Walking in Italy travel guide

How tough are they?

We have categorised our walking vacations on Responsible Travel just to make your search a little easier. On most walking vacations in Italy, a basic level of fitness is required but there are many different options available.

If you are just stepping out for the first time, you will want an introductory walking vacation, such as River Po valley in Bergamo, where you can escape into luscious hill walking along the ancient trade tracks of the Via Mercatorum, starting just 10 minutes from the airport. If you have pushed yourself up a few hills of a Sunday, then a moderate walking vacation will push you just a bit more, with 5-8 hours walking per day, and some days stretching those calves more than others, but leaving you a bit of rest in between, so you can take in the sights. Such as taking on a section of the Tour de Mont Blanc, or climbing some of Sardinia’s Gennargentu Range, dipping down into gorges with river pools to cool off in.

If you are a well-seasoned walker then take a look at our strenuous walking vacations, such as taking on the Mont Blanc circuit in a week rather than the usual two weeks or climbing Sicily’s volcanoes, the most famous of which is Mount Etna. Even tougher, and falling into our challenging trekking vacations is the Via Ferrata or 'Iron Way' in Italian, which refers to a system of cables that cling to the side of the Dolomite Mountains, enabling you to summit the domain of serious climbers.

Hut or high end?

You could probably sleep anywhere after an eight-hour hike; however, there are lots of different accommodations available on walking vacations in Italy, to suit your budget or, simply, if you are walking from one bed to another every night, to fit in with your route. The high trekking routes of Mont Blanc have a network of hostels called mountain refuges or mountain huts. Built originally for hunters and hikers, today they are run like most hostels: there is a community atmosphere, an eco-ethos, with shared dorms, meals at fixed times, and clearing up done together. Sleeping bags and pillows are provided, but you should bring a sleeping sheet or sleeping bag liner with you.

Family-run chalet style hotels and agriturismo farms are also a feature of walking vacations in Italy, with local experts as hosts, who will probably have crafted a series of idyllic itineraries for you during your stay, as well as plenty of fine fare to fill those hollow legs when you get back. Some even have pools or hot tubs to ease the mountain muscles. And for the full on white robes and spa treatment after a day on the hills, there are hotel to hotel walking vacations in the likes of Tuscany or the Amalfi Coast where, surrounded by medieval castles or millionaires, one expects some sort of mansion to mosey into at the end of the day.