You’ll get different satisfactions to see and visit the Gran San Bernardo valley: among the most famous the environment, the mountain trips, the winter sports, but you’ll find also other aspects that will draw your attention.
Among the typical traits of our valley you got the traditional cuisine. A thick network of fairs begins during the first week of July in Doues, with a huge polenta party, the following week is the turn of Saint Rhemy en Bosses with his Jambon de Bosses, the most famous prosciutto of the Alps, then is Valpelline to held a Seuppa Valpelenentse fair (typical soup with whole bread and Fontina). Then in Oyace will be prepared the whole bread cooked in the wood-fired oven. After that Saint Oyen will present us his prosciutto with polenta and green beans.
In Etroubles takes place the Veillà, a traditional evening where the ancient jobs of the village are represented. During the event the Fiocca is distributed with raspberries and “bugie”. Then in Allein there is the fair of their delicious potatoes.
During these fair there are also music and dancing evenings with folkloristic shows hosting traditional bands and choirs that perform to entertain and amuse the participants.
In the Gran Saint Bernard Valley there are also several sports events: football, tennis, bocce, footrace as the “Martze à Pià”, without forgetting the traditional sports such as the “Fiolet”.
A big event od the autumn is the “Bataille des Reines”, where the cows of different barns face each other, in non violent battles, in order to establish the true leader of the group.
There are also several cultural events in Etroubles there is the artistic path "À ÉTROUBLES AVANT TOI SONT PASSÉS...": the old village has been turned into an open-air museum, a galley that hosts the works of worldwide famous artists. There are also many temporary exhibitions through the year.
Every year the Grand Saint Bernard opens the museum of the almshouse and gives the chance to meet the famous dogs.
Usually during the winter the Valley hosts the “Winter Triathlon” games.
Typical carnival
In the Great Saint Bernard Valley, the Carnival is something very special: it is a celebration of the upcoming spring, but also tradition, history and legend. The costumes, beautifully made, represent the synthesis between the allegory of the uniforms of the French soldiers and the typical clothes of the peasants of the valley.
The landzette, typical carnival’s masks of the "Coumba freide", participated at the inauguration of the 2007 Turin Winter Olympics. With their typical and exclusive vivid costumes, and they have often been protagonists of national TV programs.
You cannot miss them!
During Carnival, there are parades in almost every village of the Valley. The Landzette visit the bar of the campsite on the early afternoon of "FAT THURSDAY" and we are always happy to offer a little refreshment to them and to all their followers.
La veillà
Since 1984, the “Pro Loco di Etroubles” sets the "veillà", a representation of the ancient professions of the village. For one night, Etroubles and its inhabitants recall its past, luckily not yet forgotten. In the main street of the village and in the narrow lateral streets are represented the ancient jobs.
You can find the world of agriculture ( the dairyman and the craft ship of butter, the threshing of wheat, the shearing of sheep, the breeding of cows and the production cycle of wool), the world of craftsmanship (the beating of iron, the tailors and the creation of the “Landzette” typical masks) and the world of social life (the laundresses and their laundry at the fountains, the production of whole bread cooked in the wood-burning oven, the “morra” players, the “Fiolet” players, the teacher with its students and the ancient pharmacy).
The exhibitions of the craftsmen are more and more numerous: they sell leather and wood products, floral composition and genuine products of the territory such as raspberries, honey, jams, cold cuts, cheese and wine.
Many gastronomy points are spread along the village, where you can find many specialties: mixed grills with vegetables, polenta, whipped cream (the true one!) served with the amazing raspberries of Etroubles and handmade “bugie”, the “seuppa freida”, coffee and Aosta Valley’s wines.
Live Franco-Provençal traditional music accompany typical masks catwalk during the carnival of Etroubles. All along the week lots of events take place!
We welcome everyone and we wait for you at the Veillà to spend a cheerful evening and to discover together out past.
A not-to-miss event!
Fair of St. Orso
The Saint Orso Fair, that passed the 1000 edition long time ago, is a popular event, an hymn to the creativity and the hard work of the mountains’ people. Each year a thousand of exhibitors, divided between artists and craftsman, presents with pride and licit satisfaction the outcome of their work, sometimes just hobbies and in some cases real jobs. All the traditional activities are represented: sculpture and carving of wood, soapstone’s manufacturing, iron, ceramic and leather creations, weaving of the “drap” (ancient fabric made with wooden loom), the making of lace…
The fair is also music, folklore and the occasion to taste wines and traditional products, during a true community party, that finds its widest expression during the “Veillà”, the night between the 30th and the 31th January. The lit streets are full of people until sunrise, the private cellars are open and, if you are lucky enough, you can even enter and taste the local hospitality.
The Saint Orso Fair is a unique and unforgettable experience, really not to miss and to live with a profound emotional involvement.
From the campsite Aosta can be reached by bus or car in about 20 min., for the occasion many public parkings are created and the shuttle service to/from the fair is always free of charge. Because the flow of tourist is particularly high in this period we suggest you to book in advance.
There is the possibility to attend 20 hours per week sculpting courses held by the Aosta Valley sculptor Siro Vierin, open to beginners but also to whom has already done some sculpting work and would like to improve their skills.
