Wild nature
Val Maira: The Occitan Valley That Time Forgot
Among chestnut groves and Provençal speech, Val Maira guards stone villages and authentic silence, far from the circuits of Alpine tourism.
Jul 9, 2026Cuneo
9 guides · regione
Italian villages
Saluzzo: The Marquisate Capital That Turin Overshadowed
Saluzzo boasts an intact medieval old town, fifteenth-century palaces and a view of the Alps that no brochure has yet managed to spoil.
Jul 9, 2026
Wild nature
Val Varaita: The Last Occitan Valley With Its Black-Stone Houses
The Val Varaita, between Cuneo and the French border, preserves dark-stone villages and an intact Occitan tradition, with Alpine passes frequented only by specialists.
Jul 9, 2026
Guides and itineraries
The Occitan Trails of Val Maira
In the province of Cuneo, Val Maira chose not to build ski lifts: no chairlifts, no downhill skiing, only Occitan hamlets and mule tracks. It is one of the quietest Alpine valleys in Piedmont, walked by hikers rather than mass tourists.
Jun 30, 2026
Guides and itineraries
The Monviso Circuit in three days
In the Cottian Alps, in the province of Cuneo, the loop around Monviso circles the 'stone king' and the source of the Po, crossing from the Italian side to the French one. It is a great Alpine classic that remains far less crowded than the peaks around Mont Blanc.
Jun 30, 2026
Guides and itineraries
Cycling route through the Valle Stura di Demonte
In the Cuneo province, the Valle Stura di Demonte is a valley on the way to France, often overlooked by cyclists: an ancient salt road among military forts and wild lavender, it stays quiet and off the main flows even in summer.
Jun 30, 2026
Guides and itineraries
The Grande Traversata delle Alpi in the Valle Maira
The Valle Maira, in the Occitan Cottian Alps of the Cuneo area, is one of the most unspoilt valleys in the Alpine arc: no big ski resorts, stone hamlets, and scattered trail lodges. Here you walk the GTA in silence, far from mass tourism.
Jun 30, 2026
Guides and itineraries
The Monviso Loop, around the Stone King
Between the Po Valley and the Varaita Valley, in the Cottian Alps of the Cuneo area, a multi-day circuit around the pyramid of Monviso, crossing over into France. High-altitude trails and refuges light years away from the beach and city tourism of summer.
Jun 30, 2026
Guides and itineraries
The Historic Val Tanaro Train from Ceva to Ormea
In the province of Cuneo, between the Langhe and the Ligurian Alps, the minor railway from Ceva to Ormea climbs the upper Val Tanaro, touching mountain villages off the tourist trails. Revived with historic and tourist services, it is a slow, quiet way to cross a little-frequented corner of Piedmont.
Jun 30, 2026