Discover the Aosta Valley 2026-27

Aosta, a Roman and medieval city and the regional capital, with its 34,000 inhabitants is the only city in the Aosta Valley. It spreads across a broad plain at the centre of the Alpine region, surrounded by high mountains including the Grand Combin and Mont Vélan to the north, Mont Emilius and the Becca di Nona to the south and the Testa del Rutor to the west. The city grew up at the confluence of the River Dora Baltea with the Buthier stream and of the two historic routes leading to France and Switzerland over the Alpine passes of the Little St Bernard and the Great St Bernard, and today also through the Mont Blanc and Great St Bernard tunnels. It should also be remembered that Aosta is a staging post on the Via Francigena, the ancient pilgrim route from Canterbury to Rome which, in its Aosta Valley stretch, descends from the Great St Bernard and continues along the central valley as far as Pont-Saint-Martin. The Romans founded the city in 25 BC, naming it Augusta Praetoria in honour of the Emperor Octavian Augustus. Known as the Rome of the Alps, Aosta preserves much of its original circuit of walls and a prestigious archaeological area lying between the Porta Praetoria, the majestic and perfectly preserved entrance to the city, and the Roman Theatre which, with its monumental façade, is one of the most significant testimonies of the age. The visit is particularly enjoyable if taken wandering through the lively pedestrian streets and the central Piazza Chanoux, in the spirit of shopping and of the gastronomic specialities to be savoured in the many restaurants, bars and wine bars of the centre, or attending organised events and activities.

The history of Fénis Castle

The official seat of the most important family in the Aosta Valley, the Challants, the castle of Fénis combines the features of a fortification with the distinctive traits of a stately residence. The building indeed presents an imposing defensive apparatus alongside elegant painted decorations, symbols of the power and prestige of the noble house. The structure of the castle is the result of various building campaigns that followed one another from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century, the most important of which was promoted around the middle of the fourteenth century by Aimone di Challant. The building remained the property of the Lords of Challant until 1716. It subsequently fell into decay, until it was reduced to a farm dwelling, with stables on the ground floor and a hayloft on the first floor. Thanks to the intervention of Alfredo d’Andrade, the castle was restored and donated by him to the State. Visiting the castle it is impossible not to imagine yourself in the daily life of a lady or a knight of the Middle Ages: passing through the double circuit of walls with its turrets equipped with machicolations and arrow slits, you enter a refined residence, the emblem of its owners’ power, scattered with fine fifteenth-century frescoes, great fireplaces, monumental staircases and singular symbols.

From a height facing the Aosta basin, the Royal Castle of Sarre dominates the entrance to the upper Valley.

After several changes of ownership, it was acquired by the King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel II, who made it his hunting lodge. The present building, which includes an older core arranged around the square tower, was built in the early eighteenth century. Since 1989 it has been owned by the Autonomous Region of the Aosta Valley, which has overseen its restoration and museum layout. On the ground floor the reception gallery houses portraits, painted or sculpted, of the members of the House of Savoy; the other rooms are devoted to hunting and illustrate the organisation and techniques with which this activity was practised by the court. On the first floor are the rooms of the royal apartment, with the striking Gallery and the vast Great Hall, decorated at the behest of Umberto I of Savoy with hunting trophies. The second floor illustrates the history of the Savoy dynasty over the course of the twentieth century.

The Roman aqueduct bridge of Pondel

Near the village of Pont d’Ael, on the right of the road leading from Aymavilles to Cogne, stands a Roman-era aqueduct bridge over the Grand-Eyvia stream. It is a grandiose work in masonry and dressed stone blocks, about 56 metres high and more than 50 long. The monument served as a bridge-aqueduct. It is indeed divided into two levels: an upper conduit paved with large squared stone slabs (the specus), originally waterproofed with special hydraulic mortar, which allowed the passage of water, and a lower walkway, about one metre wide and suitably ventilated and lit, which allowed the passage of people and animals. Very recent restoration and enhancement works today make possible a truly thrilling circular route, crossing the bridge in the opposite direction to the original flow of the water and returning through the 50-metre internal passage on glass slabs, looking down, right beneath the transparent walkway, at an impressive row of hollow structural cells more than 3 metres deep, which allow you to appreciate this mighty work. On leaving the passage a new and incredible scene meets the eye: thanks to the restoration with panoramic steel walkways, you follow a stretch of the ancient path that the Romans had boldly cut into the rock face. The site is difficult to access for people with disabilities owing to architectural barriers.

The Saussurea Alpine Botanical Garden.

Situated at Courmayeur at 2,175 m, on a glacial promontory that forms part of the Mont Blanc massif: Mont Fréty. The Saussurea Garden takes its name from Saussurea alpina, a rare plant of stony pastures, which in turn is named after Horace Bénédict de Saussure, promoter of the first ascent of Mont Blanc in 1786.

The Garden, created in 1984, was strongly championed by Dr Laurent Ferretti, an alpine flora enthusiast and the founder of the “Donzelli, Gilberti and Ferretti Foundation”, today the Saussurea Foundation, which manages the Garden. The Saussurea alpine garden extends over 7,000 square metres and holds 900 plant species from not only the Alps but the whole world.

Beyond a chalet that welcomes visitors, you make your way among the species of the Aosta Valley, among which edelweiss, artemisias and martagon lilies are easily recognised. You then continue among the flora of the Western Alps and that of the Eastern Alps, and finally reach the exotic species, with plants from North America, Spain and Eurasia.

In addition, two areas have been devoted to the cultivation of medicinal plants such as valerian and mallow. Each plant is identified by a label bearing its scientific and common names and specifying the family to which it belongs: yellow for Italian species, red for medicinal species, a skull if poisonous or toxic, white for exotic plants. The Pavillon alpine garden also represents the various natural habitats, such as alpine pasture, wetlands and scree, and finally the rhododendron and bilberry heath, whose typical species are the rhododendron and the bilberry. Since 2019 the garden has been made accessible to visitors with disabilities by building ramps that allow it to be enjoyed, at least in part, by wheelchair users too. The Saussurea Alpine Garden is at Courmayeur, at Pavillon du Mont Fréty, the first station of the Skyway Monte Bianco cable car. The rotating cabins of the Skyway Monte Bianco will take you to the first station, Pavillon du Mont Fréty, where Saussurea is located, and then on to the 3,466-metre panoramic terrace of Punta Helbronner. A visit to the garden is the opportunity to experience the new Mont Blanc cable cars, which in a few minutes will bring you face to face with Mont Blanc, from where you can admire a unique panorama over the Alps.