Oltrepò Pavese is a wedge of Lombardy between Emilia and Piedmont, confining with the provinces of Alessandria and Piacenza and in the most southern part, traveling for a few kilometers in Alessandrino or Piacentino, lies the border with Liguria. Thanks to this variety of regions there are, nearby, many beautiful places to visit.
Places to visit
Places to visit less than 50 km away:
Places to visit between 50-100 km away:
Places to visit between 100-150 km away:
Oltrepò Pavese offers nature lovers countless routes which can be accessed on foot, by bicycle, by motorbike or on horseback. The landscape is characterised by orderly vineyards and wild forests. There is no lack of inviting castles, pretty villages and delicious food.
Art, culture and nature
Oltrepò Pavese is a country rich in history, art and culture, offering castles and forts located in the hills. Famous is the village of Zavattarello with its beautiful panorama view and the castles of Montalto Pavese, Valverde, Torre degli Alberi and Pietragavina.
Still even today in the province of Pavia there are the rice fields of Lomellinae, the famous Certosa and, in Pavia, the Church of St. Augustine and the ancient university. In the nearby Vigevano you can visit the beautiful Piazza Ducale, the castle and the mill of Mora Bassa with the famous machines of Leonardo da Vinci.
Only 15 minutes from Oltrepò Pavese is Val Tidone, in the province of Piacenza, where in the Middle Ages many castles rose to defend the region from attacks from the border region Oltrepò Pavese. Examples of these are Rocca d’Olgisio (Val Tidone), the fortress of Agazzano (Val Luretta), and the castle and the village of Rivalta (Trebbia).
In Val Tidone and the neighboring Val Staffora there are also several protected areas, for example the park Le Folaghe of Casei Gerola, Lungavilla Park, nature reserve Monte Alpe, the Alpine Botanical Garden of Petra Corva and Monte Penice.
Gastronomy
Gli amanti del vino possono sbizzarrirsi qui. Se guardi la mappa dell’Oltrepò Pavese, vedrai che la zona ha la forma di un grappolo d’uva e in quel grappolo si producono vini deliziosi.
Wine lovers can enjoy their stay here. If you look at the map of Oltrepò Pavese, you will see that the area is shaped like a bunch of grapes – and delicious wines are made in that bunch.
Oltrepò Pavese is the largest wine region in Lombardy and the largest in Italy of Pinot Nero. The Pinot Nero grape is doing very well here and enjoys the picturesque hills in which it is allowed to take root.
The special feature of the region are also the delicious sparkling wines, the ‘vivace’, ‘frizzante’ and also ‘spumante’ wines, the local Bonarda, a fruity red but not sweet wine, the Buttafuoco, the more classic red wine whose production is limited to a small area in the north of the Oltrepò, and the Sangue di Giuda, a typical sweet red wine of the area.
The province of Pavia, with more than 80,000 hectares of rice fields, is the first in Italy to produce rice, which is mainly concentrated in the Lomellina region. The delicious culinary tradition of Oltrepò, including “Salame di Varzi”, anchovies and cod, Lomellina goose, frogs and game is well complemented by the wide range of local wines.
High time to give it a try!