Route, stages, season and guide advice for 8 of Europe's classic long-distance treks, with certified mountain guides for each.
Scotland · United Kingdom — 154 km / 96 miles · 7–8 days walking (5 for fast groups)
The West Highland Way runs 154 km (96 miles) from Milngavie on the edge of Glasgow to Fort William, usually walked north in seven or eight days with around 3,150 m of ascent. It is waymarked throughout, so the difficulty is distance and Scottish weather rather than navigation.
France · Italy · Switzerland — approx. 170 km · 10–11 days (7 with lift assistance or long stages)
The Tour du Mont Blanc is a 170 km circuit of the Mont Blanc massif through France, Italy and Switzerland, with roughly 10,000 m of ascent, usually walked anticlockwise in 10 or 11 days. It is a hut-to-hut trek on marked paths — no glacier travel — but the daily climbs are long and the refuges book out months ahead.
Italy — approx. 120 km · 8–11 days
Alta Via 1 crosses the Dolomites north to south, roughly 120 km from Lago di Braies to the Belluno valley with about 6,600 m of ascent, walked hut-to-hut in 8 to 11 days. Paths are marked and mostly non-technical, with a few exposed sections and optional via ferrata variants.
France — approx. 180 km · 15 stages (10–12 for strong walkers)
The GR20 crosses Corsica along the island's mountain spine, roughly 180 km with about 12,000 m of ascent over 15 stages, and is widely rated the toughest waymarked long-distance trail in Europe. The northern half is rocky, steep and hands-on; the southern half is longer-legged and gentler.
Iceland — 55 km (plus optional 25 km to Skógar) · 2–4 days
The Laugavegur Trail runs 55 km from the geothermal fields of Landmannalaugar to the birch woods of Þórsmörk, usually walked in three or four days. Distances are short but the ground is volcanic desert and snowfield, there are unbridged river crossings, and the season is only about ten weeks long.
France · Switzerland — approx. 200 km · 12–14 days
The Walker's Haute Route links Chamonix to Zermatt on foot — about 200 km and 12,000 m of ascent over 12 to 14 days, crossing eleven passes and finishing under the Matterhorn. It is a hiking route, distinct from the glaciated ski Haute Route, but it is markedly tougher and quieter than the Tour du Mont Blanc.
Italy · Switzerland — approx. 160 km · 9–10 days
The Tour of Monte Rosa circles the second-highest massif in the Alps — around 160 km and 9,000 m of ascent over nine or ten days between Italy and Switzerland. Unlike the TMB it includes a glacier crossing, most commonly the Theodul, which puts it beyond a purely hiking trip.
Sweden — 440 km full trail; 105 km classic northern section · 5–7 days for the northern section
Kungsleden runs 440 km through Swedish Lapland from Abisko to Hemavan. Most walkers do the northern 105 km from Abisko to Nikkaluokta in five to seven days, sleeping in STF huts, with the option of climbing Kebnekaise — Sweden's highest mountain — at the end.