Florence to Assisi: Via di Francesco,
September 21 - October 8, 2026

Overview

Begin in the heart of the Renaissance and walk toward the cradle of Franciscan spirituality: our Florence → Assisi pilgrimage traces the footsteps of St. Francis through Tuscany’s hills and Umbrian valleys. This journey is part travel, part spiritual quest, and rich in art, nature, and sacred places.

From Florence’s domes and cloisters, you depart into the hills and forests of eastern Tuscany. The route takes you through chestnut woods, quiet ridges, and ancient hermitages where Francis sought solitude and encounter. You will pass sites tied to his life and legend: the hermitage of Camaldoli, the Monastery of La Verna (where Francis received the stigmata), Montecasale (where he is said to have converted three thieves), and San Damiano’s humble chapel. These places foster quiet prayer, contemplation, and a direct sense of Francis’s path.

In between, you traverse the Casentino National Forest, cross the Tiber Valley, and ascend into the uplands that border Umbria. The days are shaped by forest trails, small towns, and contrasts of light and shadow. Approaching Assisi, the hills soften, the scent of olive trees rises, and the presence of Francis’s birthplace draws near. In Assisi itself, pilgrims arrive amid basilicas, chapels, and the stones that tell centuries of devotion.

Every step is supported: luggage moves ahead, guides share stories and reflections, and accommodations offer warm restorative care. Evening reflections, liturgy, or shared silence nurture a deeper rhythm to the journey. This pilgrimage is flexible: you may walk the full route from Florence or join in from La Verna, or even split into segments.

But at its heart, it is a walk into deeper presence. To walk from Florence to Assisi is to move through the landscapes that shaped Francis’s imagination, theology, and love of creation. It’s a path of beauty, humility, and transformation: every hill, every hermitage, every forest breathes sacred echoes. At day’s end, the walls of Assisi welcome you—and with them the promise of pilgrimage fulfilled.