What is Valtournenche known for?

The Italian face of the Matterhorn, 4,478 meters, climbed first from this side by Jean-Antoine Carrel in July 1865. Valtournenche produced the Carrel, Maquignaz and Gorret families who dominated late-nineteenth-century alpinism on the Italian face. Resort head of the valley at 2,050 meters, lift-linked across the Theodul Pass to Zermatt, with summer skiing on the Plateau Rosa glacier.

Where is Valtournenche?

Valtournenche is a comune in the province of Aosta Valley, Aosta Valley region of Italy, about 125 kilometers from Torino.

Aosta Valley · Aosta Valley

Valtournenche

The valley under the Cervino, home of the guides who raced Whymper up the mountain in 1865 and the resort of Breuil-Cervinia at its head.

1524m

Elevation

125 km / 78 mi

Nearest hub (Torino)

2,178

Population

Jun–Sep, Dec–Mar

Best time to visit

Why come

Valtournenche sits at 1,524 meters along the Marmore torrent, a long upper-valley commune that runs from Châtillon up to the Italian foot of the Cervino, the 4,478-meter peak the Swiss call the Matterhorn. The frazione of Breuil-Cervinia at the valley head, at 2,050 meters, is the main resort: roughly 150 kilometers of pistes linked by lift across the border to Zermatt, including summer skiing on the Plateau Rosa glacier. The village itself is the older story. Jean-Antoine Carrel was born here in 1829, led the Italian race for the Matterhorn against Edward Whymper, and reached the summit from the southwest ridge on 17 July 1865, three days after the British party arrived from the Swiss side. A plaque in the main square lists the names of the Cervino guides who followed him. The road up from Châtillon climbs 1,000 meters in 27 kilometers and ends at the glacier.

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Gallery

6 photos · scroll →

Known for

Il Cervino
The 4,478-meter pyramidal peak that closes the valley head, climbed first from the Italian side on 17 July 1865 by Jean-Antoine Carrel of Valtournenche.
Breuil-Cervinia
Resort frazione at 2,050 meters with around 150 kilometers of pistes linked across the border to Zermatt, including summer skiing on the Plateau Rosa glacier.
Piazza delle Guide
Main square of Valtournenche village, with a plaque listing the names of the Matterhorn guides born in the valley.
Chiesa parrocchiale di Sant'Antonio
Parish church in the centro storico of Valtournenche village.
Gouffre des Busserailles
Narrow gorge on the Marmore torrent below Breuil-Cervinia, opened to visitors in 1865 by Jean-Antoine Carrel with bridges and walkways.
Lago Goillet
Reservoir lake at 2,526 meters above Breuil-Cervinia, holding water for the Hydroelectric system in the Marmore valley.

When to visit

Best months · Jun–Sep, Dec–Mar

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

December through April is the long ski season at Breuil-Cervinia, with the Theodul lifts running into Switzerland and the Plateau Rosa glacier holding snow long enough to keep skiing into summer. June through September is the climbing and hiking season, the months when the Carrel hut on the southwest ridge is staffed and the Tour du Cervino draws walkers around the mountain. May, October and November are the empty months. The lifts shut for maintenance, many hotels close, and the village of Valtournenche, four kilometers below Breuil, returns to its 2,178 residents. The Cervino in early-morning autumn light, before the first heavy snow, is the photograph the guides keep on their walls.