APULICA / WALKS

Great Way of Celestine

L'Aquila, Basilica of Santa Maria di Collemaggio → Ortona, Cathedral of St Thomas the Apostle · The official site gives 204 km in 12 days for the full route. The original Maiella hermitage section measures 84 km according to the home page and the route overview, while the stage 5 page and the Maiella National Park site give 82 km. · 12 stages from L'Aquila to Ortona, plus a variant via Manoppello between Macchie di Coco and Serramonacesca. The "Classic" hermitage route corresponds to stages 5 to 9 and takes 5 days.

Key facts

Start and finish	L'Aquila, Basilica of Santa Maria di Collemaggio → Ortona, Cathedral of St Thomas the Apostle
Length	The official site gives 204 km in 12 days for the full route. The original Maiella hermitage section measures 84 km according to the home page and the route overview, while the stage 5 page and the Maiella National Park site give 82 km. (Il Cammino Grande di Celestino - sito ufficiale (Ente Parco Nazionale della Maiella) · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Il Cammino · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 5 · Parco Nazionale della Maiella - Gli eremi della Maiella, dall'Aquila a Ortona (Cammino Grande di Celestino))
Stages	12 stages from L'Aquila to Ortona, plus a variant via Manoppello between Macchie di Coco and Serramonacesca. The "Classic" hermitage route corresponds to stages 5 to 9 and takes 5 days. (Il Cammino Grande di Celestino - sito ufficiale (Ente Parco Nazionale della Maiella) · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Scopri le tappe · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Variante per Manoppello)
Credential	The credential is free: it can be requested by post from the park authority or collected at the tourist offices in L'Aquila or at the Abbey of Santo Spirito al Morrone in Sulmona. Once stamped, it entitles the holder to the Testimonium, also free, at Serramonacesca, in Ortona or by post. (Cammino Grande di Celestino - Credenziale e Testimonium)
Regions	Abruzzo
Official website	www.camminodicelestino.it

In brief

It links L'Aquila to the sea at Ortona over 204 km, passing the rock hermitages of the Morrone and the Maiella. (Il Cammino Grande di Celestino - sito ufficiale (Ente Parco Nazionale della Maiella) · Parco Nazionale della Maiella - Gli eremi della Maiella, dall'Aquila a Ortona (Cammino Grande di Celestino))
It grew out of the hermitage route created in 2018 by the Maiella National Park, which holds its trademark. (Il Cammino Grande di Celestino - sito ufficiale (Ente Parco Nazionale della Maiella) · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Il Cammino)
The last three stages coincide with the Way of St Thomas as far as the apostle's cathedral in Ortona. (Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 10 · Parco Nazionale della Maiella - Gli eremi della Maiella, dall'Aquila a Ortona (Cammino Grande di Celestino))
The credential and the Testimonium are free. (Cammino Grande di Celestino - Credenziale e Testimonium)
The Ministry of Tourism lists it among Abruzzo's religious walks in its italia.it catalogue. (Cammini religiosi in Italia - catalogo del Ministero del Turismo (italia.it))

Why walk it

In twelve days the route crosses a large part of Abruzzo: from the inland valleys of the Aterno and the Peligna basin it climbs onto the Morrone and the Maiella, then descends through farmed hills to the Adriatic. From stage 9 onwards, wide expanses of vines and glimpses of the Adriatic frame the final days.

The common thread is the spirituality of Celestine V: his story can be read at Collemaggio, in the great Celestinian abbey at the foot of the Morrone and in the hermitages carved into the rock. Stage 8, which the site considers perhaps the most beautiful, visits three Celestinian hermitages in a single day.

Food is part of the journey too: along the way you meet pasta alla chitarra and arrosticini, the PDO saffron of L'Aquila grown around Fontecchio, the red garlic and sugared almonds of Sulmona, the Montepulciano d'Abruzzo vineyards towards San Martino sulla Marrucina and Crecchio, and finally the nevola, the sweet that is a symbol of Ortona.

Sources: Il Cammino Grande di Celestino - sito ufficiale (Ente Parco Nazionale della Maiella) · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Il Cammino · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Sapori in Cammino

From L'Aquila to the sea in Celestine's footsteps

The Great Way of Celestine starts at the Basilica of Collemaggio in L'Aquila and ends in Ortona, on the Trabocchi coast. It is divided into sectors: the Aterno valley, the Peligna valley, the Morrone and the Maiella, and finally the stretch towards the sea that the site calls Finis Terrae.

Those with less time can choose the original format, the "Classic" Way of the Maiella hermitages: it starts at the Abbey of Santo Spirito al Morrone, near Sulmona, and ends at the Abbey of San Liberatore a Maiella in Serramonacesca, in five days. The Testimonium can also be earned for some partial sections.

The route is for walkers only and the waymarking follows the direction from L'Aquila to Ortona; a dedicated cycling route is being prepared. The name is a registered trademark of the Maiella National Park authority, and the Ministry of Tourism includes it in its catalogue of Abruzzo's religious walks.

