It was a 4 and a half hour walk offering spectacular views for my husband and I, both in our 50's and not very fit. We walked a circular route in a clockwise direction to get up and down the mountain, avoiding any use of the funicular.
The last few steps up to the look out point were killer. All the other young folks at the top cheered me on and clapped. I was so tired. But WOW! What an amazing feeling to get to there!
I was so tired that as I stepped back onto the steps to go down I fell, hurting my knees badly. I imagined my poor husband needing to call in the emergency services to get his wife off the mountain, but was determined not to let this interfere with his weekend at the F1 GP, so I hauled myself back down the mountain, keeping left, along steep and more informal paths back down to the monastery below. This was a much quieter route than the one we had taken up on the other side. However, I was pleased to be going down and not up on this path.
The walk was very long and difficult for me personally, but I would definitely do it again any time.