The month of December in the Laghi, Monti e Valli dell'Ossola area, in the upper Piedmont region close to the Swiss border, opens on the national holiday 8 December weekend in Santa Maria Maggiore, the main town in the Val Vigezzo valley, with the 23rd edition of the Christmas Market from 9 to 11 December.
Visit Italy’s only Chimney Sweep museum
The magical atmosphere of the Orange Flag town will be the setting for two hundred exhibitors for a market that is among the largest in Northern Italy. And not to be missed is the famous - and unique in Italy – Chimney Sweep Museum, an ancient trade that is celebrated here, and the Feminis-Farina Perfume House, which honours the history of Eau de Cologne, the famous perfume invented by two emigrants from Santa Maria Maggiore.
Skiing in the valley’s Neveazzurra resorts
But December also means snow and skiing, and in the Distretto Turistico dei Laghi, Monti e Valli dell'Ossola (the Ossola Lakes, Mountains and Valleys Tourist District) the Neveazzurra ski area, which comprises the Verbano Cusio Ossola ski resorts of Valli dell'Ossola, Formazza, Devero, Divedro, Antrona, Anzasca and Vigezzo.
A single ski pass and cross country skiing
Of particular interest is the single ski pass, which can be purchased online (www.skiareavco.org), accessing an extraordinary Alpine area that stretches from an altitude of 1,000 to over 4,000 metres in the Monte Rosa massif and has 150 kilometres of slopes, served by natural and programmed snow and 50 ski lifts. Cross-country skiing is also popular in Formazza and in Santa Maria Maggiore, with a first-class competitive track, and in Valle Anzasca along the Macugnaga Fondo Signal circuit.
For those who love downhill skiing, the Macugnaga Monte Rosa ski area a little higher up has 30 kilometes of slopes and nine lifts, where you can ski while admiring the most impressive massif in the Western Alps, Monte Rosa with its 4,634 metres.
Buses from Milan, Varese and Novara
From the beginning of December in the Ossola Valleys, it is also possible to go skiing without a car. At San Domenico Ski, which can be reached by bus from Milan, Varese and Novara, and has seven lifts and 35 kilometres of slopes, skiers will find Alpine skiing trails of varying difficulty with more than 1,100 metres of altitude difference, a snow park, and dedicated snowshoeing and ski mountaineering trails. A holiday in this very beautiful natural landscape also means relaxation, wellness, traditions and good food.
For information: www.distrettolaghi.it
