This is my new favourite place in the Alps, so don’t tell anyone, let it fills up with tourists 😉.

Known and unknown at the same time
The Aosta Valley resonates as one of the most beautiful and well-known places in the Alps and also in Italy. Despite this, neither the village that gives its name to the valley nor its satellites and surroundings have been swallowed up by the tourist machine. Far from having become a resort, it still retains the charm of traditional northern Italian villages.
With the exception of a few apartment buildings – modern but adapted to the alpine look – at the high altitude of the Pila cabin, almost everything else retains a traditional look. Nor, of course, does this mean that everything is a picture-postcard scene. The “dormitory” buildings of the 1980s and 1990s could belong to any other Italian or European city. Moreover, in the area around the access to the Pila gondola lift, there are still quite a few industrial factories, many of them still in use. Certainly, this aspect does not fit in with this unique site, but it is nevertheless part of the history of a place whose beginnings go back a couple of millennia.

A bit of history
Aosta comes from its original Roman name Augusta Pretoria, in honour of the emperor of the time (the Spanish city of Saragossa, which comes from Cesar Augusta, comes to mind at this moment). In case we forget, it only takes a short walk through the center of the town to come across the Arch of Augustus and the Pretoria Gate, both dating from the Roman period when the town was at its height of splendour. The former has been remodeled several times over the centuries, while the later barely recalls what it must have been originally, although it still commands respect. The miniature models located in the monuments help us to get an idea of the magnitude of a city that also conserves part of its Roman theatre, located next to the Pretoria Gate.
The old town is surrounded by the remains of the Roman walls, most of which are still visible, with several towers still standing, such as the Lebroso and Bramafam castle towers, and the original bridge that crossed the Buthier river, now disused, remains just as an archaeological curiosity. The main pedestrianized street runs from the Roman bridge to almost the Lebroso tower. From there, there are many narrow streets to explore and we can even find more or less hidden surprises such as the church of San Orso, with its bell tower, the cathedral – which hides a Roman necropolis in its catacombs -, the town hall or the base of the old regional historical archive. A unique region, as it belonged to the Haute-Savoie and is therefore still bilingual Italian-French. A good example of cultural coexistence, from which many should take an example.
Leaving the walled enclosure and crossing the railway track, we find the entrance to the Pila railway station, easily accessible on foot from the village. Its car park finds its way through the old factories. This is not a charming place in itself, but its clear surroundings allow us to observe the magnificence of this valley. Snow-capped mountain ranges at the four cardinal points will captivate anyone who stops for a minute to look. We could spend a long time gazing at this landscape, but we can do so from other nearby more bucolic spots with a similar 360° view.
The environment
The hiking trails are endless here, dotted with remnants of more recent history, especially well known are the castles, for example, Fenis, Sarre or Aymavilles. Let’s wait for the summer for that. In the winter season, the best option is certainly to go up to any of the Valley’s ski/snowboard resorts: Pila, La Thuile, Courmayer, Breuil-Cervinia and Monterosa. For the moment, we are going to stay in Pila. Truth is that it is wonderful to be able to walk from our accommodation in the village to a cabin that takes us directly to an altitude of 1.800 meters, where the small village that gives its name to the resort is located.

Ski in the Sky
On the way up, which takes about 10 minutes, we have time to enjoy the panorama. Not only a bird’s eye view of the town at the bottom of the valley, but also of all the mountains, again at 360°. Two intermediate stops, Les Fleurs and Plan Praz, which serve as end-of-piste pick-up points, separate us from our final destination.
The cabins are inscribed with the resort’s slogan: “Ski in the Sky”. At first glance, it might seem a little pretentious for a relatively small resort. However, when we disembark at 1.800m above sea level, we might start to agree with the marketing engineer who created it. A landscape surrounded by snow-capped peaks welcomes us to the heart of the resort, where the main services and accommodation are located. Wherever we go and wherever we look, at any point in the resort – and one could almost say in the valley – we are surrounded by these impressive massifs to the four winds. A truly exceptional place.
It’s tempting to take the chair up to Gorriaz, where the main beginners’ and kids’ area is located, as well as much of the catering and, as it is loudly advertised, the local radio station DeeJay Pila fm (92.0).
If we choose to continue up, we can take the Gorriaz-Grimod cable car. At the top, the funpark awaits us, with various levels of difficulty, each of which is very well differentiated at the start. In general, the slopes are quite easy, even if they are marked red. A good example is the “Du Bois” piste, which descends from the lower part of Punta Nera at 2,332 metres to Chamolé at 1,800 meters. However, you can tell that you are in the Alps by its length and gradient, as well as the unparalleled scenery of the snow-capped Alpine peaks. From here we can also head towards the glacier and, located between the peaks of Pointe Valletta (3,090 meters) and Monte Grivola (3,969 metres), we can justify the salary of the marketing team that created the slogan “Ski in the Sky”. A range of snow-capped peaks rise up at our feet, and on the other side of the valley, the Swiss border massif. It is worth coming here for the pleasure of connecting with the high mountains, despite the fact that it is a very controlled environment, like any resort, and close to an urban center.

Benvenutti a Italia
In the afternoon, back in the valley, the local gastronomy awaits us in a multitude of restaurants at street level and hidden in the entrances of old buildings. We will also see many people walking around with Roman pizzas in hand, and we will extend the evening to the rhythm of Spritz and select Italian wines.
What to do the next day: go back to Pila? Or perhaps to one of the neighbouring resorts such as Breuil-Cervinia or La Thuile – don’t miss the second part of this series!
This is one of those places so full of charm where it is impossible to say goodbye, we always leave with a “see you soon” on our lips. We’ll be back Aosta, arrivederchi!

