Aosta Valley · Aosta Valley
Saint-Vincent
The Aosta Valley's belle-époque thermal town — a 4,400-resident commune on a sunny south-facing terrace at 575m with the Fonte Salée mineral spring (in use since 1770), the Casinò de la Vallée (Italy's second-largest legal casino since 1947), and the Matterhorn peak visible north of town.
575m
Elevation
98 km / 61 mi
Nearest hub (Torino)
4,448
Population
Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
Best time to visit
Why come
Saint-Vincent is the Aosta Valley's small-scale belle-époque destination — a 4,448-resident commune sitting on a south-facing terrace 28 km east of Aosta along the main Aosta–Turin road, with a sunny microclimate that earned it the local nickname 'Riviera delle Alpi' (Alpine Riviera) for the 19th-century elite who came to take the thermal cure. The thermal story: the Fonte Salée mineral spring was discovered by the local parish priest Jean-Baptiste Perret in 1770, declared therapeutic for digestive and urinary disorders, and developed into a proper spa over the 19th century — the Terme di Saint-Vincent still operates today in the original 1928 Stile Liberty building, supplied by the same spring at 11°C, used for drinking-cure and balneotherapy. The casino story: the Casinò de la Vallée opened in 1947 to underwrite the Region's autonomy budget, was Italy's first legal casino outside Sanremo, and today runs as the second-largest in the country (after Venice's) with 23 gaming tables and 600 slots inside a 1960s glass-and-steel rotunda just above the centro. Beyond the casino + spa: the centro storico is a quietly handsome 19th-century resort streetscape with the Collegiata di San Vincenzo (15th-c, raised over a Roman bath complex whose mosaic floors are visible in the crypt), the Casa Lo Presti, the Liberty-era seafront-style promenade, and the cremagliera (funicular) up the hillside behind town for the view. North of town: the Matterhorn appears on clear days. South: the Mont Avic Regional Park is 15 km. Food is Valdostan with French-leaning touches: fontina, Mocetta, polenta concia, the local Petite Arvine and Müller Thurgau wines from the south-facing vineyards just below town, plus French-style patisseries on the corso. The Carnevale Storico in February (medieval costumed processions) and the Saint Vincent Tourisme jazz festival (late June) are the year's main events.
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Known for
Terme di Saint-Vincent + Fonte Salée
Mineral spring discovered 1770, full Liberty-era spa building from 1928 still operating — drinking-cure and balneotherapy with the same 11°C water for 250 years.
Casinò de la Vallée
Opened 1947, Italy's first legal casino outside Sanremo and now the country's second-largest. 23 gaming tables + 600 slots in a 1960s glass rotunda above the centro.
Collegiata di San Vincenzo + Roman crypt
15th-c church raised over a Roman bath complex — the mosaic floors of the bath are visible in the crypt below the nave.
Cremagliera + Matterhorn views
Funicular up the hillside behind town gives the panoramic view — the Matterhorn appears on clear days to the north.
Petite Arvine vineyards
South-facing vineyards just below town produce Petite Arvine and Müller Thurgau — the Aosta Valley's two distinctive white wines. Cellar visits in town.
When to visit
Best months · Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Saint-Vincent is best April–June and September–October — the sunny south-facing terrace makes it pleasant year-round, but the Aosta Valley shoulders avoid the August heat of the lower valleys and the deep-winter quiet. The Carnevale Storico (February, medieval costumed processions) and the Saint Vincent Tourisme jazz festival (late June) fill the centro. Winter is mild for the altitude and the casino + spa give the town its year-round economy.
How to get there
From Torino, Saint-Vincent is roughly 98 km by road. Allow about 84–118 minutes depending on traffic and route choice (autostrada vs scenic).
Drive time to the nearest gateway airports
- Turin1h 20m
- Milan2h 35m
- Genoa2h 39m
Elevation 575 m
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