Discover Bionaz – Alpine landscapes and holiday apartments

Bionaz combines impressive alpine landscapes with trails, winter experiences and vibrant traditions. If you are looking for a holiday apartment in Bionaz, you will find many different points of interest here to help plan your trip: glaciers and water, marked hiking trails, a cross-country ski trail, culture in the parish church and special activities for families.

Glacial water, lakes and the Place Moulin dam

About 15 percent of the municipality of Bionaz is covered by around twenty glaciers. Glacial water and water erosion have formed alpine lakes, gorges, waterfalls, streams and small ponds. One of the landscape’s prominent structures is the Place Moulin dam: it is 155 metres high and 678 metres long, making it one of the largest dams in Europe.

Hiking trails with different time requirements

At Lake Place Moulin, a level lakeside route closed to traffic leads in about one hour to the historic alpine farming site of Prarayer and the refuge of the same name. From Ferrère, marked trail 15 leads to Alp Arp-Damon in about 1 hour 30 minutes. Also from Ferrère, marked trail 14 leads to the Chentre-Bionaz bivouac in about three hours. The different time estimates help you compare shorter and longer outings more easily.

Winter days between cross-country skiing and snowshoeing

Bionaz also offers various ways to experience the alpine surroundings in winter. The Dzovennoz–Lexert cross-country ski trail has a 5-kilometre main loop as well as several shorter options of 1 to 3 kilometres. In addition, the municipality of Bionaz provides four route maps for snowshoe hikes. This allows you to plan winter days of different lengths, without all activities having the same character.

Church, festivals and rye bread

The parish church of Santa Margherita in Bionaz was built in 1694 by enlarging an older chapel dating from 1617. The church contains frescoes and paintings by the Genoese painter Ettore Mazzini, as well as a partially gilded Baroque wooden high altar. Local traditions also include the Inarpa and Desarpa festivals. They mark the seasonal movement of livestock up to and down from the higher pastures: in May, the cows return outdoors, and at the end of September, the herds leave the alpine meadows. In winter, rye bread is still baked in the ovens of the various hamlets. During Carnival, traditional costumes are worn that are considered allegorical representations of the uniforms of French soldiers.

Activities with children and getting there

The Rebel Park adventure park in Bionaz is located among rocks, fir trees and larches. Its zip lines are up to 120 metres long. The easy “Percorso dei Leprotti” course is intended for children aged 4 to 8. From Aosta, you can reach Bionaz via the SS 27 of the Great St Bernard to the turn-off at Variney, and then via Regional Road 28. The “Bionaz–Aosta” bus route takes you from Aosta to Bionaz in about 50 minutes.

Which holiday apartment suits your travel plans?

When choosing a holiday apartment in Bionaz, you can first consider which combination of landscapes, exercise, winter activities, culture and shared family experiences best suits your trip. If you prefer a level route, you can include the path along Lake Place Moulin in your plans. For longer mountain outings, the marked trails from Ferrère, with their different time requirements, are the main options. In winter, you can give different weight to cross-country skiing and snowshoe hikes. Rebel Park also offers a specific point of interest for families with children aged 4 to 8.

Discover more places in the surrounding area

Saint-Christophe, Saint Vincent, Grand Brissogne, Champoluc, Morgex, Brusson, Pollein and Ollomont.

For the higher-level travel overview: Aosta Valley.