Italian Literary Tours from Mantova to Vizzini

In recent years, an increasing number of people have chosen to walk in the footsteps of their favourite writers. As a result, travel itineraries have been created or consolidated via the places connected to the authors’ lives or work. They are a form of slow tourism, on foot, by bicycle, on horseback, along nature trails and mostly on unpaved roads or in the historic centres of many Italian cities and villages, often connected by trains. They are a means of literature to enhance the territory. Therefore, itineraries, routes, walks, and paths of varying lengths and difficulties have been created and are still being created. They are promoted by research centres, administrations, institutions, cultural associations, tour operators, and literary parks to respond to an increasingly frequent tourist demand that allows the protection, promotion, and enhancement of the urban or natural landscape crossed by those who walk. These proposals offer a tourist experience that is very different from the so-called mass tourism, allowing the tourists a deep immersion in the territory, in the literary and historical heritage and, very often, in the food and wine culture of the places they visit. This E-Dictionary of Literary Tourism entry offers a concise list of the main Italian tours dedicated to this new type of slow tourism. A brief description of each tour is given along with a hyperlink that allows access to detailed information. Each hyperlink was consulted during the writing of the dictionary entry and was active before its delivery in spring 2024. The literary tours are presented alphabetically, and this dictionary entry is complemented by the entry Italian literary tours from Agrigento to Limana, which is also in this dictionary. 

Mantova. Guided tours in the protected area of the Mincio Regional Park, to discover the places linked to Virgil, with readings from the Bucoliche, the Eneide and the Georgiche. https://www.parcodelmincio.it/itinerari-dettaglio.php?id_iti=3067

Montalbano Jonico. Tour in the “Francesco Lomonaco” literary park, dedicated to the writer and patriot, friend of Ugo Foscolo, teacher of Alessandro Manzoni, and to the southern Risorgimento. https://www.parcoletterariolomonaco.it/gli-itinerari/

Montemarino. The route is dedicated to Beppe Fenoglio and the heroes of the Resistance, especially his Partigiano Johnny (1968), after whom the path is named, among slopes, valleys, rivers and farmhouses. A 16 km ring, not suitable for all hikers and all seasons, from the Pavaglione farmhouse to the small church of Sant’Elena. https://www.centrostudibeppefenoglio.it/cgibin/partigiano_johnny.pdf

Monterosso al Mare. Itineraries and walks to discover the work of Eugenio Montale closest to nature, Ossi di seppia (1925), become an excuse to learn about the history, paths, flora, fauna, agrifood traditions of the Cinque Terre. https://www.parconazionale5terre.it/man_dettaglio_man.php?id=2267

Morra De Sanctis. Itineraries with Francesco De Sanctis in Irpinia, on the trail of the reportage Un viaggio elettorale (1876) and of the unfinished memories of La giovinezza (1889), between Lacedonia, Morra and surrounding areas in the places of training of the great literary historian. https://www.parchiletterari.com/itinerari-scheda.php?ID=04209

Mulazzo. Itinerant reading, called “Via Dantis”, of the Divine Comedy; nine stops within the medieval Tuscan village which offers a journey into eight cantics of the poem, from the dark forest to the visio Dei, between readings, music and art. http://www.lunigianadantesca.it/via-dantis/

Naples. Guided tour of Matilde Serao’s places. The literary walk winds through nineteenth-century Naples and is a hypothetical journey through the pages of the two best-known books by Matilde Serao, Il ventre di Napoli (1884) and Il Paese di Cuccagna (1891). https://www.liceogalfer.it/pagine/nel-ventre-di-napoli-con-matilde-serao

Naples. Guided tours in the Vesuvius area, dedicated to authors and themes such as Plinio il giovane, Giacomo Leopardi, Johann W. Goethe, Emily Dickinson, organized by the literary park “Vesuvius: from Plinio to Leopardi, writings from Terra del Fuoco”. https://www.facebook.com/ParcoLetterarioVesuvio/

Naples. In the wake of the success of L’amica geniale (2011) by Elena Ferrante, the guided bibliobus tour was born in Naples, with readings and visits to the places from the novel. https://trampviaggi.it/news/diamo-il-benvenuto-al-bibliobus-made-in-naples/

Naples. Guided tour dedicated to the fascist period in Naples on the common thread of the famous character from Maurizio De Giovanni’s detective novels: Inspector Ricciardi. http://www.insolitaguida.it/Passeggiate-narrate/Comera-Napoli-nel-venten...

Nuoro. “Going away. Homage to Grazia Deledda”, or a guided tour of Deledda’s sites; a walking tour to discover the places told in her works, which includes a visit to the author’s birthplace, home to the Deleddian Museum, crossing the Séuna district, arriving at the sanctuary of Santa Maria della Solitudine near the monument dedicated to the writer by Maria Lai. https://www.cagliaripad.it/371840/nuoro-al-via-il-progetto-andando-via-o...

