This article was born from a simple idea: to show how naturally art and culture can become part of a walking holiday.
A walking holiday is an opportunity not only to discover beautiful landscapes, but also to deepen your connection with the places you travel through, their artistic heritage and the stories they have to tell.
After all, a walking holiday is never just a walking holiday.
Yes, you walk through beautiful landscapes, along scenic trails immersed in nature, across villages and cities. Your senses gradually sharpen, your steps become more confident and, slowly, you find your rhythm.
But you also meet people, admire extraordinary art and architecture, sometimes simply in the facades of old buildings, in churches you enter to enjoy a moment of shade, in the art cities you reach at the end of the day or in the smallest villages, which often hide the most unexpected surprises.
Walking and observing are also remarkably similar actions: you slow down, pay closer attention to the world around you and become more receptive to beauty. Your senses are heightened, you perceive things differently and allow yourself to be surprised more easily.
After a day – or even an entire journey – spent walking, visiting a museum or an exhibition feels different. It is almost as if we are more prepared to let beauty reach us.
This is why we wanted to show you how easy it is to pair one of our walking holidays with a visit to some of Italy’s greatest museums and temporary exhibitions.
We have selected a few of our favourite combinations: itineraries that pair beautifully with permanent collections and some of the most interesting exhibitions taking place between autumn 2026 and winter 2027.
Arriving in Rome on foot is one of those experiences that is difficult to forget.
The final stretch of the Via Francigena is a beautiful adventure through medieval and, at times, mysterious landscapes, crossing villages and woodlands where legends still seem to linger. From chestnut forests watched over by towers linked to Orlando Furioso, to fairy-tale woods near Sutri; from Viterbo, with its pilgrims' quarter and fascinating Tarot traditions, to ancient Etruscan roads carved into the rock.
Rome eventually appears in all its grandeur after a route that gradually transitions through parks and suburbs, becoming both the reward and the symbolic destination of the entire journey.
And yet, another journey begins here.
It is worth staying a few extra days to explore the city's endless artistic heritage, still energised and receptive after the walk you have just completed, your well-earned Testimonium safely tucked away in your backpack.
Rome is a perfect destination for those who love combining walking and culture: from the collections of the Galleria Borghese and the Scuderie del Quirinale to MAXXI, the National Museum of 21st Century Arts, where contemporary art constantly dialogues with a city that has always reinvented itself.
Between October 2026 and February 2027, MAXXI will also host new exhibitions dedicated to Sophie Calle and Tatiana Bilbao, two very different artistic voices connected by their reflections on space, relationships and the way we inhabit the world.
There are very few places in the world where landscape and art seem to belong to the same story.
Tuscany is perhaps the region that embodies this relationship better than anywhere else: art and landscape constantly enhance one another, creating the classic image of Italian beauty that generations of painters have celebrated over the centuries.
And in the cities along the way, opportunities to immerse yourself in art and architecture are endless.
Walking along the Via Francigena or the Via Lauretana means crossing white gravel roads, rows of cypress trees, medieval villages and rolling hills that look as though they have been painted onto the landscape.
Florence, in this sense, is a true mecca of beauty and art. You could begin your holiday here, enjoying a wonderful immersion in art before heading into the Tuscan countryside, or reward yourself with a few extra days in the city once the walk is over.
Not only because Florence is the cradle of the Renaissance: classical art is everywhere, but we also encourage you not to miss Palazzo Strozzi, which regularly hosts major exhibitions dedicated to internationally renowned modern and contemporary artists.
Until September 2026, visitors can still admire the beautiful Rothko exhibition, dedicated to the great American painter whose symbolic works and extraordinary exploration of colour have captivated generations of art lovers.
Between September 2026 and January 2027, Palazzo Strozzi will instead host Broken. The Power of Fragments, a major exhibition exploring incompleteness and the beauty of fragmented works of art.
Surprisingly, it is a theme that resonates deeply with walking itself, which rarely unfolds in a perfectly straight line and teaches us to appreciate each stage individually, without always needing to see the entire picture.
We have already told you about the beauty of the Sentiero del Viandante, a wonderful route along the eastern shores of Lake Como, on the Lecco side, offering an even more surprising perspective on the beauty of the Lario.
Deep canyons hidden within lakeside villages, the romantic atmosphere of Varenna, ruined castles overlooking the lake's distinctive Y-shape and easy access to many other beautiful corners of Lombardy make this a perfect destination to extend for a few extra days.
Milan is one of them.
In less than an hour, you move from a deeply natural environment to one of Europe's most dynamic cultural capitals.
The Pinacoteca di Brera, Fondazione Prada and Pirelli Hangar Bicocca are just a few of the places worth visiting. Milan is a fascinating overlap of artistic movements, allowing you to move seamlessly from classical masterpieces – in Brera or Gallerie d'Italia – to contemporary art, private galleries and world-renowned design.
Between September 2026 and February 2027, Milan will also host some particularly interesting exhibitions, including Dalí and Fashion at Palazzo Reale and a major retrospective dedicated to Luciano Fabro at Hangar Bicocca.
A beautiful way to extend the journey and move from contemplating landscapes to contemplating art.
Some journeys intertwine art and walking so deeply that they become almost impossible to separate.
The Way of St Francis is one of them.
It crosses some of Central Italy's gentlest and most spiritual landscapes, through forests, olive groves, hermitages and small villages that still seem to preserve St Francis' message of simplicity.
And then you arrive in Assisi.
A city that is worth the journey in itself and gradually reveals itself as you approach, with the silhouette of the Basilica becoming more and more prominent on the horizon.
Here, art, spirituality and landscape merge completely. The Basilica of St Francis is not simply another stop along the way, but the natural culmination of the entire journey. Giotto's extraordinary frescoes acquire a different meaning after walking through the very places that shaped the saint's life: it is almost as if the journey itself prepares your eyes to receive them.
It is also worth taking time to explore the rest of the town, from the Rocca Maggiore fortress to the small museums and artisan shops that animate its streets.
Assisi perfectly demonstrates that culture is never something separate from the landscape, but rather one of its most natural expressions.
Matera is one of those places that seem to defy definition.
It is a city, but at times it feels more like a landscape. It is an open-air museum, yet at the same time deeply alive, inhabited and authentic.
Reaching it on foot along the Matera Way makes the experience even more special.
After crossing sun-drenched landscapes, olive groves, ravines and ancient villages, you eventually arrive at one of Italy's most extraordinary cities: an intricate maze of houses, cave churches and alleyways that seem to emerge directly from the rock itself.
Here too, the journey can continue through culture.
The MUSMA, Matera's Museum of Contemporary Sculpture, is one of the most fascinating places to visit, housed within the caves of the Sassi and creating a unique dialogue between contemporary art and ancient architecture.
Casa Noha and the Palombaro Lungo are equally worth exploring, helping visitors better understand the deep relationship between the city, its landscape and the people who have inhabited it for centuries.
Because this is exactly what Matera is: a place that has slowly built itself over time, much like a walking journey itself, and perhaps that is precisely why it feels so natural to reach it on foot.
Because both require time and attention. Both challenge the way we see the world and reintroduce us to beauty in a society that constantly encourages us to move faster.
They remind us that places are not simply crossed: they are observed, listened to and experienced, one step at a time, opening doors and revealing artistic layers along the way.
In short, there is no need to choose between art and the outdoors.
Thinking that a walking holiday is an alternative to a more cultural or artistic trip is actually a misconception, because the two can coexist beautifully and create an even more memorable experience.
If you're particularly passionate about art, get in touch: we'll be happy to suggest the itineraries that suit you best.
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