Via Francigena

[kristin angell]

My husband and I are considering 600-800 km of the Via Francigena to Rome. We don't want to stay in hotels. Does anyone have experience with albergues and/or agriturism accommodation? We're also considering the Chemin du Piemont Pyreneen. Does anyone have experience with both? We love the small family based accommodations typically available in France, but we're unfamiliar with this Italian route.

Kristin

 

[Former member 91017]

You will likely have to start in Italy and skip France and Switzerland as reports indicate that there simply is not a hostel infrastructure for pilgrims along much of the VF. See Efren Gonzales' video series on the VF at efrengonzales.com

 

[trecile]

There is Vía Francigena subforum here

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/forums/via-francigena-to-rome.132/

 

[MikeC]

You might try this link: https://www.viefrancigene.org/en/resource/blog/Webmaster/accoglienza-pellegrina-e-turistica/

 

[Harington]

You will likely have to start in Italy and skip France and Switzerland as reports indicate that there simply is not a hostel infrastructure for pilgrims along much of the VF. See Efren Gonzales' video series on the VF at efrengonzales.com

There is increasing pilgrim infrastructure in France - year on year. Check out the Fédération Française de la Via Francigena (FFVF) website. It's a myth that France is a desert. I had no problems even in 2016. However, I think the OP suggests they're just doing the Italian section.

 

[William Marques]

My husband and I are considering 600-800 km of the Via Francigena to Rome. We don't want to stay in hotels. Does anyone have experience with albergues and/or agriturism accommodation? We're also considering the Chemin du Piemont Pyreneen. Does anyone have experience with both? We love the small family based accommodations typically available in France, but we're unfamiliar with this Italian route.

Kristin

We had a little experience of agrotiurismos on the VF and enjoyed the ones we used.

 

[carryoncouple]

My husband and I are considering 600-800 km of the Via Francigena to Rome. We don't want to stay in hotels. Does anyone have experience with albergues and/or agriturism accommodation? We're also considering the Chemin du Piemont Pyreneen. Does anyone have experience with both? We love the small family based accommodations typically available in France, but we're unfamiliar with this Italian route.

Kristin

We loved the Way of St. Francis in Italy last year. If you are interested, my wife created a short slide show about our trek; it is on my website, regspittle.com
Sandy Brown wrote a guidebook about the trek.

 

[bobbogram]

After completing El Norte (San Sebastian - Santiago), Portuguese (Lisbon - Santiago), the Cape to Cape hike on Australia’s west coast, and part of another Geneva into France, I’ve completed parts of Via Francigena (Canterbury - Bapaume) (St Bernard - Aosta) but was interupted first by European heat wave then covid. I found some great places to stay through various websites in France, but ran out of options at Bapaume after a 10 day start delay in England. It wasn’t as established as the treks in Spain, France, and Portugal.
Looking at the news today in the US, Italy is rated safer for covid than the US generally, and certainly safer than some of our southern states. I hope to start near Lucca later this year and finish the last 200+ miles to Rome. I’m watching the various fires in Europe, availability of new boosters, and the development of covid variants.
No one wants to to get ill or worse nor do they want to be an additional burden on strained medical facilities here or there. So any current news of life on the Francigena would be welcome. At age 72, I don’t know how much longer my curiosity will last.

 

[OZAJ]

I walked Canterbury to Rome in 2011 and had no problems with accommodation. I did make a few advance bookings with the help of tourist info offices, but mostly winged it. There was more pilgrim accommodation in Italy than in France, some quite insanitary and some very good indeed.

Contact me with your email address and I will send you my "as walked" itinerary, though it is rather out of date now.

 

[Bap53]

I walked Canterbury to Rome in 2011 and had no problems with accommodation. I did make a few advance bookings with the help of tourist info offices, but mostly winged it. There was more pilgrim accommodation in Italy than in France, some quite insanitary and some very good indeed.

Contact me with your email address and I will send you my "as walked" itinerary, though it is rather out of date now.
I walked Canterbury to Rome in 2011 and had no problems with accommodation. I did make a few advance bookings with the help of tourist info offices, but mostly winged it. There was more pilgrim accommodation in Italy than in France, some quite insanitary and some very good indeed.

Contact me with your email address and I will send you my "as walked" itinerary, though it is rather out of date now.

Hi Ozaj

I am also an Australian and plan to walk the Via Francigena starting in late July 2022. I would love to view your accommodation list if that is possible. Please PM me.
Cheers from Perth

 

[Stripey Socks]

I walked Canterbury to Rome in 2011 and had no problems with accommodation. I did make a few advance bookings with the help of tourist info offices, but mostly winged it. There was more pilgrim accommodation in Italy than in France, some quite insanitary and some very good indeed.

Contact me with your email address and I will send you my "as walked" itinerary, though it is rather out of date now.

Yes, that is doable although you would need to eat very simply and stay in mostly donativo convents and monasteries. I am not sure how many are open now and accepting pilgrims due to Covid. Mel

 

[OZAJ]

Hi Ozaj

I am also an Australian and plan to walk the Via Francigena starting in late July 2022. I would love to view your accommodation list if that is possible. Please PM me.
Cheers from Perth

I see that your post has been edited by a moderator. Is that because you included your email in the post? If so, then PM me your email as I requested in my original post.