Upper Church?

Yes, the Upper Church has its own entrance from Piazza Superiore, and it is used for worship and in situations where visitor access is being managed separately. During exceptional events, the basilica has directed specific visitors through the upper doors rather than the normal lower starting point.

For a routine independent visit, however, starting upstairs creates two disadvantages. You either have to work downward through the complex and then climb back toward town, or leave the building and use the outdoor connection between the squares. Starting below produces a much cleaner one-way visit, especially if your next destination is Via San Francesco, Piazza del Comune or the rest of the historic center.

The signs that matter once you are inside

• Basilica Inferiore / Chiesa Inferiore: Lower Church.
• Basilica Superiore / Chiesa Superiore: Upper Church.
• Tomba di San Francesco: Tomb of Saint Francis.
• Cripta: crypt.
• Chiostro: cloister.
• Uscita: exit.
• Ascensore: lift or elevator.
• Portineria: convent reception or porter’s desk. This is useful if you need accessibility assistance.
• Ufficio Informazioni / Accoglienza Gruppi: visitor information and group reception, on the lower-square side of the complex.

What happens after you exit the Upper Church?

Piazza Superiore is a useful place to finish if you are continuing through Assisi. Walk away from the basilica along Via San Francesco and you will be heading toward the medieval center and eventually Piazza del Comune.

If your bus, taxi, parking area or accommodation is below the basilica, do not re-enter simply to get downstairs. Use the outdoor stairs or sloping paved connection from the upper square back toward Piazza Inferiore, then continue toward Via Frate Elia and the lower edge of town.

This is also a good point to decide the direction of the rest of your day. A top-to-bottom or bottom-to-top Assisi route saves a surprising amount of repeated climbing. You can build your Italy itinerary around the basilica and the other sights rather than treating each church as a separate out-and-back walk.

Opening times for a 2027 visit

A dedicated 2027 timetable has not yet been published. The latest official information available in September 2026 uses separate summer and winter schedules, so do not treat current hours as guaranteed for next year.

For the April to October period, the official basilica opening-hours page currently lists the Lower Church from 06:00 to 19:00, with an earlier Wednesday closing, the Upper Church from 08:30 to 18:45, and the Tomb from 06:00 to 18:15. Separate winter hours apply from November through March.

Those are opening hours, not a guarantee that every space operates as an unrestricted tourist route at every moment. Masses and other religious services can temporarily change movement through the churches. If your visit falls on a major Franciscan feast, Easter period, Christmas period or another special event, check the official page again shortly before arrival.

If Assisi is a day trip rather than an overnight stay, allow enough margin that you are not reaching the Upper Church close to its final admission. Our Rome to Assisi day-trip guide covers the wider rail and town-planning side of the journey.

Sundays, holidays and organized groups

Independent visitors should distinguish normal church opening from organized guided visits. The current official reservation system says individual entry is free and does not require a ticket, while groups must make arrangements in advance.

Guided visits have additional restrictions. The basilica currently requires radio-guide systems for guided groups, and organized guided visits are not permitted on Sundays and religious holidays. If you are traveling with a tour, school, parish or large family group operating as an organized party, do not rely on the rules for individual visitors.

Sunday is also a poor time to build a tight sightseeing schedule around a particular doorway. Several Masses take place in both churches, and visitor circulation may be held briefly or redirected so worship can continue without a stream of tour groups crossing the liturgical space.

Wheelchairs, strollers and visitors who cannot manage stairs

This is one area where older Assisi information can be misleading because accessibility work has been changing. Traditional visitor instructions required anyone unable to use the internal stairs to leave the Lower Church and use the steep outdoor connection between Piazza Inferiore and Piazza Superiore.

During 2026, the Franciscan complex reported substantial accessibility improvements, including a new lift from the Lower Church area to the cloister, access to an additional lift serving the upper cloister, and new ramps. The basilica also has lift access for the Tomb. These changes mean the accessible route may no longer match diagrams and travel reports written even a few years ago.

For a 2027 visit, ask staff at the Lower Church entrance or the Portineria before starting the route. Do not simply follow the crowd toward a stairway and assume there will be another lift beside it. The available assisted route can pass through areas that ordinary visitors do not use. The basilica’s information on the recent accessibility improvements is available through its Franciscan visitor information.

Strollers have the same basic problem even when stairs are physically manageable. A light folding stroller is far easier than a large travel system on the internal stair connections and stone surfaces. Ask staff before committing to the staircase toward the next level.

What to do with luggage

Do not plan on leaving a suitcase at the church. Assisi’s official tourism information lists visitor toilets, an information point and a shop at the basilica, but no cloakroom. Large rolling luggage is also awkward on the stairs, ramps, stone paving and crowded passages between levels.

If you are arriving before hotel check-in or visiting between trains, arrange luggage storage elsewhere before starting the basilica visit. A small day bag is much easier to manage, particularly if the normal visitor flow is altered and you have to use the outdoor route between the two squares.

If you start at the wrong level

Nothing is ruined. If you find yourself standing in front of the Upper Church façade when you intended to start below, do not walk back into town. Take the exterior connection down to Piazza Inferiore and begin there.

If you accidentally leave onto Piazza Superiore before seeing something downstairs, use the same outdoor connection to return to the lower square. Re-entering through a door marked for exit or pushing against an organized visitor flow is more trouble than the short outside loop.

If an internal passage is closed, ask for Basilica Superiore, Basilica Inferiore or Uscita rather than trying to describe the artwork you were standing beside. Staff deal with this routing question constantly, and the names of the two church levels are the clearest way to explain where you need to go.