Ostia Antica-Casal Bernocchi. The Pasolini Path is a cycle/pedestrian route approximately 17 km long which starts from Ostia Antica and arrives at Casal Bernocchi and which, running alongside the Tiber embankment, touches the villages of Dragona, Dragoncello, Acilia and Centro Giano. https://www.romamarittima.it/il-sentiero-pasolini-percorso-ciclopedonale...

Otranto. Guided tour that starts from the Otranto fortress that inspired the first Gothic novel in history, The Castle of Otranto (1764), by Horace Walpole and the libretto of a comic opera, Le Baron d’Otrante (1769), by Voltaire. https://www.iloveguido.it/guido/experience-tour-Otranto_tra_le_righe-epr...

Palermo. Literary walks and excursions proposed by the Sicilia literary cultural association, especially in the footsteps of Tomasi di Lampedusa and the Gattopardo (1958), but also of the passage of Johann W. Goethe and the presence of Leonardo Sciascia. http://www.parcotomasi.it

Passo del Cerreto-Castelnovo ne’ Monti. Discovering Dante Alighieri in Apennino Reggiano along the route that brought the exiled poet to Lunigiana; a trek between sinkholes and chalk outcrops towards the Ospedalaccio Pass and the Bismantova Stone between history, nature and religion. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/dante-alighieri-appennino-r...

Pescia. Medium difficulty circular route, through woods and uneven terrain, along the fairy tale trail dedicated to Carlo Collodi and his famous wooden puppet Pinocchio (1883). https://it.wikiloc.com/percorsi-escursionismo/anello-pescia-sentiero-del...

Piacenza-Roncole Verdi-Brescello. Slow itinerary in Giovannino Guareschi’s Food valley: the Lower Emilian region of Don Camillo and Peppone. Castles, villages, museums and typical products (culatello, balsamic vinegar, parmigiano reggiano) in three stages along the right bank of the Po. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/interno-slow-guareschi-bass...

Racalmuto-Caltanissetta. Itinerary in stages in the heart of the Sicily of Leonardo Sciascia, starting from his birthplace Racalmuto and ending at the place of his literary and civil education Caltanissetta, crossing the “Regalpetra” literary park “Leonardo Sciascia”. https://www.guidasicilia.it/ itinerary/regalpetra-parco-letterario-leonardo-sciascia/1002064

Ragusa. A journey into the fabulous beauty of Ragusa Ibla and the imaginary Vigata, where the investigations of Inspector Montalbano take place, created by the pen of Andrea Camilleri. https://www.visitvigata.com/tour/da-ragusa-a-vigata/

Ravenna-Classe. An itinerary, based on verses from the Divine Comedy, in seven stages which represents and retraces Dante’s bond with the city, his mosaics, the Basilica of San Vitale, the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/ravenna-dante-mosaici

Ravenna. Contemporary Dante or a journey in six stages into the world of contemporary art dedicated to the poet, including artistic works, music, collective exhibitions, street art, mosaics and immersive walks. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/ravenna-dante-contemporaneo

Ravenna-Florence-Ravenna. Dante’s Way between Romagna and Tuscany, a circular route along the medieval streets of Dante’s exile, rich in artistic, historical, cultural and landscape references (only 4% of the route runs on an asphalt road). 21 stages for approximately 400 km between the Romagna valleys of Lamone and Montone, the Tuscan territories of Mugello and Casentino. It is the only literary path recognized by the Mibact and included among the 44 present in the Atlas of Paths of Italy. https://www.ilcamminodidante.it

Recanati. Inside the “Giacomo Leopardi” literary park it is possible, among others periodically created, to follow the sentimental journey Infinito experience: the itinerary goes from the Piazzuola del Sabato del Villaggio towards the Parco del Colle dell’Infinito, passing through Casa Leopardi and Silvia’s House. https://parchiletterari.com/eventi-scheda.php?ID=05550

Riccione-Cervia. On the trail of Tonino Guerra, a journey through a widespread museum, among the fountains dedicated to the writer, between Riccione, Santarcangelo di Romagna and other landscapes of the Marecchia Valley, up to Cesenatico and Cervia, which inspired Guerra. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/sulle-tracce-di-tonino-guerra

Rimini. Journey through the city that was the scene of one of the most famous love stories in world literature, that of Paolo and Francesca narrated by Dante in the fifth canto of the Inferno. From the Tiberius bridge to the Malatesta Temple, four stages that also pass through the well-known Arco di Francesca di Porta Galliana. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/rimini-paolo-e-francesca

Roccalumera. Itineraries and visits to the places of the “Salvatore Quasimodo” literary park “The incomparable land”, between the train-museum in the ancient railway station and the Saracen Tower, enhancing the territory of Roccalumera and the memory of the poet. http://www.parcoquasimodo.it/?page_id=41

