End of the Road

Location: Aosta Valley, Italy

Introduction:

We headed back into the Alps for the last leg of our six-week vacation in Europe. The temperatures were more moderate and the air was clearer. The natural beauty of the mountains and valley speak for themselves. There is a lot of Roman history and ruins in the area. This is the least populated province in Italy making it an ideal location during the height of tourist season. We found it enjoyable and relaxing.

Sights Visited:

Introd animal park has a variety of wild animals native to the area. It’s set on the side of a mountain resulting in an enjoyable hike. Our daughter loved it and enthusiastically hiked the entire way with no complaints. There’s a small playground and picnic tables.

We discovered La Bim e la Bam e la Bom educational farm in Charvensod where our daughter spent the morning and early afternoon immersed with a group of Italian-speaking children. She thoroughly enjoyed the unique experience.

Play:

Playgrounds were plentiful and well equipped. The first in Charvensod, second in central Aosta, the third in Villeneuve next to the river and last but not least, the fourth in the northeast corner of Aosta

Accommodations:

We used Booking.com to find a three-bedroom agritourismo apartment named Chèvres à Cheval in Charvensod for a three-night stay. However, we booked it on the property’s website where we got a much better price. There was no A/C. It cools down at night, which helps but not as much as we like. Interestingly, there was no living room. They had the space for it but it wasn’t furnished, which was weird. They raise goats and grow grapes on the property. They kindly gifted us a bottle of their homemade wine. There was a playroom, which our daughter enjoyed.

Food & Drink:

We continued to enjoy Italian specialties, Piedmontese wines and espresso drinks. It’s worth noting the value of local cafés. As an example, we ordered a couple of cappuccinos for us and a dessert for Adelaide with sit down service for about the cost of a Starbucks cappuccino back home and the cappuccino’s here are better. Once again, a stovetop espresso maker was our only option for making morning coffee.

Transportation System:

The drive from Torino was under two hours and it was about two hours to Milan-Malpensa airport where we returned our leased car. We logged about four thousand kilometers. While there is train service to Aosta and bus service in the valley, it would be difficult to get around without a car. There are speed cameras throughout Italy like this one. In Aosta, they were everywhere. While we weren’t intentionally speeding, we wonder how many tickets we may have unknowingly accumulated on our trip.

For Your Amusement:

You can still make a call the old-fashioned way here.

Highlight:

We were surrounded by natural beauty and history.