Holiday apartment in Robilante: Trails, history of sound and chapels

Robilante brings together the Vermenagna mountain stream, woodland paths, mountain views and a diverse culture. The history of sound, small chapels, railway traditions and regional festivals complement the routes through forests, waterscapes and high-altitude areas.

Holiday apartment in Robilante amid sound and village history

Just a few steps from the centre of Robilante, at Via Umberto I No. 33, lies the Museo del Suono e della Comunicazione. Original gramophones and design radios provide an insight into the history of sound and technology. The museum also includes an immersive reconstruction of a typical 1940s classroom.

The chapels also tell stories of different periods and traditions. The Cappella del SS.mo Nome di Maria in the hamlet of Malandrè was built in 1787. A festival is held there every year on the second Sunday in September; on the following Monday morning, the traditional “Incanto” takes place. A memorial plaque in front of the chapel commemorates the massacre perpetrated on 28 June 1944.

The Cappella di S. Giacomo in the hamlet of Agnelli is believed to date from the late 17th or early 18th century. Its antique-pink façade bears a 1936 fresco depicting the Madonna and Saints James and Donatus. The religious celebrations there take place together with the annual festival in honour of Saint James, held on the last Sunday in July.

The smallest and newest chapel in the municipality stands in the hamlet of Montasso: the Cappella S. Giuseppe was built entirely of stone in 1998. Its festival, featuring religious celebrations and various traditional events, takes place every year on the first Sunday in July. The Chiesa Parrocchiale di S. Donato was rebuilt on the site of an older parish church. The Piccolo Museo del Treno is currently being set up as a museum project and is dedicated to the technical heritage of the Cuneo–Ventimiglia–Nice railway line.

Hiking trails through forests, water and valley

The Anello di Valle is also known as the Anello del Vermenagna and is an approximately 44 km circular route connecting Roccavione, Robilante, Vernante and Limone Piemonte. A section of this circular route is designated within the territory of Robilante. The Anello delle Mulere begins at the Museo della Fisarmonica at Via Ghiglione 7 and runs through the forests between Robilante and Roccavione to the area of the Rocche Mulere, including through a beech forest.

The Sentiero dell'Acqua Corrente follows the Vermenagna mountain stream; it ends near the bridge of the Cuneo–Nice railway line in the Vallone di Vermanera. Nine information panels cover the local wildlife, chestnut cultivation, the geology of the valley, the hydroelectric power station, fish and the local fish fauna, the basins of the former S.I.R.O., the Cuneo–Limone–Ventimiglia railway and the Vallone di Vermanera.

The Sentiero Jors de Snive is dedicated to Giorgio Bertaina, a local farmer-artist who expressed the characteristics of Robilante in his woodwork. The trail leads to the hamlet of Tetto Rescasso; a building features a fresco depicting a crucifixion attributed to Jors Boneto.

High-altitude views and regional perspectives

The Piagge plateau lies at an altitude of 1,300 m and offers views to the north over the Cuneo plain, with Borgo San Dalmazzo and Roccavione below. A festival is held every year on the first Sunday in August at the Cappella Madonna del Laghetto there; on the first Sunday in December, a pilgrimage leads to the “Madonnina”.

In the wider region, the Anello del Vermenagna connects the lower valley with the cross-border Alpine ridge. The entire circular route can be travelled by mountain bike and, in winter, with snowshoes. A wayside votive pillar on a ridge between Boves, Roccavione and Robilante commemorates the historic battle referred to as the second Battle of Roccavione.

More places to choose from: Bagnasco, Bernezzo, Garessio, Clavesana, San Bernardo, Roccaforte Mondovì, Crissolo, Santa Vittoria D’alba.

For the overview of the higher-level destination: Cuneo.