Valtellina Travel Guide

A beautiful valley hidden in the middle of the Alps between Italy and Switzerland, the Valtelline valley is well-known to the residents of Lombardy for its skiing, hiking, hot springs, cheeses and wines.
The area is outside of the main tourist trails and for this reason, it is a personal favorite.

Top Ten Things to See and Do
Visit Stelvio National Park, the largest in Europe.
Ski at any of the popular resorts which boast more than 430 km of slopes.
Spend the day relaxing at the hot springs.
See the rock carvings at Grosio, where the oldest traces of human presence remain.
Hike in the Valtellina Orobian Alps Natural Park.
Walk to the Acquafraggia waterfalls.
Visit the Collegiata dei Santi Gervasio and Protasio Church.
Ride the Red Train of Tirano, between Tirano and St. Moritz in Switzerland.
Taste the local DOCG wines like Sforzato, Maroggia, Sassella, Grumello, Inferno and Valgella.
Ride your mountain bike.

Events around Valtellina
All these festivals are held in October:
Gustosando - a food tour that visits the towns of Dazio, Caspano, Civo and Morbegno, to bring together food and wine as an introduction to the valley’s local specialties.
Morbegno in Cantina - a festival that brings together 50 traditional wineries for a wine tasting extravaganza.
Sagra della Mela e dell'Uva -The Apple and Grape Festival at the Villa di Tirano is one of the most important events in the province.
Mostra del Bitto, Morbegno. Bitto, the local cheese, is celebrated in this annual festival.

Food and Drink
Pizzoccheri della Valtellina
Pizzoccheri is a traditional Valtellinese pasta made of buckwheat flour (2/3), durum wheat flour (1/3), salt and water.
Its shape is similar to fettuccine, but shorter. The pasta is usually accompanied by a sauce made of Casera D.O.P. (a regional cheese), potatoes, Savoy cabbage, butter and sage

Spotlight on Autumn in Valtellina
The valley is beautiful any time of the year, but my preference is to visit during the Autumn. All kinds of festivals happen during this time of year, and the wineries are ready to show off their latest products. Hiking and strolling through the little villages, breathing the fresh air, and admiring the snow capped mountains is an experience difficult to forget.

How to get there
By air: The nearest airports are Milan Linate and Milan Bergamo, both well connected to the main Italian and European cities.
By train: trains arrive from Milan to Sondrio every hour (a two hour ride), from here you can take buses to different resorts and towns.
By car: from the Milan-Venice motorway drive towards Venice up to the exit Sesto San Giovanni. Follow the signs to Lecco, follow the Strada Statale 36 Milan-Lecco-Colico, then the Statale 38 up to Bormio. From Bormio you can drive to everywhere else in the valley.