Falcade and Valle del Biois

The Valle del Biois valley, together with the villages of Cencenighe Agordino, Canale d'Agordo and Falcade, is a valley of the Dolomites located in the province of Belluno and towered by many famous peaks. Thanks to the ski center of Falcade the area is a popular tourist resort in winter, but the area offers a lot of attractions also for families. In summer the surroundings are perfect for hiking, trekking and mountain biking. Land of traditions and faith, here was born Albino Luciani, known to the world as Pope John Paul I.

The Valle del Biois valley takes its name from a stream and is surrounded by imposing peaks of the Dolomites included in the site enlisted by Unesco in the World Heritage list: Pale di San Martino, Marmolada and Civetta. Here you find also the Cime d'Auta and the Focobon.
Valle del Biois stretches for about 20 km from the San Pellegrino Pass to Cencenighe Agordino. it is connected to the Trentino region through two passes, San Pellegrino and Valles.

The main municipality of the Valle dei Biois valley is Falcade, a tourist resort which is included, together with the San Pellegrino Pass, Moena and Bellamonte, in the Ski Area Trevalli. And cross-country skiers have at their disposal the Alochet center and the Falcade center.
There is a modern snowboard park in Le Buse, a snow tubing slope, ski schools, and snowshoeing routes, you can also practice ice climbing, ice skating and dog sledding, and in the evenings have a lot of fun in the chalets or enjoying a torchlight descent.

South of Falcade you find the municipality of Canale d'Agordo, where Pope John Paul I was born, and the Val di Gares valley. Here you find many tabià, the typical barns, dating back to the 16 century, and in winter there are 5 km cross-country skiing trails.
Further south lies Vallada Agordina with the church of Saint Simon, national monument since 1877, housing a cycle of frescoes by Paris Bordone.
The last municipality of the area is Cencenighe Agordino, rising where two valleys, Valle del Biois and Val Cordevole, meet. Cencenighe was once a coal manufacturing center.

In summer this area is ideal for children: a well-equipped playground has been built on the Falcade Plain, where children can jump, run and meet new friends. Moreover, this area is perfect for both easy bike tours, suitable for the whole family, and more difficult ones up to the refuges.
If you are looking for a healthy holiday you can choose from the many paths going from Falcade to the Focobon Valley, to Valfredda or to Malga Ciapela. Some trails are interesting from an historical point of view, like the Via H.W. Tilman and El Troi de le Ial, in Cencenighe.

If on the other hand you are looking for complete relaxation, in Falcade you can practice sport fishing in a private lake or in the Biois stream, and not far from the village, in Vallada Agordina, you find a well-equipped riding school.

Discovering traditions

The Valle del Biois valley features hamlets characterized by typical barns called tabià and by churches: a true attraction for art lovers, who can also visit the Augusto Murer Museum, with a rich collection of works, sculptures and paintings by this artist from Falcade.

This land attracts also many gourmets. The cuisine is simple, genuine and varied: main courses like home-made pasta flavored with poppy, lasagna da fornel, papazoi (small flour dumplings) and casonziei; second courses like game meat, pastin, salami and local cheeses. You can try delicious desserts like the carfogn, fried ravioli filled with poppy seeds, and at the end of the meal sip a good glass of flavored grappa.