- Time of past OR future Camino
- May 2023: Via Francigena, Lucca to Rome
I walked along the VF last spring, May 16-June 9.
It's a beautiful route, and a completely different experience from France or Spain. I haven't been able to put my thoughts in coherent order, even after 8 months, so this is just going to be a data dump.
Day-to-day
I would start at a coffee shop or with breakfast at the hotel around 7 or 7:30 am. I'd also pick up a sandwich, as I rarely made it to a town for lunch. I usually met others on the trail, mostly Italian or French. I only met a few Americans.
I would arrive in town around 2 pm. Most ostelli wouldn't open until 3 or 4 pm, so I'd find a cafe and nurse a negroni. I never saw other pilgrims at the cafes in the afternoon. I would wonder where they all went? At the ostello I would take a nap - which I never did in France or Spain. I needed one on the VF.
I also needed to find laundromats to wash and dry my clothes every couple days - there wasn't always a place to hand-wash and dry them at the ostelli.
Italian dinner time is around 8 pm. I love pasta, and ate well. I also love Italian wine, and drank well. I did not lose weight on this pilgrimage. The few places that had pilgrim meals also served them around 8 pm. For me this is a very civilized time to eat dinner.
There were others who kept to a traditional camino-schedule: early to rise, early to bed. They bought all their food at supermarkets. That was not an option for me ... there was no way I was going to miss out on Italian cooking.
Accommodations
I made reservations ahead for the first five days, and then planned to call one day in advance (like we do in France). That turned out to be very frustrating, and I ended up making reservations for blocks of four to five days at a time. Pilgrim accommodations are hit or miss. I ended up staying in ten pilgrim-oriented places over twenty-four days. There were another five that I tried to get a hold of but never got a response. The rest of the time I spent in hotels or in private rooms, which varied from 60 to 100 euro.
In the end the costs were similar to the Le Puy route, the main difference being that in France I spent about the same amount each day, whereas in Italy the costs varied widely from day to day.
This seemed to be the experience of most people I met, though I met one group of guys who had better luck finding pilgrim accommodations. One younger Italian guy would go to the church each night and ask a priest for advice on where to stay. I don't think my Italian would've been strong enough for that.
The lodgings themselves, though, were always high quality for the price - with the exception of Viterbo. The hotels would always have a nice breakfast spread. And it feels like a treat to get to your room, be able to spread out, and to take a hot shower in private.
Difficulty
For me this was a physically challenging route. There are hills every single day, and I didn't train for this camino like I did for others. Also, with all the rain last year the trails were very, very muddy. We all carried a couple extra kilos of mud on our feet! For the first week we had light rain all day. For the next two weeks we had sunny days - and that Tuscan sun is strong! - followed by large thunderstorms in the afternoon.
I carried three liters of water, and there were two days where the fountains were broken and I needed it.
The road walking took it's toll on my feet by the end. I met a couple people who had to stop their walk early because of joint issues. I was limping the final days, which was something I've never experienced before. Part of the issue was that, with all the rain that Spring, the sides of the road were overgrown with giant thistles and other plants with sharp thorns. There was literally no place to rest or take a break. The trails through the park were almost impassible. Another issue is that all my merino socks developed holes, perhaps from walking in moist conditions, and I walked two days with only silk liners and the last couple days wearing normal white gym socks (which only stayed white for about fifteen minutes).
Pilgrim culture
Most other walkers, at least in May and June, were walking for less than a week and were part of organized groups like SlowWays. On the weekends I met a lot of people only doing one or two days. I was often the only one in pilgrim accommodations.
I was surprised how much I missed the type of camaraderie like we have in France and Spain. In town people would disappear into their hotels, and it was rare for me to see other pilgrims in the evenings.
We started to have a group form early on, but I was the only one who took the alternate route to Colle Val d'Elsa after San Gimignano. I didn't see another group form until 12 days later, in Vetralla.
Interestingly, most of the Italians I met had walked the Caminho Português before, but not he Camino Francés.
Tourist vibe
I wondered what it would be like walking though such a popular, touristic area. Florence itself was absolutely overrun with post-Covid crowds, but, the tourists have not returned in any numbers to the smaller towns. The famous Tuscan towns had a lot of day visitors, but were quiet and lovely in the evenings and mornings.
The language
Knowing some Italian helped a lot. In some of the ostelli you need to call when you arrive, and someone will come with a key and let you in.
