NEW ROUTE – Cilento National Park

Our brand new walking holiday explores the Cilento National Park in Campania – gateway to southern Italy. This is traditional Italy to its core, with unspoilt medieval villages, green vistas, and a pretty coastline dotted with sunset-soaked fishing villages.

And of course there’s fabulous food and wine – the ‘Mediterranean Diet’ was first identified in these quiet hills, and the area has more than its share of centenarians.

Start on coastal paths between the seaside towns of Agropoli and Santa Maria di Castellabate (location, along with Castellabate, for much of the cult Italian film ‘Benvenuti al Sud’) before heading around Punta Licosa, a rocky outlook named after one of the sirens Ulysses met in ‘The Odyssey’. Then climb into the mountains, with fabulous views to Cilento’s glitzier neighbours, the Amalfi Coast and Capri.

Explore Castellabate, one of the “most beautiful villages in Italy”, before a glorious walk to Perdifumo, and onwards to Rocca Cilento, walking the Valley of the Mills the following day. Then the highlight, a steady ascent of Monte Stella, the spiritual heart of ancient Cilento, before a gentle descent through chestnut woods to a welcoming agriturismo at Galdo.

Your final walk to the quiet fishing village of Acciaroli passes through Celso, where the rebellion of 1848 began, and more small, historical villages, each with its own story.

It’s a laid-back experience in every way, with Medium-graded walks (or Easy-Medium with a few shortcuts), plenty of time to enjoy the history and culture, welcoming hotels, and refreshingly quiet trails. This is your chance to really get to the heart of this lovely part of Italy.

Add on: Visit the World Heritage Site of Paestum, a major ancient Greek city with three well-preserved temples, which can be added at either end of the walk.

Use our new app to navigate this route:
Following requests from our clients and our own wish to reduce the amount of paper and plastic used in Walkers’ Packs, we’ve developed a new navigation app, which is now available for you to try on some of our routes.

For this new Cilento route, navigation will be by using the app only. It also includes your itinerary and all other information – ie, we won’t be sending out any printed materials. Are you ready to give it a try?!

At the height of summer it’s great to see the wonderful landscapes bathed in sunshine, but it is important to know how to stay safe and well and still enjoy your holiday in very hot weather.

• Check the weather forecast every day, and take note of the hours when the highest temperatures are expected (which may not be the middle of the day). We find that accuweather is usually very reliable.
• Always carry as much water as you can manage. Don’t be afraid to ask at shops or houses for a top-up if necessary. Where we know of a reliable water source, it will be mentioned in the route notes.
• Wear loose, light clothing, with a wide sun hat and sun glasses.
• Keep re-applying sunscreen.
• Take full advantage of any patches of shade.
• Be aware of your capabilities – you will probably walk more slowly in hot weather. Make use of shortening options if a long day of walking is going to be too much.
• Keep in touch with your Local Contact, who can suggest short cuts and alternative routes, or help get you to your next hotel if you want to take a rest day. In extreme cases there may be local restrictions for safety reasons, in which case we can help you re-arrange your walking and accommodation if necessary.
• If your hotel doesn’t have air-conditioning, ask if they have a fan you can use in your room, and keep curtains/blinds/shutters closed against direct sunlight.
• Start walking as early as possible in the day to avoid the highest heat. Ask your host the evening before whether you can have an early breakfast or a snack you can take with you. If this isn’t possible, consider starting out early anyway and getting something to eat along the way. Avoid caffeinated drinks, which will pass through your body more quickly than water!
• If you’ve set out early, take note of the check-in time at your next hotel, and maybe have a break somewhere cool and shady in the hottest part of the day.
• Hot weather can result in sudden thunderstorms – be aware in exposed areas and carry a light raincoat.
• Be especially careful of fire risk – don’t discard any litter or light any flames, and immediately report any fires to the emergency services.
• And if you’re feeling unwell, it may be sun stroke or heat exhaustion – seek help from your Local Contact. There’s more advice here.

Tucked into a valley above the sea sits the pretty town of Valldemossa, one of the cultural highlights of our walking holiday on the island of Mallorca. It has plenty of reasons to take a little time from the hiking schedule to spend in its winding streets and cool cloisters, and to follow the stories of the kings, monks and artists that have been drawn to this place.

The complex of buildings known as the Cartuja (or Cartoixa) de Valldemossa dates from 1309, when King Jaime II built a palace over the remains of a Moorish fortress as somewhere for his sickly son, Sancho, to recover. It was given over to Carthusian monks in 1399, who adapted and expanded the monastery, adding a new church in the 18th century, until they were forced out in 1835 and the buildings passed into private hands.

It’s easy to see why people from all over Europe found their way here over the following decades. The composer Frédéric Chopin and his partner George Sand and her children came for the sake of his health. Despite their stay lasting only a few months, the sound of his romantic piano works still resonates regularly through the halls, and you can visit the former monks’ cells where the family lived.

There’s also a collection of artworks to see, the old Carthusian pharmacy with remnants of ancient remedies, and original volumes of Die Balearen, written by Luis Salvador, son of the Grand Duke of Tuscany. You’ll come across Salvador elsewhere on the island, not least on the magnificent ridge-top path out of Valldemossa that he created. His writings described the culture, traditions and flora of his beloved Mallorca, a place that he made great efforts to protect.

After your walks on the ancient paths and visiting the pretty villages, Mallorca will surely hold a special place in your heart too!

Our walkers say:

“The walking was simply superb. The limestone mountains, the views to the sea, the cobbled paths and lovely olive groves.” (Andy and Dilys, UK)

“We LOVED this holiday! Probably our favourite On Foot holiday so far. The scenery is consistently fantastic, the villages are characterful and the accommodation is all very good.” (Tracy, UK)

More monasteries to visit on our walking routes: