Times are by car from the house.
Swimming
Under the bridge, Varallo. 15 min. River swimming on the Sesia, in the middle of town and the easiest place to get into the water.
Spiaggia di Varallo. 15 min. A river beach on the Sesia, with room to spread out for the day.
Orta San Giulio. 45 min. One of the prettiest villages on Lago d’Orta, with a lakeside promenade and a ten-minute boat across to the island of San Giulio.
Pella. 40 min. The quieter shore of Lago d’Orta, looking back across the water at the island. Ten minutes by boat to Isola San Giulio.
Sport
Rocca Padel. Via al Sesia, Roccapietra (Varallo). 10 min. Two outdoor padel courts and a synthetic pitch that doubles for tennis or five-a-side. Open daily 08:00–23:30, holidays included. Padel €40 per 90-minute slot, tennis €15 per hour, racket hire from €2. Book online or on site. +39 345 259 5076.
Centro Sportivo Milanaccio. Viale Varallo 159, Borgosesia. 15 min. A 25-metre pool, a children’s pool, three tennis courts and a gym, all indoors and useful whatever the weather is doing. Opening hours by phone: +39 0163 23958.
Skiing
Alagna Valsesia. 50 min. The Valsesia’s way into the Monterosa Ski area, linked over the top with the Gressoney and Ayas valleys, with lifts running to 3,275 m among the four-thousanders. Known for its off-piste and freeride, with limited terrain for beginners. Day pass about €40 to €70 depending on the date and how far ahead it is booked, and online is cheaper than the ticket office.
Alagna does not shut in April. The lifts run again through the summer, daily from 30 May to 13 September, carrying walkers and bikes up to Pianalunga and on to Punta Indren at 3,275 m.
Alpe di Mera. 30 min. A car-free village at 1,500 m above Scopello, reached by chairlift, with runs through the trees and a view across to Monte Rosa. Gentler than Alagna and much easier with children. Day pass about €30 midweek and €40 at weekends.
Equipment hire
Base Camp. Frazione Bonda, Alagna. Hire, and 40 heated ski lockers so the kit does not travel back and forth every day. +39 0163 020042 or +39 388 7877769.
Bellotti Sport. Via della Fonderia 5, Scopello. Mon to Fri 08:30–12:15 and 15:30–19:00. Sat and Sun 08:30–12:30 and 15:30–19:30. +39 0163 71838.
Ski schools
Scuola Sci e Snowboard Alagna Valsesia. Via dei Walser 9, Alagna. Alpine skiing, snowboard and freeride, with a beginners’ area at Wold and adaptive lessons for skiers with disabilities. +39 349 468 4270.
Snow School Alpe di Mera. Via della Chiesa 4, Scopello. Lessons for children from three years old. +39 333 7723963.
Days out
Sacro Monte di Varallo. 20 min. A UNESCO World Heritage site on the hill above Varallo, founded in 1491 and the oldest of the nine Sacri Monti. Forty-five chapels climb through the woods to the basilica at the top, each one holding a scene built from life-size painted statues, more than 800 of them in wood and terracotta, set against frescoed walls. The chapels are not entered: every scene is looked into through a grille, as it has been since the Counter-Reformation. Free, and open all year. Basilica 09:00–18:00. +39 0163 51131.
The cable car up from Varallo has been closed since 9 July 2026 for its twenty-year overhaul and is not expected to reopen before 2028. The road up from Frazione Crosa is open as normal, and parking at the top is free for as long as the cable car is out of service.
Lago Maggiore and the Borromean Islands. Stresa, 1h. Boats leave Stresa for Isola Bella, Isola dei Pescatori and Isola Madre about every half hour, roughly 09:30 to 18:00, from late March to early October. A day ticket covering the islands is €20.50, €13.40 for 6 to 14 and €11.90 for 4 to 5, landing fee included. On Isola Bella the Borromeo palace and its ten terraced gardens open 10:00 to 17:30 from 12 March to 8 November, €27, €18 for 6 to 15, free under 6.
Varallo old town. 15 min. Worth an afternoon on foot. Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II and its porticoes, the shops and cafés along Corso Roma, and the Ponte Antonini over the Mastallone, first recorded in 1025 and still the best place to stand and look back at the town. Below it is Sottoriva, the medieval quarter along the river, and up on Piazza San Carlo the Casa Museo Cesare Scaglia looks straight across at the Sacro Monte.
Rafting
The Sesia is one of the best-known whitewater rivers in the Alps and three centres run trips on it. The season is April to September. The Classic route, about 10 km of rapids and pools, runs until the water drops in late July, after which descents move into the Gole del Sesia, shorter and shut in by rock walls. Federation rules put the standard descents at 14 and over, and all three centres run gentler trips for younger children.
