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The Alps are a unique area of almost 200’000 km2 stretching over eight countries in Europe - France, Italy, Monaco, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. They are one of the top tourist destinations in the world.

It is an area that offers opportunities for exploring history and culture and allows visitors to experience the shared Alpine way of life, which can be discovered through an extensive network of local, regional and national trails intended for walkers of all levels.

On the initiative of the French association La Grande Traversée des Alpes, institutions, associations and professional organisations in these eight countries have been working to create the Via Alpina, the first recognised walking trail described in multilingual documentation linking Trieste on the Adriatic Coast to Monaco and the Mediterranean.

Via Alpina has been officially recognized as genuinely contributing to the implementation of the Alpine Convention, which seeks to ensure sustainable development in the Alps.

Source: Via Alpina, Press pack August 2003