However, a rare tourist passes it entirely: many are limited to small segments of the way (the average duration of the journey is 10 days), bearing in mind that the main purpose of their journey is rest, and not overcoming any obstacles at all costs.
Whether you have come for religious purposes or not, do not forget to first get (issue via the Internet or ask at the tourism office) your pilgrim passport (la credenziale in Italian, aka la credencial, or la créanciale) and get significant discounts with it at overnight accommodations, catering and transport companies when you get ready to return home.
The Way of St. James: through France, Spain and Portugal
Italy, of course, is not limited to the atlas of slow travel. Religious sites in France attract about 51 million visitors every year. About 327 thousand travelers passed the Way of St. James in 2018, which begins in the south of France or Portugal (there are several routes), and the main part of it passes through Spain.
Apparently, pilgrims prefer this route to the Road of the Franks: only 10% of visitors overcame the Way of St. James with exclusively cultural and not religious purposes.
Offers of slow and contemplative tourism and various eco-destinations can be found in any country, it is only necessary to make a request in a search engine, but most of the information will be on Italy, Spain and France, which is not surprising: this trio is firmly entrenched in the leading positions in the lists of the most popular countries in the world.
Who are the digital Nomads
The digital nomad movement, or digital nomads, is closely related to slow tourism. These are people who refused to work on schedule 5/2 and went to another country with a laptop under their arm. And these are not just freelancers or remote employees — like true nomads, they change their place of residence several times a year. As the American sociologist Tony Blackshaw notes, digital nomads do not prioritize work, but their own interests – the desire to live mobile and not be tied to one place. For the first time such an idea came to the American Stephen Roberts in 1983, when there were no digital nomads yet. He simply designed a multi-wheeled bicycle, which could be typed right while riding, and went on a journey.
Digital nomad is more about lifestyle than travel, but these concepts overlap. Their main message is to choose informed decisions and actions. And this trend will only get stronger: almost half of the nomads are Generation Z, which will determine the norms in the near future.