Sesia Rafting. Via Isola 3, Vocca. 20 min. On the river since 1978, running rafting, kayak, hydrospeed and canyoning from a base in a large garden on the bank. Baby raft from 9 years old. Everyone must be able to swim. Prices by phone: +39 348 005 3978, also on WhatsApp.
Centro Canoa Rafting Monrosa. Via Roma 1, Balmuccia. 25 min. Rafting from €55, plus canyoning, hydrospeed, canoe and kayak. Children’s descents from 7 years old. A bar, a restaurant and showers on site make it an easy place to stay for the rest of the day. +39 0163 75298 or +39 348 681 6334.
Eddyline, The River Experience. Località Gabbio, Campertogno. 40 min. Rafting €65, €55 under 18, in boats of four to seven with a qualified guide. Family descents €55 each, and a river baptism for children from 5 at €40. Also canyoning, hydrospeed and inflatable canoe. +39 347 643 9869.
Rainy days
Palazzo dei Musei. Via Calderini 25, Varallo. 15 min. The Pinacoteca and the Museo Calderini under one roof, Valsesian painting on one side and natural history and archaeology on the other. Tue to Sun 10:30–12:30 and 14:30–18:00, last admission 17:00. Closed Mondays, and closed over lunch. €10, €8 reduced, free under 11. +39 0163 51424.
Santa Maria delle Grazie. Varallo. 15 min. The church at the foot of the climb to the Sacro Monte, holding Gaudenzio Ferrari’s frescoed wall of 1513. Open 06:30–11:45 and 15:00–18:00.
Collegiata di San Gaudenzio. Varallo, up the steps off Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, on the rock above the town. No published opening hours. Open around services.
Fabbrica della Ruota. Pray. 21 min. A former wool mill kept as a museum of the valley’s textile industry. Sundays 14:30–18:30 in summer. Weekdays by appointment. €5.
Casa Zegna. Via Marconi 23, Valdilana. 35 min. The Zegna family’s archive and exhibition space, in the wool town the company came from. Sundays 11:00–17:00 from late May to mid-November, daily in August. €7.
Cittadellarte, Fondazione Pistoletto. Via Serralunga 27, Biella. 50 min. Michelangelo Pistoletto’s foundation, in a converted wool mill on the river. Weekends by guided visit only, booked in advance at visita@cittadellarte.it. €12.
Milan and Turin are about 1h30 each, if you want the full day out.
Essentials
Emergencies: 112. Police, carabinieri, fire and ambulance on one number. Free from any phone, including one with no SIM, no credit or a locked screen.
Non-urgent medical: 116117. Covers weeknights 20:00–08:00, and weekends and public holidays.
Pharmacy. Farmacia Ricaldone, Corso Rolandi 91, Quarona. 5 min. +39 0163 430141. Mon to Fri 08:30–12:30 and 15:00–19:30. Closed Sunday. The only pharmacy in Quarona.
Out-of-hours pharmacy. One pharmacy in the area is on duty at all times. The monthly rota is published by ASL Vercelli. Use the Borgosesia e Gattinara table.
Hospital. Ospedale Santi Pietro e Paolo, Via Francesco Ilorini Mo 20, Borgosesia. 15 min. A&E open 24 hours, floor -1. +39 0163 426114.
Cash. Banco BPM, Corso Rolandi 64, and Banca di Asti, Piazza Combattenti 15. Both in Quarona, 5 min.
Food shopping
Unes. Località Campi dell’Oro 2, Quarona. 5 min. The everyday shop, five minutes down the hill. Mon to Thu 08:00–13:00 and 15:00–19:30. Fri and Sat 08:00–19:00. Sun 08:00–13:00.
IperCoop. Via XXV Aprile 16, Borgosesia. 15 min. The big one, for a full trolley at the start of the week or for buying in bulk. Mon to Sat 08:30–21:00. Sun 09:00–20:00.
Conad City. Via Durio 26, Varallo. 15 min. Useful if you are in Varallo anyway. Mon to Sat 08:00–20:00. Sun 08:30–12:30.
Most shops close on Sunday afternoon. IperCoop is the one that stays open all day.
Market. Varallo, Tuesday morning, along Corso Roma and across Piazza Garibaldi.
Getting here
Airports. Malpensa is the closest at 45 min and the easiest for most arrivals. Linate 1h15, Bergamo 1h40.
Train. Turin or Milan Centrale, then Novara, then a bus into the valley.
Taxi. Il Delfino, Borgosesia. Airport and station transfers for up to eight passengers. +39 347 573 2502, also on WhatsApp.
Map
Places pinned by the family, added to from our phones over the years and more of a shared notebook than a guide. It covers ground well outside the area, including a cluster of pins around Bergamo, about two hours away.