Via Jacobi (aka Jakobsweg)

The celebrated Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route spreads its tentacles out way beyond Spain. In the Middle Ages, the shrine at Santiago de Compostela was a major draw for the religious across the continent, and many of what are thought to be the original paths remain intact. Though the practice had essentially fallen into desuetude, with only 13 people registering as pilgrims in 1978, the route is once again thriving, with 250,000 visitors to the shrine itself last year. Switzerlands Via Jacobi, also known as the Jakobsweg, marks the official start-point of the route (though it began, of course, at your own front door) for pilgrims coming from Eastern Europe and Scandinavia.

The Via Jacobi, which takes pilgrims from the German/Austrian borders at Lake Constance (the Bodensee) along a choice of paths to the French border at Geneva, has been wonderfully restored in recent decades, and now forms an impressive network of paths and mule tracks that carry one through the lush rural feet of the Alps.

Switzerland is often underestimated by those who think of it in skiing terms. Its beauties especially in spring and Summer, though walking continues year round on the impressive Winterwanderweg networks extend far beyond times of snow. Its surprisingly varied farming and cultures have thrived for many centuries in among the mountains, and of course, its neutrality (backed up by heavily-armed forces) during both world wars has meant that much of its Medieval architecture has survived.

These well-maintained, admirably signed, paths, though obviously involving some serious uphill stretches its a mountain country, after all afford a superb way to get a taste of the beauty of the Alps without the skills and burdensome equipment required for a long, high trek. Add to this a helpful, friendly, multilingual population and a vast choice of both accommodation and robust food (none of it cheap, however), and the charms of the Jakobsweg are obvious.