Undoubtedly the best way to see Italy is on foot, as I know very well myself, having walked through cities like Florence, Rome, Venice and Bologna, and having done some mountain walking too.

Whether you choose to spend your vacation in Italy drifting around one of Italy’s many charming and largely unspoilt towns and cities or prefer hiking up into the mountains, your own too feet will take you to places all but the most specialized vehicles simply cannot reach.  To get the most out of exploring Italy on foot, a good guide is a great help and should also prevent you from getting lost too.

With this in mind, and to encourage you to go for a walk, I’ve compiled a list of ten popular walking in Italy guides from Amazon.com.  It was interesting to see which areas of Italy attract walkers, and to note the absence of some eminently walkable areas of the Boot, such as Liguria.

Before you take a look, which areas do you think keen walkers seek to explore in Italy?  Now go take a look at the list and see if you were right.

Ten Guides to Walking in Italy

• 1. Tour of Mont Blanc: Complete two-way trekking guide (Cicerone Guides) – note that Mont Blanc is in Italy and France

• 2. Brunetti’s Venice: Walks with the City’s Best-Loved Detective

• 3. Shorter Walks in the Dolomites: 40 selected walks (A Cicerone Guide)

• 4. Walking Rome (Cities of a Lifetime)

• 5. Walking in the Dolomites (Cicerone Guides)

• 6. Walking on the Amalfi Coast (Cicerone Guides)

• 7. Lonely Planet Hiking in Italy (Walking)

• 8. City Walks: Rome: 50 Adventures on Foot

• 9. Frommer’s 24 Great Walks in Venice

• 10. Explorer’s Guide 50 Hikes In & Around Tuscany: Hiking the Mountains, Forests, Coast & Historic Sites of Wild Tuscany & Beyond

Even if you do buy a guide to walking in Italy, make sure you also obtain a map of the area you would like to walk in.  This is a safety measure, especially if you are thinking about heading up into the Dolomites or Alps.  I know for a fact that the Cicerone walking guides, and I have a few, mention exactly which maps you will need.

I like Cicerone guides because they often contain plenty of circular walks which make returning to your point of origin, either your hotel or car, much easier.

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SEE HOW IT WORKS

Do not be deceived by Italy’s sunny climate, weather conditions change as fast in Italy’s mountains as in any others around the world and temperatures can drop very fast indeed.  Before you go walking in the mountains in Italy, always tell someone where you are going and tell them when you intend to return – just in case.

By the way, walking on snow using snow shoes is great fun!

Oh, and if you do go walking in Italy, do remember to take a camera, Italy’s panoramas are often breathtaking – this I know from experience.  DSLR users will find super wide angle lenses – a 10-22 or 12-24 produce really lovely images.

Fancy a Guided Walking Tour of Italy?

If so, check out walking vacation tour company Walks of Italy’s offerings.

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Photographs by Alex Roe