EXPERIENCING ITALY ON FOOT IS THE PERFECT WAY to savor every detail, get peace of mind, and a good fragrant hit of nature while you’re at it.
You don’t even have to be a gung-ho hiker to do it. In Rome you can get your endorphins going with a half-hour uphill walk from Trastevere to the Janiculum Hill or in Florence wind up to the Piazzale Michelangelo and beautiful San Miniato church. Both reward you with fabulous city views.
If you’re up for more vigorous hiking, you can:
The most popular hiking place in Italy for American travelers is the Cinque Terre on the northern Ligurian coast. There, the Sentiero Azzuro (Blue Path, www.incinqueterre.com) connects five enchanting seaside villages in an 11-km/7-mile hike, which can be done in five to six hours. Due to storms over the years, parts of the path may still be closed, as they are under repair, so check the website for updates. There is ferry and train service between the villages, which makes it easy to adjust your travel plans. The best way to experience this paradise is to settle into one of the villages for at least a few nights so you can mix up your hiking with boating and beach time.
Guidebook writer Rick Steves made the Cinque Terre famous so these days it’s best to avoid it in summer high-tourist season, and no matter when you come, reserve your digs well in advance and be prepared to pay a fee to get on the hiking trail. As far as how challenging a hike it is, the first leg (from Riomaggiore to Manarola, check for opening) is flat enough to be done with a baby stroller, and then things get progressively steeper and harder as you go along. Vernazza to Monterosso is a favorite. It’s all glorious.
My favorite coastal hike is the Sentiero degli Dei (Path of the Gods) above the Amalfi Coast. The route is a combination of flat to steep rocky paths that were once used for mules to bring goods to the mountain villages. You’ll hike through shady forests and along mountainsides that open to breathtaking views of the candy-colored villages and sparkling sea below.
A well-marked three- to four-hour hike along the Sentiero degli Dei starts in Agerola (Bomerano) and leads you to Nocelle, where you have a choice to walk down over 1,700 steps to Positano or take a bus from the Nocelle village center back to Positano. For guided tours with fun locals in this area, check out Carto Trekking (www.cartotrekking.com).
Umbria and Tuscany have loads of well-marked trails, with good maps available at small town tourist offices. A favorite starts in Spoleto, leading you up to where Saint Francis gave his famous Sermon to the Birds.
This ancient route led pilgrims from Canterbury to Rome, and then south to the harbors of Puglia where they could embark for the Holy Land. It’s been developed for hikers in recent years, most strongly in Tuscany, where it passes through the beautiful towns of Lucca, San Gimignano, and Siena. (www.viefrancigene.org).
There are over a hundred to choose from, including the Gran Paradiso (in northern Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta) that has everything from glacier walking to paths specially designed for the disabled. A two-hour drive east from Rome takes you to Abruzzo, where wolves and bears are kept in ingeniously designed zoo reserves. My friend Maria loves hiking Lo Zingaro, in Western Sicily, a park with trails along rocky seaside cliffs that lead to quiet pebbly beaches.
If you’re up for a week of hiking with a group in a particular region, Country Walkers (www.countrywalkers.com) offers choices up and down the boot, with excellent local guides, accommodations, and meals included. I loved a week in Sicily with them, where we hiked the range of terrains—from the flat Vendicari bird reserve to the top of Mount Etna’s volcano.
Another Country Walkers veteran, Jill Clark, went along with her sportier husband through Tuscany and loved that there were side trips to wineries and artisan workshops. “It was my first time in Tuscany, and it was wonderful to get into places we never would have seen if we were traveling on our own.”
These are perfect trips for families. With everything so well taken care of, nobody can whine to Mommy, and bonding goes on among the different generations, often leading to life-long friendships that began on the shared adventure.
TIP: Club Alpino Italiano is a good resource for hiking maps for Italy (www.cai.it). Even with a map, it’s best to get local up-to-date advice before you set out anywhere, as routes may change.
Golden Day: From Bomerano, hike the Sentiero degli Dei to Nocelle. Stay in Positano at La Rosa Dei Venti (www.larosadeiventi.net), where you can relax on your balcony after all that hiking, then get the free shuttle up to La Tagliata (Via Tagliata 32B, 089 875 872, advance reservations essential, www.latagliata.com), for an amazing dinner on their panoramic terrace—it’s a fixed-price menu featuring vegetables grown on the grounds, delicious homemade pastas, grilled meats, and fabulous desserts.
RECOMMENDED READING
Walking in Italy by Sandra Bardwell
Hiking in Italy by Lonely Planet and Brendan Sainsbury