Around Biella

Our expert Italy

Around Biella

Located in the northwestern part of Piedmont, on the border with the Aosta Valley, the province of Biella is a place where flourishing industrial development seamlessly combines with the preservation and respect of a natural environment, creating areas of stunning beauty. Parco Burcina, which lies on a hill at the entrance to the town, is a protected area that shows the fruit of man's labour. From the 19th century onwards, successive generations of industrialists carried out reforestation and development projects in the park, and the result today is a huge landscaped garden in which rare and exotic species flourish. The charm of the Special Nature Reserve of Bessa is the outcome, however, of the work of the Vittimuli, a pre-Roman civilisation who searched for gold in this open mine. You can't help but wonder at the mountainous landscape along the Zegna Panoramic Road or in the Alta Valsessera, where, at the heart of the silver fir tree forests, many species of wildlife can be found. During these trips into the countryside, it is not unusual to encounter isolated sanctuaries amid the mountain summits, like Sacro Monte di Oropa. Constructed in a basin at an altitude of 1,200m and linked to the cult of the Black Virgin, it was revamped in the 17th century by architects like Juvarra, at the request of the House of Savoy. The site is now included on Unesco's World Heritage list.