Driving into Perugia from the south isn’t particularly difficult for although the city sprawls over a considerable area, the historical city center is actually quite small. If you follow the signs to the Piazza d’Europe, you will come to a large parking garage priced at less than a Euro an hour. You should be able to find a couple of escalators to help you get the rest of the way up the hill and signs to "Centro" abound. It’s only a short walk up the Corso Cavour before you pop out onto the Piazza IV November. Another parking option is at Piazza dei Partigiani where an escalator will take you right up to Rocca Paolina.
Rocca Paolina was a large fortress built by the papacy to control the city. After 300 years the city was liberated and much of the fortress was torn down to create space for the Place Italia, which contains a statue of Victor Emanuelle. When the parking escalators were installed, the remaining rooms of the fortress were opened up. Their mass and height gives an impression of what a place it must have been. (There’s not a lot to see here, but it is worth looking at). As you emerge from the fortress, you will want to walk to the little park at the edge of the city plateau for the great views over lower Perugia.
From the Place Italia, you have the option of a couple of streets through the central core of Perugia to reach the Piazza IV November (Take the street to the left of Place Italia as you leave the Rocca, the Corso Vannucci), where you will find the beautiful Palazzo dei Priori (town hall), the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, the Fontana Maggiore (a beautiful 13th-century fountain), the Duomo and the Tourist Information Office. Just a stone’s throw down the Corso Vannucci, which is pedestrianized is the Collegio del Cambio, an art museum.
So it’s the little hill-town that grew up. . . but almost everything that you will want to see is within a few minutes of Piazza IV November. Because it grew up, there is also a large selection of good shopping and places to eat. . . great town.