Small group walking holidays led by guides who know every trail
Esplora has been running small group walking holidays since 2009, and our guides genuinely live on the ground they walk you through. They know every trail, ridge and hidden path intimately, not from a map but from years of walking it themselves, and they are passionate about bringing that landscape’s history and geology to life as you go, not simply setting a pace and getting on with it. Groups stay small, no more than twelve guests, and the walking itself is real: proper terrain, genuine climbs and honest distances, rather than a stroll dressed up in marketing language. We are upfront about the physical side too. If you can comfortably walk five kilometres, with the odd sit-down along the way, you should manage most of our routes without difficulty, and our guides are used to pacing a day around the whole group rather than its fastest member. If you do not see quite the walking holiday you are looking for, get in touch. We can often add extra dates, or build an escorted walking tour especially for your own small group.
From Stromboli’s summit to Umbria’s hill towns: our walking holidays
Walking in the Aeolian Islands takes in all seven islands on foot, including the climb to Stromboli’s summit for its nightly eruptions, Salina’s high ridges and the crater rim above Vulcano. Walking in Eastern Sicily and Walking in the Madonie Mountains cover the island’s volcanic and mountainous interior, through Gangi, Sperlinga, Pizzo Carbonara and the town of Cefalu, while Walking in Western Sicily combines walking with sightseeing through the Zingaro Nature Reserve, Palermo and Ficuzza. Away from Sicily, Walking in Umbria follows the San Francesco Way through Castelluccio, Montefalco, Assisi and Spoleto, a gentler, hill-town rhythm rather than a mountain one. Walking in Cappadocia takes a similarly easy pace through Goreme, Urgup and the Ihlara Valley’s volcanic rock formations, past fairy chimneys and rock-cut churches. Each of these small group walking holidays is graded for its own terrain and paced accordingly, from genuinely demanding mountain days on Etna’s slopes or Stromboli’s cone to gentler routes built around villages, vineyards and valley floors, so the right level of challenge is always available somewhere in the programme.
Walking Holidays Paced for Real Enjoyment, Not Just Fitness
Every Esplora walking holiday is built around enjoyment first and mileage second. Our guides are sympathetic to guests who need the occasional rest, and a small group of twelve means the day’s pace can genuinely flex around the people in it, rather than the group being split into a fast pack and a struggling tail. Wheelchair users are welcome and accommodated wherever a route allows it, and we are honest when a particular day’s terrain will not suit everyone, since that honesty serves you far better than an overpromise. If you would like to walk with your own group of friends or family, we can also build a bespoke small group walking holiday around the regions and level of challenge you have in mind, whether that means an easy week among Umbria’s hill towns or a proper mountain challenge in the Madonie.