Rome. Literary journey between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, between Piazza di Spagna and Via del Corso, among taverns, inns, hotels, literary cafés in the footsteps of the great romantic poets - Keats, Shelley, Byron, Goethe - but also of the characters who animated the Ancient Caffè Greco (Joyce, Leopardi, Liszt, Stendhal, Heine, Wagner, Schopenauer, Twain, Gogol, Trilussa, D’Annunzio). https://www.romaslowtour.com/proposte-scuola/

Rome. Walking itineraries dedicated to the relationship between Pier Paolo Pasolini and Rome (1950-1975), retracing the neighborhoods and villages on the basis of the words and images of the films on a journey between Tor Pignattara and Pigneto, Marconi and Testaccio, Monteverde Nuovo and Donna Olimpia, Pietralata and Tiburtino III, Ostiense and Garbatella. https://www.romaslowtour.com/proposte-scuola/

Rome. Two walking itineraries to retrace the episodes of the novel La Storia, written by Elsa Morante in 1974, in the San Lorenzo and Testaccio districts, between German occupation, Liberation and the post-war period. https://www.romaslowtour.com/proposte-scuola/

Rome. Literary walks in old Monteverde which, starting from the 1950s, became the neighborhood of choice for some poets and writers: Attilio Bertolucci, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Carlo Emilio Gadda, Giorgio Caproni, Gianni Rodari. https://www.romaslowtour.com/proposte-scuola/

San Luca. Itineraries and trekking on equipped paths in Aspromonte, place and scene of the life and works of Corrado Alvaro, in the direction of Pietra Cappa, Pietra Castello and Montalto between the Ionian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea. http://www.fondazionecorradoalvaro.it/itinerari.html

San Mauro Pascoli-San Mauro Mare. In the footsteps of Giovanni Pascoli, a five-stage route winds from his birthplace, which became San Mauro Pascoli by royal decree in 1932, to the Adriatic Sea to celebrate the places and landscapes of Pascoli’s childhood. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/ itinerary-giovanni-pascoli-dalla-terra-al-mare

Sanremo. The journey of approximately 3 hours, behind Sanremo, retraces the road that Italo Calvino took towards his father’s farm of San Giovanni, told in the pages of La strada di San Giovanni (1990), along roads, paths and mule tracks. https://liguriadascoprire.it/calendario/la-strada-di-san-giovanni-sulle-...

Santo Stefano Belbo. Paths dedicated to Cesare Pavese which are divided into 15 different routes for a total of approximately 60 km between valleys, farmhouses, the Belbo river, the hills of the Langhe and Monferrato. The itineraries present various levels of difficulty and length. https://www.visitsantostefanobelbo.it/natura/sentieri-pavesiani

Siena. Organized by Riccardo Castellana and the University of Siena, a project that aims to rediscover the places that crowd the narrative of the Sienese writer Federigo Tozzi, with an interactive digital map, routes, readings and quotes. https://federigotozzi.unisi.it

Turin. Itineraries and walks in the Turin of writers, edited by Alba Andreini, from Edmondo De Amicis to Guido Gozzano, from Fruttero&Lucentini to Jean Jacques Rousseau, from Primo Levi to Mario Soldati to Natalia Ginzburg and others. The itineraries take place as part of the Portici di carta event. https://www.salonelibro.it/salone-365-i-festival-tutto-l-anno/portici-di...

Verghereto-Ravenna. In Dante’s footsteps in the Savio Valley, route in seven stages from Verghereto to Ravenna, passing through Bagno di Romagna, Sarsina, Mercato Saraceno, Cesena and Montiano, among the sources of the Tiber, the birthplace of Plautus, the Rocca Malatestiana of Cesena (watered by the Savio) and the poet’s tomb in Ravenna. https://emiliaromagnaturismo.it/it/itinerari/sulle-orme-di-dante-nella-v...

Villacidro. “Walks to discover the places of Giuseppe Dessì”, two itineraries linked to the life and works of the writer, among the places narrated and the landscapes and water architecture described in his works, starting from Casa Dessì. https://www.parchiletterari.com/eventi-scheda.php?ID=01788

Vinchio. Organized by the Davide Lajolo Association, three itineraries, “I bricchi del Barbera”, “I boschi dei Saraceni” and “Il mare verde” which develop in a ring starting from Vinchio and pass through the most significant places linked to Lajolo’s life and work in verse and prose, investigating the writer’s relationship with the Monferrato area and the hills that touch the Langhe of Beppe Fenoglio and Cesare Pavese. https://www.davidelajolo.it/lajolo_itinerari.php

Vizzini-Catania. Guided routes to discover the places narrated in the major Sicilian short stories and novels by Giovanni Verga, from Vizzini to Catania, passing through Taormina, the Casa del Nespolo and the Casa Verga museum. https://www.parchiletterari.com/files/allegati/Parco_Giovanni_Verga__1_3...

How to cite this entry: Roberto, M. (2024). Italian literary tours from Mantova to Vizzini. In R. Baleiro, G. Capecchi & J. Arcos-Pumarola (Orgs.). E-Dictionary of Literary Tourism. University for Foreigners of Perugia.