The scenery
The segment from Lucca to Siena passes through the most iconic towns and Tuscan scenery, but for me the next section from Siena to Lake Bolsena was even more breathtaking. It did rain the first week, so the scenery wasn’t as vivid as it might have been under blue skies.
The final 100 km
The final stretch doesn't have a great reputation. I met a number of Italians who had walked all the way to Rome before, and the general consensus was that either Bolsena, Montesfiascone, or Sutri was the last "good" place to end. I was determined to walk to Rome - but once was enough. In the final days there were longer stretcher of walking on roads with no shoulder, some of the paths through natural areas were closed, and the ones that were open were overgrown with thorny plants.
I also made some mistakes in planning here. I had extra days, so thought I'd slow down and do shorter stages. I ended up having to find places off-route that added extra kms to my walk, and that were isolated. I'd stick to the main stages here.
With that: the final 9 km from Monte Mario to Saint Peters feels absolutely epic - it's the best "arrival moment" of any camino I've walked.
Final Advice
Do some planning with this one.
The stage from San Quirico d'Orcia to Radicofani is legendarily difficult. Break it up with a stay in Castiglione d'Orcia. Altopascio to San Miniato can also be broken up with a stay in Ponte e Cappiano.
I could have skipped the detour to Colle Val d'Elsa. The scenic route was closed due to flooding, and it was a long tiring walk in and out of the town on not-scenic roads.
The sun was stronger than I expected - and I live in the tropics! I wish I had brought my hiking umbrella for shade.
Baggage transfer services won't drop off bags at pilgrim accommodations, so either carry your pack or plan to stay at hotels. Only a few of us carried our packs, at least when I walked.
I took rest days in Siena and Viterbo. In retrospect, I would have chosen Bolsena over Viterbo.
For short stretches, choose San Miniato to Siena, or Siena to Bolsena. However, I suspect a short walk on the VF would feel more like a great walk than a "camino."
The verdict
Lucca to Rome is a great walk. It didn't always feel like a pilgrimage, given that 90% of the people I met were walking short stretches. I'd still recommend it, but maybe for a second or third camino.
While I'm very glad I walked the Chemin du Puy and the Camino Francés solo, this time it would've been nice to have a regular walking partner.
It's a beautiful route, and a completely different experience from France or Spain. I haven't been able to put my thoughts in coherent order, even after 8 months, so this is just going to be a data dump.
Day-to-day
I would start at a coffee shop or with breakfast at the hotel around 7 or 7:30 am. I'd also pick up a sandwich, as I rarely made it to a town for lunch. I usually met others on the trail, mostly Italian or French. I only met a few Americans.
I would arrive in town around 2 pm. Most ostelli wouldn't open until 3 or 4 pm, so I'd find a cafe and nurse a negroni. I never saw other pilgrims at the cafes in the afternoon. I would wonder where they all went? At the ostello I would take a nap - which I never did in France or Spain. I needed one on the VF.
I also needed to find laundromats to wash and dry my clothes every couple days - there wasn't always a place to hand-wash and dry them at the ostelli.
Italian dinner time is around 8 pm. I love pasta, and ate well. I also love Italian wine, and drank well. I did not lose weight on this pilgrimage. The few places that had pilgrim meals also served them around 8 pm. For me this is a very civilized time to eat dinner.
There were others who kept to a traditional camino-schedule: early to rise, early to bed. They bought all their food at supermarkets. That was not an option for me ... there was no way I was going to miss out on Italian cooking.
Accommodations
I made reservations ahead for the first five days, and then planned to call one day in advance (like we do in France). That turned out to be very frustrating, and I ended up making reservations for blocks of four to five days at a time. Pilgrim accommodations are hit or miss. I ended up staying in ten pilgrim-oriented places over twenty-four days. There were another five that I tried to get a hold of but never got a response. The rest of the time I spent in hotels or in private rooms, which varied from 60 to 100 euro.
In the end the costs were similar to the Le Puy route, the main difference being that in France I spent about the same amount each day, whereas in Italy the costs varied widely from day to day.
This seemed to be the experience of most people I met, though I met one group of guys who had better luck finding pilgrim accommodations. One younger Italian guy would go to the church each night and ask a priest for advice on where to stay. I don't think my Italian would've been strong enough for that.
