Grand Tour

In general it can be said that, whatever the point of departure and the passage chosen, the section through the Po Valley that comprised Turin and Milan was covered fairly rapidly (although sometimes with interesting breaks at Parma, Piacenza and Bologna), while the attitude toward Genoa was different – positive when not downright enthusiastic. From here the traveler went to Florence, with a stopover at Lucca, but he might also arrive from Bologna. The route then continued to Rome or along the Via Francigena (which passed through Siena, the notorious town of Radicofani and Viterbo) or went through Arezzo, Perugia, Terni and the valley of the Tiber. Depending on which of the two roads had been chosen on the outward journey, the other was usually taken on the way back. From Rome people went on to Naples through the Pontine marshes, Velletri, Terracina and Gaeta. The southernmost point of the journey was Paestum. It was very rare for travelers to go on to Cilento and Calabria; only in the late 19th century did they proceed as far as Sicily.

At this point it was necessary to plan the route back home. From Rome, through Foligno, travelers often made a deviation in the direction of Loreto, continuing on to Ancona and the Adriatic coast as far as Ravenna, from where they went back to Bologna. From here, before following the traditional itinerary in reverse, people would insert the important stage of Venice and the other cities of the Veneto.