LOTUS EATERS TRAVEL

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If you’re planning to walk through Tuscany to Rome, you may be wondering how much it will cost to walk the Via Francigena. Tuscany is not known to be the cheapest tourist destination. Is it possible to walk the Via Francigena on a budget? If so, how can you do it?

You can find out more in our guide to walking the Via Francigena in 2023.

How much does accommodation cost on the Via Francigena in Tuscany?

Prices of accommodation on the Via Francigena in Tuscany and Lazio vary depending on the type of accommodation you are staying in and the time of year. The below sets out an overview of the cost of accommodation on the Via Francigena in Tuscany and Lazio as of 2023:

Accommodation Type	Price
Pilgrim – Dormitory (Donation Based)	Donation based
Pilgrim – Dormitory (Ostello, Ospitale, Convento or Monastero)	15 to 25 Euros per person
Pilgrim – Private Room (Ostello, Ospitale, Convento or Monastero)	20 to 30 Euros per person
Private B&B, Agrotourism or 2/3* hotel	40 to 70 Euros per room

Find out more about accommodation on the Via Francigena here. If you want to know about accommodation at each stage, you can find out more on our article about the daily walking stages here.

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Is food and drink expensive on the Via Francigena in Tuscany?

One of the biggest costs you may have when walking the Via Francigena is food and drink. Especially if you’re walking in Italy, Tuscany no less, you probably want to enjoy the wine and fantastic food.

Here’s our overview of how much you can expect food and drink to cost on the Via Francigena in Tuscany and Lazio. This is based on average prices along the route.

Item	Cost
Coffee	1 to 1.20
Croissant (Cornetto)	1.20 to 2 Euros
Sandwich in café	4 to 6 euros
Baguette in supermarket	75 cents
Glass of wine	5 Euros
Bottle of wine	20 Euros
1 litre of house wine in a restaurant	10 Euros
Large beer	4 to 5 Euros
Primi Course (Pasta)	9 to 15 Euros
Secondi Course (Meat)	12 to 25 Euros
Side Salad	3 to 5 Euros
Dessert	5 Euros

What is a daily budget for the Via Francigena in Tuscany?

We have set out below an average daily budget during our walk from Lucca to Rome through Tuscany and Lazio in 2023. This is an average, and it’s fair to say that some days we spent much more than this. For example, accommodation in San Gimignano cost us around 30 Euros per person.

Average daily spend on the Via Francigena in Tuscany and Lazio in 2023

Item	Cost
Accommodation	20 Euros (per person)
Coffee and breakfast (croissant)	2 Euros
Lunch (based on a packed lunch or supermarket snack)	3 Euros
Dinner (based on one course)	12 Euros
Alcoholic Drinks (2 glasses of wine)	10 Euros
TOTAL	42 Euros

We walked from Lucca to Rome in 17 days and we estimate that our spend per person for this was around 700 Euros. It is fair to say that on some days we drank more than two glasses of wine and indulged in both a Primi and Secondi over supper, therefore not sticking to the “average spend”. But, we also offset our costs by wild camping on some nights during the walk.

In addition to this, you will also need to factor in accommodation in Lucca (or Pisa, if this is where you fly into) and in Rome. By far, our most costly accommodation was in Rome. We found a great place for 100 Euros (50 Euros per person) per night. But many places near to the centre are much more costly than this.

We noted that prices in Lazio tended to be slightly cheaper than in Tuscany. Much of Tuscany is very well travelled, whereas some of the towns and villages we visited in Lazio were less visited by tourists and therefore slightly cheaper. South of Siena, we noticed a gradual decrease in prices as we moved towards Rome.

Is the Via Francigena more expensive than the Camino de Santiago?

In our experience, walking the Via Francigena in Tuscany and Lazio was more expensive than walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain. On average, we found that a bunk bed in an Albergue in Spain cost around 10 to 15 Euros. Whereas accommodation on the Via Francigena was often double this price.

The other big difference is the cost of food and drinks in restaurants and bars. In Italy, a glass of wine would cost 5 Euros on average. Whereas in Spain, we more frequently paid between 2 and 3 Euros. If you’re not a big wine drinker, you may not notice this so much!

Food is also more expensive in restaurants in Italy than in Spain. On the Camino de Santiago, we frequently enjoyed a “Menu del Dia” which often cost under 15 Euros for three courses with wine. In Italy, particularly Tuscany, this was not an option. Instead, one course of food alone may cost around 15 Euros. Of course, we don’t want to get into a debate about whether food on the Camino or Via Francigena is better!

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How to walk the Via Francigena in Tuscany on a budget?

It is possible to walk the Via Francigena in Italy, specifically in Tuscany and Lazio on a budget. However, you will have to be realistic about how cheaply the walk can be done. We would recommend following a few simple rules in order to walk the Via Francigena on as small a budget as possible.

Budget tips for food and drink on the Via Francigena

1. Make your own breakfast and lunch where possible, or buy from supermarkets rather than cafes. In our experience, bakeries in Tuscany are also very reasonable, but supermarket bakeries tend to be even cheaper. A sandwich in a café however, could cost you a lot more than it would be make your own.
2. If you can find hostels with kitchens, you may be able to cook dinner. This would be a big cost saving. On average, one “primi” (a first course of pasta) tends to cost between 9 and 15 Euros in Tuscany. However, you could cook a basic pasta dish in your hostel for much less than this!
3. Look out for pilgrim offers at restaurants. We didn’t find many of these, but noticed the occasional offer, such as two courses for 17 Euros.
4. Buy snacks from the supermarket. Fruit or chocolate bars can be great on the go. If you don’t carry snacks, you may be tempted to go for more expensive snacks at cafes on the way!
5. Use the water fountains provided along the route and a reusable water bottle, rather than buying water. We found that water points were very regularly on the Via Francigena, but we occasionally had to fill up at cafes along the way too.
6. If you drink alcohol, try local wines. You can buy inexpensive wine at supermarkets. Often restaurants will offer a house wine in a quarter, half or one litre size. Usually this is much cheaper than buying by the glass or the bottle.

Budget tips for accommodation on the Via Francigena

1. Try to stay at accommodation that is exclusively used by pilgrims. Ostellos, ospitales and monasteries tend to be cheaper. There are also a few donation based hostels on the Via Francigena in Tuscany. We recommend booking in advance to secure your spot.
2. Be mindful that not all pilgrim only accommodation is cheap. We found that some hostels were charging 25 Euros for a bunk bed, and that as a couple, we could find a private room on booking.com cheaper than this nightly rate for two. Ask for the price when you enquire about booking to avoid any nasty surprises.
3. Look for accommodation that provides cooking facilities so that you can prepare food for yourself. You may also find someone in the hostel willing to share a meal with you and split costs.
4. You can consider wild camping on the Via Francigena. There are rules around this that you will need to follow. But if you abide by these rules, you could potentially save significant money that you would otherwise spend on accommodation.
5. If you can walk with a friend, a partner, or buddy up with someone you meet on the way, you may find that private rooms are cheaper to share between two people. If you do have to book private accommodation, sharing with someone could save you a lot of money.
6. In the big cities, such as Siena and Rome, look out for hostels on the outskirts of the city that may have cheaper rates.

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Would you like to read more about the Via Francigena?

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