The lodgings themselves, though, were always high quality for the price - with the exception of Viterbo. The hotels would always have a nice breakfast spread. And it feels like a treat to get to your room, be able to spread out, and to take a hot shower in private.
Difficulty
For me this was a physically challenging route. There are hills every single day, and I didn't train for this camino like I did for others. Also, with all the rain last year the trails were very, very muddy. We all carried a couple extra kilos of mud on our feet! For the first week we had light rain all day. For the next two weeks we had sunny days - and that Tuscan sun is strong! - followed by large thunderstorms in the afternoon.
I carried three liters of water, and there were two days where the fountains were broken and I needed it.
The road walking took it's toll on my feet by the end. I met a couple people who had to stop their walk early because of joint issues. I was limping the final days, which was something I've never experienced before. Part of the issue was that, with all the rain that Spring, the sides of the road were overgrown with giant thistles and other plants with sharp thorns. There was literally no place to rest or take a break. The trails through the park were almost impassible. Another issue is that all my merino socks developed holes, perhaps from walking in moist conditions, and I walked two days with only silk liners and the last couple days wearing normal white gym socks (which only stayed white for about fifteen minutes).
Pilgrim culture
Most other walkers, at least in May and June, were walking for less than a week and were part of organized groups like SlowWays. On the weekends I met a lot of people only doing one or two days. I was often the only one in pilgrim accommodations.
I was surprised how much I missed the type of camaraderie like we have in France and Spain. In town people would disappear into their hotels, and it was rare for me to see other pilgrims in the evenings.
We started to have a group form early on, but I was the only one who took the alternate route to Colle Val d'Elsa after San Gimignano. I didn't see another group form until 12 days later, in Vetralla.
Interestingly, most of the Italians I met had walked the Caminho Português before, but not he Camino Francés.
Tourist vibe
I wondered what it would be like walking though such a popular, touristic area. Florence itself was absolutely overrun with post-Covid crowds, but, the tourists have not returned in any numbers to the smaller towns. The famous Tuscan towns had a lot of day visitors, but were quiet and lovely in the evenings and mornings.
The language
Knowing some Italian helped a lot. In some of the ostelli you need to call when you arrive, and someone will come with a key and let you in.
The scenery
The segment from Lucca to Siena passes through the most iconic towns and Tuscan scenery, but for me the next section from Siena to Lake Bolsena was even more breathtaking. It did rain the first week, so the scenery wasn’t as vivid as it might have been under blue skies.
The final 100 km
The final stretch doesn't have a great reputation. I met a number of Italians who had walked all the way to Rome before, and the general consensus was that either Bolsena, Montesfiascone, or Sutri was the last "good" place to end. I was determined to walk to Rome - but once was enough. In the final days there were longer stretcher of walking on roads with no shoulder, some of the paths through natural areas were closed, and the ones that were open were overgrown with thorny plants.
I also made some mistakes in planning here. I had extra days, so thought I'd slow down and do shorter stages. I ended up having to find places off-route that added extra kms to my walk, and that were isolated. I'd stick to the main stages here.
With that: the final 9 km from Monte Mario to Saint Peters feels absolutely epic - it's the best "arrival moment" of any camino I've walked.
Final Advice
Do some planning with this one.
The stage from San Quirico d'Orcia to Radicofani is legendarily difficult. Break it up with a stay in Castiglione d'Orcia. Altopascio to San Miniato can also be broken up with a stay in Ponte e Cappiano.
I could have skipped the detour to Colle Val d'Elsa. The scenic route was closed due to flooding, and it was a long tiring walk in and out of the town on not-scenic roads.
The sun was stronger than I expected - and I live in the tropics! I wish I had brought my hiking umbrella for shade.
Baggage transfer services won't drop off bags at pilgrim accommodations, so either carry your pack or plan to stay at hotels. Only a few of us carried our packs, at least when I walked.
I took rest days in Siena and Viterbo. In retrospect, I would have chosen Bolsena over Viterbo.
For short stretches, choose San Miniato to Siena, or Siena to Bolsena. However, I suspect a short walk on the VF would feel more like a great walk than a "camino."
The verdict
Lucca to Rome is a great walk. It didn't always feel like a pilgrimage, given that 90% of the people I met were walking short stretches. I'd still recommend it, but maybe for a second or third camino.
While I'm very glad I walked the Chemin du Puy and the Camino Francés solo, this time it would've been nice to have a regular walking partner.
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