Holiday apartment in Palestro – Discover history, the pilgrimage route and nature

Palestro between war history and rice fields

In Palestro, memorial sites from the Second Italian War of Independence meet churches with distinctive architectural details. The Via Francigena adds a pilgrimage route to the town’s history.

Remembering the Battle of Palestro

The Battle of Palestro was fought on 30 and 31 May 1859 during the Second Italian War of Independence.

The Ossario della Battaglia di Palestro was built in 1893 to a design by the Milanese architect Giuseppe Sommaruga. It preserves the remains of the Piedmontese, French and Austrian soldiers who fell in the battle.

The Monumento al Soldato commemorates the events of this war and was inaugurated on 31 May 1868. The Monumento al Bersagliere also commemorates events from the Second Italian War of Independence.

Visitors interested in culture can explore the Ossario, the Monumento al Soldato and the Monumento al Bersagliere in Palestro.

Churches and sacred architectural details

The Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista in Palestro was inaugurated on 24 June 1627. Its five-storey brick bell tower is topped by a level with bifora windows.

The façade of the Chiesa Parrocchiale di San Martino di Tours in Palestro is designed in the Lombard Gothic style with distinctive terracotta decorations. A religious building dedicated to San Martino di Tours is documented in Palestro as early as 1006.

Visitors interested in architecture can pay particular attention to the towers, bifora windows, brickwork and terracotta on the buildings in Palestro’s churches.

Via Francigena: Transport and pilgrim stamp

The Lombard section of the Via Francigena can be travelled on foot, by bicycle or by train. When planning a stage, you can also take into account the official stamp kept by the parish priest in Palestro for pilgrims’ credentials.

Rice fields, waterbirds and the Torre di Palestro

The landscape includes the Torre di Palestro on a natural terrace above the Sesia; it may be connected to an ancient early medieval castrum. Around Palestro, the landscape includes rice fields and habitats for herons, little egrets and numerous other waterbird species.

Visitors interested in nature can consider the rice fields around Palestro and the local habitats of herons, little egrets and other waterbirds as subjects for observation.

Play area in Palestro

The Parco giochi in Palestro offers an equipped play area with games for children of all ages.

Getting to Palestro

By car, Palestro can be reached via the A26 motorway (Genova–Gravellona Toce), the Robbio exit and then the SP596 towards Palestro.

The nearest railway station to Palestro is in Robbio on the Mortara–Vercelli railway line; the onward journey by road is part of the connection to Palestro and should be planned when travelling by train.

Discover more destinations

For further travel planning, you can also include Cornale, Settimo, Breme, San Martino Siccomario, Cilavegna, Val di Nizza, Broni and Calvignano.

For the higher-level travel overview: Pavia.