Abruzzo and Molise walking tour: mountains and the sea

Day 1:

The tour starts in the heart of Rome, in an historic hotel a short walk from the Pantheon.  We will meet at the hotel at 19.00 and walk to dinner at a nearby osteria (first mentioned in a document in 1518 and reputedly the oldest in Rome and a favourite of Caravaggio) which specialises in classic Roman cuisine.  (Dinner)

Day 2:

This morning we will be taken on a guided tour of the centre of Rome finishing with a delicious lunch. After this, the rest of the afternoon and evening are free to explore the ‘Eternal City’. (Lunch)

Day 3

This morning we drive one hundred kilometres east into the Apennine Mountains. On the way we stop for a guided tour of Tivoli, including a visit to Villa Adriana, the retirement home of Hadrian, ‘the largest and most sumptuous villa in the Roman Empire’. 

After checking into our wonderful accommodation (‘a truly unique and special experience’), you will be free to explore the village. We will have dinner at our accommodation’s excellent restaurant. (Dinner)

Day 4:

This morning we go for a fascinating walk starting from our village, following an undulating trail that was once used by drovers moving their flocks between the mountains and the coast.  The first stop is at the spectacular ruins of a medieval castle that once guarded the trade route (it’s eery remains providing the setting for many films including The Name of The Rose). 

From here we walk down into the valley past a lake and farmlands and carry on to the next village.  We’ll have a cut lunch along the way. (15 kms, 4.5 hours, 650 mts climb).

After refreshments, we will be driven back to base where the rest of the afternoon and evening are free (there are a number of good restaurants in and around the village).  (Lunch)

Day 5:

This morning we drive thirty kilometres north to L’Aquila, the mountain capital of Abruzzo, which has a history stretching back to pre-Roman times. The city’s golden days were in the 15th century, when it had its own university, its own mint and was the home of saints and scholars.

In 2009, L’Aquila, and much of the surrounding area, was hammered by a series of earthquakes that levelled a significant part of the city and killed over three hundred people.  Our tour will include visits of the city’s great treasures but will also consider the earthquake and its aftermath.

After lunch, we will return to our base, where the rest of the afternoon is free. In the evening, we will have a lesson that will introduce us to the one of the secrets of traditional Abruzzo cuisine.  This will be followed by dinner.  (Lunch/Dinner)

Day 6:

This morning we explore some of the most spectacular scenery in central Italy: the Campo Imperatore, a vast high plain and the Gran Sasso, the Apennine’s highest peak. The Campo Imperatore is a short drive from our base.

Until the beginning of the 20th century, shepherds drove (literally) millions of sheep each summer from Puglia to these high plains to graze on the lush pastures.  At the far end of the Campo, stands the Gran Sasso d’Italia, the highest peak in the Apennines.

This walk is one of the most rewarding in Abruzzo. It starts with a gradual climb up a well-made path and then contours up to a pass with a superb view of the Gran Sasso and the surrounding countryside.  (6 kms, 3 hours, 360 mts climb). 

We then drive back to our base, having a delicious lunch on the way.  The rest of the afternoon and evening are free. (Lunch)

Day 7:

Today, we leave Abruzzo and drive south into rolling hills and forests of Molise. On the way, we stop at Isernia, the ‘capital’ of Alto Molise (Upper Molise) for a guided visit of one of the most extraordinary museums in the region: a modern institution that presents the findings ‘in situ’ of the oldest human settlement in Europe that was found by chance during road construction 30 years ago.

After lunch in town at a charming little osteria, we continue our drive to Agnone, a remarkable small town in the hills of northern Molise. With a population of around five thousand people, this pretty town has been inhabited since the 8th century BC.  Today, Agnone is a dynamic regional centre proud of its long history. 

Our accommodation is in a beautiful, family-run ‘agriturismo’ set in a vineyard in the valley below the town. After checking in, the rest of the afternoon is free.  We’ll have dinner at the ‘agriturismo’.  (Lunch/Dinner)

Day 8:

This morning, we take a thirty-minute winding drive up to a small village that is the highest point in the Trigno Valley.  A popular skiing destination in the winter, the cross-country ski runs become walking trails in the warmer months.  We follow one of these trails up through beech forest to a long ridge, with spectacular views down over the valley and the neighbouring mountains.  At the end of the itinerary we walk, we have cut lunch and then stop for a gelato/refreshments in the neighbouring town. (10 kms, 4 hours, 340 mts climb).

Fun fact: In 2015, this small town received the biggest dump of snow ever recorded, anywhere (it’s in the Guinness Book of Records): over 2.5 metres of snow in one night.  The afternoon is free.

In the evening we will have a short transfer to one of the surprises of the area, a lovely farm-based restaurant where we will have degustation dinner prepared by their Michelin-starred local chef. (Lunch/Dinner)

Day 9:

This morning, we take a short drive from our base is one of the most important archaeological sites in Molise: a vast monumental complex that includes the remains of a castle, a necropolis, temples and a perfectly preserves theatre that sits 1000 metres above the Trigno Valley. It was built by the Sannites in the 2nd century BC.  After a guided tour of the site, we will have a light lunch in a small trattoria.

In the afternoon, we will be taken on guided tour of the great surprises of this area: a bell foundry which has been operating continuously in the town since the 13th century, producing bells for the Pope and Catherine the Great, among other illustrious customers. The visit to the foundry is a fascinating experience.

Fun fact: This foundry has been in the hands of the same family all this time, now up to the twenty-seventh generation, which makes it the second oldest continually operating company in the world! (Lunch/Dinner)

Day 10:

Seven thousand kilometres long, the Sentiero Italia is the longest walking trail in the world. It was created to connect all the Italian regions and unite their cultural diversity, beauty and the traditions of the local territories. This morning, we walk a section of Sentiero, a loop walk following a well-made trail through spectacular old-growth beech forest. (9 kms, 4 hours, 340 mts climb).

After a cut lunch along the way, we’ll return to our base where you can swim in the pool and relax for the rest of the afternoon. We’ll have dinner at the agriturismo, ready for our departure tomorrow.  (Lunch/Dinner)

Day 11:

Today we leave the mountains and drive east to Termoli, an attractive fishing town on the southern coast of Molise, near the border with Puglia. Termoli sits on a promontory surrounded by its medieval walls, overlooking the port and is dominated by a small castle built by the Normans in the 11th century. Kilometres of beaches stretch to the north and south.

Our accommodation for the last two nights will be in another ‘borgo difuso’ in the beautifully restored historic centre: private apartments with views of the sea. Once we have checked in, the afternoon and evening are free to enjoy this gorgeous town and its beaches.

Day 12:

This morning, we take a one-hour ferry ride across the Adriatic to the Isole Tremiti, an archipelago of three magical islands off the coast of Puglia.  We will be taken by a private boat for a tour of the islands, exploring the bays and grottoes of the islands, with plenty of chances for swimming. We will have a light lunch back at the port, before returning by ferry to Termoli. 

In the evening we have our farewell dinner outdoors in the historic centre of Termoli at a small restaurant that specialises in the freshest of local seafood.  (Lunch/dinner)

Day 13:

Termoli is connect by rail to Pescara and Bologna to the north and Bari and Lecce to the south. For those interested, we will have a transfer 50 minutes south to Foggia which has fast train connections to Naples and Rome.