Apps, smart poles and digital accessibility: slow tourism meets the future
3 minutes
More and more often, walking is becoming an experience that brings together various different aspects. The physical aspect, the mental aspect, the social and recreational aspect, and last but not least, the technological aspect.
This last aspect is now increasingly present on walking routes. It can take the form of downloading an app that helps you find your way along the route, or of an ancient path being accompanied by a smart pole that tells stories, points out routes and suggests detours.
Whether we like it or not, digital technology is an integral part of our lives, and it's perhaps something we try to forget about when we go walking. However, if used wisely, it can provide important support for walkers and become a symbol of inclusivity and accessibility.
A connected pilgrimage
In recent years, for example, the Via Francigena has undergone a quiet but profound transformation. Alongside the spiritual and slow-paced nature of the journey, a network of digital tools has been developed to make the experience more accessible, safer and more personalised.
Today, dedicated apps allow you to:
- Track your route in real time
- Find accommodation and services
- Receive updates on weather conditions and the state of the trails
- Access geolocated cultural content
All of this provides invaluable support not only for experienced pilgrims, but also for those undertaking the Camino for the first time, perhaps for a weekend or a short, immersive experience.
Smart signposts: when signage tells a story
Among the most interesting innovations are the so-called 'smart posts': advanced signage elements that combine technology and storytelling.
Equipped with QR codes, sensors or interactive systems, these devices enable you to:
- Access historical and cultural information about the area
- Listen to audio guides directly on your smartphone
- View up-to-date maps
- Receive safety or emergency notifications
These devices are also accessible to people with mobility impairments, an aspect to which the Camino routes are becoming increasingly attentive, as evidenced by projects such as HIKE4ALL, which recently enabled blind people and people in wheelchairs to walk the Via Francigena in Piedmont. Indeed, these tools represent a genuine dialogue between the traveller and the local area, with each stop along the way serving as a gateway to local stories, traditions and interesting facts that are often overlooked by the casual observer.
Digital accessibility: a route for everyone
However, the real breakthrough is in inclusivity. New technologies are helping to make the Via Francigena and other Italian pilgrim routes increasingly accessible, including for people with disabilities or special needs.
Accessible digital maps, descriptive audio content, information on architectural barriers and alternative routes are essential tools for breaking down physical and cultural barriers.
In this respect, slow travel plays a key role in promoting smart and inclusive tourism, by providing integrated and up-to-date information for an increasingly broad and diverse audience.
It might seem that technology risks distorting the very essence of the Camino. However, the opposite is true: when technology is well designed, it enhances the experience without replacing it.
Today's travellers do not forgo the silence of the countryside or the leisurely pace of the villages they pass through. Instead, they enhance these experiences with tools that make it easier to explore and increase awareness.
Between past and future
Above all, the Via Francigena remains an inner journey. But today, it is also a hotbed of innovation, where tradition and technology coexist in harmony.
The digital pilgrim is no less authentic: they are simply better equipped to understand, to find their way, and to tell their story.
And so, between a Romanesque church and a wheat field, between a stamp on a credencial and an interactive map, the journey continues.
Ancient, yet increasingly contemporary.
