Italy's huge new hiking trail crosses six regions, making The Way of St Francis one epic pilgrimage route leading to the hilltop town of Assisi.
1,500 kilometres of trails across six regions
Dust off your walking boots, because Italy has just unveiled one of its biggest hiking projects in years. The newly unified Way of St Francis stitches together 1,500km of trails across six regions: Abruzzo, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, Marche, Tuscany and Umbria. Linked together through an official pilgrimage network, all roads eventually converge on Assisi, the hilltop town where St Francis was born and is buried.
"Uniting places, institutions and people"
The project brings together trails that already existed in various forms, including the 110 kilometre stretch from Rimini to the mountain sanctuary of La Verna, where St Francis is said to have received the stigmata. Handily, the routes have been mapped and sorted out by Italy’s national anniversary committee, meaning they are all listed together on the official tourism platform, Italia.it complete with maps and stage-by-stage itineraries. Franco Boarelli, president of the association that coordinated the project alongside the government said the project required years of cross-regional cooperation. Italy’s undersecretary of culture, Pietro Cannella said the project was about "uniting places, institutions and people around a shared heritage, making culture a tool for national cohesion and international dialogue."
Even dogs get a passport
The launch is part of celebrations marking the eighth centenary of St Francis’s death and coincided with Pope Leo XIV’s visit to Assisi on August 6. If you fancy tackling it yourself, here's how it works. Walkers can request a credenziale, or pilgrim’s passport, online before setting off, which gets stamped and dated at various points along the route. Different routes have their own separate passports, and there’s even one for your dog too! Complete the final 100 kilometres on foot, or 200 kilometres by bike, and you'll be issued with a document proving you made it all the way to St Francis's tomb.