The twelve stages

In the Aterno valley: stage 1 L'Aquila - Fontecchio (26.5 km), past Stiffe and the Roman bridge at Campana; stage 2 Fontecchio - Castelvecchio Subequo (21 km) via Beffi; stage 3 Castelvecchio Subequo - Raiano (10 km), over the pass below Monte Urano. In the Peligna valley, stage 4 Raiano - Badia Morronese (14 km), through Corfinio and Pratola Peligna.

On the Morrone and the Maiella: stage 5 Badia Morronese - Pacentro (12 km), with the hermitage of Sant'Onofrio al Morrone; stage 6 Pacentro - Caramanico Terme (19.5 km) over the San Leonardo pass; stage 7 Caramanico Terme - Decontra (14 km) up the Orfento valley; stage 8 Decontra - Macchie di Coco (22.5 km), with the hermitages of San Giovanni, Santo Spirito a Maiella and San Bartolomeo; stage 9 Macchie di Coco - Serramonacesca (15.5 km), to the Abbey of San Liberatore. A 20.5 km variant passes the Volto Santo sanctuary in Manoppello.

Towards the sea: stage 10 Serramonacesca - San Martino sulla Marrucina (16 km) via Pretoro and Rapino; stage 11 San Martino sulla Marrucina - Crecchio (18.5 km) via Filetto; stage 12 Crecchio - Ortona (14 km), through vineyards to the Cathedral of St Thomas.

Terrain, waymarking and difficulty

All stages are graded E, hiking. The first is demanding mainly for its length, with very little climbing. The stages on the Morrone and the Maiella are in mountain terrain, mostly on footpaths, and require preparation: the hardest is stage 8, about 22.5 km with more than 1,300 m of ascent, which the site suggests splitting over two days. The last stages include several stretches on asphalt. The recommended season generally runs from mid-April to mid-November, while stages 4, 11 and 12 are listed as walkable all year.

The route is waymarked throughout, mainly with CAI white and red marks and flags; new vertical signs have been installed between L'Aquila and the Peligna valley. The marking follows the direction from L'Aquila to Ortona: you can walk it in reverse, but signs are not bidirectional.

Before setting out, check the notices on the site. The steel-cable section at Piscia Giumenta on stage 7 is currently closed and the route avoids it; the Manoppello variant stops at the Volto Santo because of a partly collapsed bridge. Stages 7 and 8 are not suitable for walking with a dog, and after heavy rain the crossing of the Foro river on stage 10 can be dangerous.

Sources: Cammino Grande di Celestino - Il Cammino · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 1 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 4 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 7 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 8 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 10 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 11 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 12 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Segnaletica · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Ultimissime dal Cammino (interruzioni e modifiche)

Credential, lodging and transport

The credential certifies pilgrim status and is stamped in churches, hermitages, information offices and lodgings; it is free and gives access to discounts where offered. It is requested by post from the park authority or collected at the tourist offices in L'Aquila or at the Abbey of Santo Spirito al Morrone, home of the pilgrim welcome centre. The Testimonium, also free, is issued at San Liberatore a Maiella, at the Ortona tourist office or by post, for the whole route or for the sections L'Aquila - Serramonacesca, Sulmona - Serramonacesca and Sulmona - Ortona.

Lodging is in parishes, convents, hotels, B&Bs and some private homes, and three pilgrim hostels are being prepared in Pacentro, Caramanico Terme and Decontra. Booking ahead is advised and, if possible, avoiding August; Decontra has few beds and the site suggests a second night in Caramanico Terme. In the Sirente Velino and Maiella parks, camping in a tent is allowed for one night per place, from sunset to sunrise.

L'Aquila, Sulmona and Pescara can be reached by train and by TUA regional buses; L'Aquila station is about 2.5 km from Collemaggio. From Ortona, buses and trains run to Pescara, while from Serramonacesca there are no buses on Sundays and public holidays.

Sources: Cammino Grande di Celestino - Credenziale e Testimonium · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Trasporti · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Centro accoglienza pellegrini · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Ospitalità · Cammino Grande di Celestino - In tenda

The hermit pope

In July 1294 the elderly hermit Pietro Angelerio left his hermitage on the Morrone and, riding a donkey under the escort of Charles of Anjou, reached L'Aquila to be crowned pope as Celestine V in the Basilica of Collemaggio. After four months he renounced the papacy and fled east; captured at Vieste, he died a prisoner in the fortress of Fumone. His "great refusal" left its mark on the history of the Church, and he remains a much-loved figure in Abruzzo.

At Collemaggio, by the Holy Door, the Celestinian Perdonanza is renewed every year on 28 and 29 August; it was instituted in 1294 and has been UNESCO intangible heritage since 2019. The Abbey of Santo Spirito al Morrone is the largest complex the Celestine order left in Abruzzo.

In 2018 the Maiella National Park created a spiritual route linking the rock hermitages of the Maiella and the Morrone. Three years later came the idea of extending it towards L'Aquila and towards the sea: this gave rise to the Great Way, whose last three days follow the Way of St Thomas to Ortona.

Sources: Cammino Grande di Celestino - Il Cammino · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 1 · Cammino Grande di Celestino - Tappa 5 · Parco Nazionale della Maiella - Gli eremi della Maiella, dall'Aquila a Ortona (Cammino Grande di Celestino)