Trento travel guide

Plenty of challenging mountain routes, dotted with refuges and beautiful green trees…Well signposted streets and wonderful landscapes…Is it all about hiking? No, you can explore the land on mountain bike or horseback… Have you ever walked in the middle of the clouds?

1. Best things to do in Trento (Trentino Alto Adige)

Trento is the region's capital.

Coming from the motorway it is easy to find in the gray Adige river, which borders the city accompanying visitors to the beautiful historic center.

Its central geographical position and environment has led it to become the perfect hinge between the Germanic and Mediterranean-Latin culture: in fact, every monument and every building architecture is a heterogeneous mixture of styles and traditions.

You can start your visit from the Duomo, the Cathedral of San Vigilio, the first stage which can be reached from the back, and then being spellbound by the square with the fountain of Neptune.

Feste Vigiliane. Palio dell'Oca. — Feste Vigiliane. Palio dell'Oca, photo by Dino Panato architetto

In Piazza Duomo the "Case ai Portici", on the corner of Via Belenzani, combine the typical Alpine architecture, simple and genuine to the sophisticated color scheme of the sixteenth century, with frescoes by Marcello Fogolino.

Half an hour walk from the center of Trento you will find Doss, a little hill overlooking the Adige, with a nice scenic walk. How to get there? Easy! Cross the river, arriving at Piedicastello and follow the signs that will take you on top of the mound, then enjoy the view and the silence ... unique!

You can also enjoy a quick picnic, picnic areas near Trento are lots. You will find many species of wild flowers, and trails through the woods to the valley. Among the green dunes mausoleum of Cesare Battisti stands outwith its shiny stone colonnade ... a visit is a must!

Trentino, scent of hot polenta in a traditional hut. — Trentino, scent of hot polenta in a hut, ph. by Leonora Giovanazzi, via flickr

2. Tastes and local food

It’s impossible to get a bad meal in Trentino.

The typical regional dishes are the result of an happy blend between strong mountain flavors and sweetened upper Garda dishes.

The main course are all very full-bodied, from the spazle (fresh pasta with flour and eggs reduced in large grains with the aid of a special grater and then boiled: these dumplings are german and most typical of South Tyrol, but they will entertain your palate as well in Trento).

The canederli, tasty variation both in dry (sauce or melted butter) and in the soup, are a dish not to be missed for those who love bacon and simple foods of the German tradition.

After that, strangolapreti, pasta with beans and cabbage and rice with reduced red wine and Trentino apples.

Pay particular attention to the raw salted meat, typical of northern Garda Lake; is tasty and inviting, with excellent side dishes of beans or homemade pickles.

Let’s try speck in all its forms and of course dairy products. Butter and cheese in Trentino are amazing! The raw material is certainly noble and unbeatable.

We are in the mother land of green apples, here you can find the famous company "Melinda", then taste the crisp apples accompanying them with honey or cheese and remember to stop in Val di Rabbi, to learn about the most popular apple varieties .

Talking about sweet things let’s try strudel apple pie, pies, apple fritters and strauben, curled a compound of flour, water and sugar, fried and served with sauces or chocolate.

Separate chapter do the following wines: strictly km0 the Mϋller Thurgau, fruity and delicate.

The Brenta Dolomites is a mountain range, and a subrange of the Rhaetian Alps in the Southern Limestone Alps — Brenta Dolomites, photo by Justin Clements, via Flickr

3. Brenta Dolomites and the surroundings

There are plenty of picturesque mountain villages to use as your base for exploring. A few minutes from the city, the Monte Bondone is the symbol of the Trentino mountain that opens from the Brenta Dolomites to the Adamello; it offers natural beauty, tranquility and sport.

We are in fact in the temple of alpine sports: mountain peaks all around… Brenta Dolomites: an indescribable spectacle of rocky hills and valleys, among all let’s remember the beautiful Val di Sole, with the most popular resorts Folgarida, Male, Pejo, Dimaro, Rabbi and Caldes.

Here the green is bright and majestic, the sun radiates light and dark woods offering-postcard view.

The Fassa Valley is a valley in the Dolomites in Trentino, northern Italy — The Fassa Valley, photo by Federico, via Flickr

The mountain huts, dozens, are all beautiful, they consist in high-altitude pastures with a lot of animals...

Returning at low altitude... do not miss the Ledro Lake. Once in the valley you can step back into the past. A characteristic lake surrounded by mountains and beautiful stilts: the water is cold but the location is worth a bath!

Unspoiled nature in Ledro Lake, Trentino — Ledro Lake, Trentino, ph. by Stefano F, via flickr

4. Nature, sport and green itineraries

The route that from Campo Carlo Magno leads to the refuge Malghette is along the main road that connects Folgarida to Madonna di Campiglio. The traili s very well stated. All around trees and small rivulets of mountain water.

After an hour of untouched and sunny forest, you will jump in the pampas of the ski slopes. From this point you can leave the chair and walk on between crushed stone and slabs: a drop of about 400 meters... Waiting for you an alpine edged and glacial lake. It is cobalt blue and sometimes emerald green and you can explore it along its entire perimeter through a scenic trail that starts right at the refuge Malghette.

But in Trentino trails on foot or by mountain bike are literally hundreds, do not forget “Lago dei Caprioli”, an alpine body of water, accessible from Pellizzano by car, through a bustle of winding switchbacks. Once at the lake you can stroll along an easy path around the lake or reach Marileva in one hour walk.

Stelvio National Park is a national park in the north-east of Italy, founded in 1935. — Chamois in the Stelvio National Park, photo by Fabio Ciani, via Flickr

Last but not least, the Stelvio National Park offers the spectacle of the Saènt falls: starting from Pellizzano you get to the park by car, here the paths are a lot, the main one is along the waterfalls, in a flurry of often slippery and uneven steps, to get to the sights that offer a breathtaking view of the valley. Continuing after the falls you can reach an hut and you can embark on the path of monumental Larch: a beautiful walk through the majestic age-old stems that reach a diameter of eight meters. To frame your steps, marmots, goats, donkeys, green valleys and plateaus dotted with rocks and firewood.

Fumo Valley is one of the most fascinating Trentino valleys — Fumo Valley, photo via Flickr

5. Where to stay in the city and surrounding

In Trento and surroundings you can discover a lot of eco-friendly accommodations: organic farms surrounded by mountains, wooden "Baita" refuges, or small B&B set in old villages, bio-hotels with natural spa and vegetarian menues.