An Accessible Trail at Sacro Monte di Varallo
- Trail Conditions: On foot, Accessible Trail
- Interest: Religion, Hystory
- Duration: about 30/45 minutes
- Difficulty Level: T - Tourist (level)
Sacro Monte di Varallo is a historical-religious complex built between the end of the 15th century and the 19th century, formed by 45 chapels. Inside them, episodes from the life of Jesus Christ are represented with life-size sculptures and paintings.
The accessible itinerary studied by the Nature Reserve (the Authority created by Regione Piemonte to preserve and promote this site) leaves from Piazza Testori, the entrance square of Sacro Monte di Varallo you can reach by car from the carriage road connecting the town of Varallo to Sacro Monte.
People with disabilities can park their car in Piazza Testori, exhibiting on the dashboard the pass for people with disabilities (the transit and parking in this square are not allowed for other cars). The itinerary, developing for about 300m, leaves from here.
From Piazza Testori, following the road signs, you will get to a lift leading you to the two main squares of Sacro Monte, situated at the top of it: Piazza dei Tribunali and Piazza della Basilica. They represent the reference points of the devotional itinerary. The stretch leading from Piazza Testori to the lift is paved and has two lanes with stone slabs with a constant width.
The building housing the lift is also equipped with a toilet for people with disabilities.
Once you get out of the lift, the itinerary, running along a stone trail, leads to the chapels in Piazza dei Tribunali and in Piazza della Basilica.
It is possible to get closer to some of the most beautiful chapels of the whole Sacro Monte (Jesus on trial before Herod, before Pilate, before Caifa and again, The Sleeping Disciples, the Prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Last Supper). They are works of art of great quality: elegant architectures, life-size polychrome terracotta statues, and very good frescoes.
The drawing of the stretch of trail interesting the two squares, the most delicate one for the historical context it belongs to, has been made with stone slabs with a non-smoothed surface, recalling the flooring of the chapel atriums.
In Piazza dei Tribunali there is a terrace where you can enjoy the underlying landscape also from a wheelchair, since the last row of stones building the wall delimiting the square has been lowered. It is therefore possible also for people with disabilities to enjoy the wonderful panorama over the town of Varallo and the mountains surrounding it. The terrace dominates the Lower Sesia Valley up to Monte Fenera and, towards the north/west, part of the intermediate stretch, with Mt. Rosa in the background. Some of the chapels (those without entrance stairs) in the two squares and the Basilica are accessible through the iron access ramps collecting an early 20th century decoration from the doormat situated under the church access ramps at that time.
The value of the works of art contained in the chapels and the beauty of the surrounding environment led UNESCO to include Sacro Monte in the World Heritage in 2003.
- Duration: The itinerary has a different duration according to the disability of the person. It is usually carried out in 30/45 minutes.
- Difficulty Level: Also the difficulty level varies according to the disability (ex: for a person with disabilities practicing sport the itinerary is very easy, while if you need crutches, the difficulty is high. For a dystrophy sufferer, the difficulty is very high. For a person in a wheelchair with another person, the itinerary does not have particular problems).
Project "Accessibilità dei disabili al Sacro Monte" (PDF, Italian text - 506Kb)
