Bardonecchia

Access

In terms of accessibility, Bardonecchia is easily accessible by train - with the railway station on the Turin-Modane line, including the Frecciarossa service - and by car via the motorway and the Frejus tunnel; during the summer, the Colle della Scala road also connects it to the Durance valley and Briançon. The village has limited parking in the central area and a developed local road network between the urban centre and the hamlets.

Introduction

Bardonecchia is a mountain municipality in the Metropolitan City of Turin, located at the western end of the Piedmont region, in the upper Susa Valley, a few kilometres from the French border. The territory, characterised by a vast alpine basin surrounded by peaks exceeding three thousand metres, is distinguished by a long tradition linked to hiking, winter sports and a particularly rich natural environment.

Description

The village is located at an altitude of about 1311 metres above sea level, at the meeting point of the Rochemolles, Frejus, Rho and Valle Stretta valleys, which feed the Dora di Bardonecchia. It currently has around 2,900 inhabitants and celebrates its patron saint, Saint Hippolytus.
Bardonecchia lies on the historic communication route between the Piedmont plain and France, enhanced by the opening of the Frejus railway tunnel in 1871 and, later, the construction of the road tunnel and the A32 motorway. Its strategic position on the border has determined its vocation for tourism and its role as a transit point and meeting point for different Alpine cultures.
The Bardonecchia basin is surrounded by the northern Cottian Alps: the Pierre Menue (the highest rocky terminal in the Cottian Alps, 3,560 m), Mount Thabor, Punta Nera and the iconic 'Valle Stretta Dolomites' stand out, attracting hikers and mountaineers in both summer and winter. The presence of the ski resorts of Colomion, Les Arnauds-Melezet and Jafferau, with almost 100 km of pistes between 1,312 and 2,800 metres above sea level, confirms the central role played by the resort in the sports scene of the Western Alps.
The centre of Bardonecchia, once a border settlement with a strong agricultural and pastoral vocation, has undergone a significant transformation since the 19th century thanks to the railway and the progressive growth of tourism. Urban planning was structured around Borgo Vecchio, the historic area near the parish church of Sant'Ippolito, and Borgo Nuovo, developed to accommodate workers and services related to the construction of the tunnel. In the following decades, the Piedmontese aristocracy and upper middle class contributed to the growth of the village, increasing the construction of villas with gardens and large hotels.
From a cultural and historical point of view, Bardonecchia preserves numerous architectural testimonies, such as the 14th-century bell tower of the parish church, the Tour d'Amoun and the Bramafam Fort, built at the end of the 19th century to defend the entrance to the tunnel. The hamlets of Les Arnauds, Melezet, Millaures and Rochemolles enrich the historical and environmental landscape with churches, frescoed chapels, stone fountains and Alpine museums, such as the religious art museum in Melezet.
Bardonecchia's hiking and sports tradition has been established since the early 20th century: the Bardonecchia Ski Club, one of the oldest in Italy, was founded in 1908, and over the years the town has hosted skiing, snowboarding and cycling competitions, including four stages of the Giro d'Italia with the finish line on the Jafferau, a climb that is now famous among enthusiasts.
The municipality offers a network of scenic trails that connect the different valleys and allow for hikes of varying difficulty; Rochemolles Lake and Colle della Scala are naturalistic attractions and opportunities to observe alpine fauna. The summer invites visitors to discover the area by trekking and mountain biking, while the winter offers alpine skiing, snowboarding and a lively calendar of sports and cultural events linked to the mountains.
The local economy today depends on tourist accommodation, with a balance of hotels, mountain refuges, second homes and non-hotel facilities. Traditional festivals, patron saint festivals and mountain food and wine make Bardonecchia an interesting destination for both nature seekers and those attracted by Alpine culture. There is no shortage of historical and sporting events, such as the patron saint's festival of Sant'Ippolito and the celebration of winter sports, which in 2006 saw Bardonecchia play a leading role in the 20th Winter Olympic Games in Turin.

Information

Area:132.20 sq km
Altitude: 1312m
 Maximum elevation:
Number of inhabitants:3230
Name in dialect:
Inhabitants' name:
Patron Saint:
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Bordering Municipalities:Avrieux, Bramans, Exilles, Modane, Névache, Oulx
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Alps: