Treno dei Sapori: From the Po Plain to the Alpine Valleys Between Iseo and Edolo

There is a train in Lombardy that departs from Brescia, skirts Lake Iseo — the lake Giorgio Morandi painted in silence and that Christo wrapped in 2016 with his floating walkways — and then climbs the Val Camonica to Edolo, at 700 metres, at the foot of the Tonale Pass. It is called the Treno dei Sapori and on weekends from spring to autumn it becomes a restaurant on wheels where you taste local products: Franciacorta DOCG, olio-di-Rovato beef, Val Camonica cured meats, cheese from Malga Crap.

Val Camonica and its inscribed rocks

The regular Brescia–Edolo service is already a remarkable journey in its own right. After Lake Iseo, where the mountains plunge straight into the water and the villages climb the cliffs, the train enters the Val Camonica and begins to encounter the traces of an ancient civilisation. The Camunian people engraved more than 300,000 rock-art figures on the stones of this valley between the Neolithic and the Iron Age: the Naquane National Rock Art Park, a UNESCO site, is reachable on foot from the Capo di Ponte station, one of the stops on the line. Admission costs a few euros and is worth every cent.

The Treno dei Sapori: how it works

The special food-and-wine runs are organised by the Fondazione FS and local associations, usually on Saturdays or Sundays. On board you find historic carriages with tables and at-seat service. The menu changes with the season: in autumn the stars are Val Camonica porcini mushrooms and aged cheeses. The cost ranges from 35 to 55 euros per person, drinks included. The regular service is operated by Trenord with a standard ticket and takes about two and a half hours from Brescia to Edolo.

Edolo and the slow return

Edolo is a small mountain town with a compact old centre and medieval towers still standing. From here you can arrange excursions to the Tonale Pass or the Stelvio National Park. But the real luxury is to stay at the station, wait for the afternoon train and enjoy the return toward the lake as the light fades over Iseo and turns everything antique pink.