Skiing in Abruzzo – snow report
The most popular ski resorts, the updated snow report and useful information on how to find lifts or book accommodation for your winter holiday
By car
Getting there
- By car: A25 Rome–Pescara, exits Pratola Peligna (for Pratola, Corfinio, Raiano, Vittorito and Prezza) and Sulmona–Pratola (for Introdacqua, Bugnara and Pettorano).
- By train: the Rome–Pescara and Sulmona–L’Aquila lines stop at Pratola Peligna, Raiano and Sulmona.
- From the south: the SS 17 climbs from Sulmona towards Pettorano sul Gizio and Roccaraso.
The village
Pratola Peligna 342 m
Altitude
342 m
Municipality
Pratola Peligna
The largest village in the valley after Sulmona, with a medieval quarter, public fountains and the great shrine of the Madonna della Libera, rebuilt in the mid-19th century. It is also known for its beans, its wines and its rustic furniture.
Things to do
- Sulmona, Ovid’s town, a few minutes away
- Sulmona sugared almonds
- Passo San Leonardo and the Morrone
- Corfinio and San Pelino, next door
Did you know? The feast of the Madonna della Libera, on the first Sunday of May, begins on the Friday with the arrival on foot of pilgrims from Gioia dei Marsi, who cross the mountains and then go up the nave to the altar on their knees: the ‘strascino’.
Local food
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
- Scrippelle ’mbusse — Crêpes rolled with pecorino and served in chicken broth, the festive first course of Teramo.
- Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC — The region’s signature red, from the Montepulciano grape: with arrosticini, lamb and mutton.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Pratola Peligna: 0864 274141
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Pratola Peligna
- Caprice Via per Prezza, 32, Pratola Peligna · 348 384 1170
- Trattorias and restaurants in Pratola Peligna: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Corfinio 346 m
Altitude
346 m
Municipality
Corfinio
Built on the ruins of Corfinium, the Peligni town that became capital of the Italic League during the Social War. Outside the village stands the co-cathedral of San Pelino, a Romanesque masterpiece, with the ‘Antonio De Nino’ Archaeological Museum beside it.
Things to do
- Sulmona and the Valle Peligna
- The San Venanzio gorges, towards Raiano
- Popoli and the Pescara Springs
Did you know? When it was capital of the Italic peoples at war with Rome (91–88 BC) the town took the name ‘Italica’ and minted a silver coin inscribed ‘Italia’. Until 1928 the village was called Pentima.
Local food
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
- Sulmona red garlic — Red-purple skins, intense flavour and traditional braids from the Valle Peligna.
- Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC — The cherry-coloured rosé from Montepulciano grapes, great with cured meats, fish stew and pasta.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Corfinio: 0864 728350
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Corfinio
- Trattorias and restaurants in Corfinio: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Raiano 390 m
Altitude
390 m
Municipality
Raiano
A village at the western entrance to the valley, on the old Celano–Foggia drove road. Here the Aterno runs through the San Venanzio gorges, a nature reserve with a hermitage built over the river: a green corridor between the Majella and the Sirente-Velino.
Things to do
- The San Venanzio gorges reserve and hermitage
- Up the Aterno: the Valle Subequana
- Sulmona, a quarter of an hour away
Did you know? The hermitage of San Venanzio straddles the Aterno, right above the gorge: golden eagles, lanner falcons and peregrines nest on the surrounding cliffs.
Local food
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
- Lamb with egg and lemon — Lamb stew finished with egg and lemon, the Easter dish of L’Aquila.
- Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC — The region’s signature red, from the Montepulciano grape: with arrosticini, lamb and mutton.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Raiano: 0864 72212
- Nature reserve Gole di San Venanzio: 0864 726058
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Raiano
- Trattorias and restaurants in Raiano: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Vittorito 377 m
Altitude
377 m
Municipality
Vittorito
A small village of vineyards and olive groves on the north side of the valley, with the Romanesque church of San Michele Arcangelo, the Porta da Piedi with its Lombard tower and the Monte Castellano viewpoint overlooking the whole Peligna basin.
Things to do
Did you know? On 11 November, Saint Martin’s Day, the village celebrates with chestnuts and new wine; 3 February is the feast of the patron saint San Biagio and late May that of the Madonna del Borgo.
Local food
- Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC — The cherry-coloured rosé from Montepulciano grapes, great with cured meats, fish stew and pasta.
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
- Ferratelle or pizzelle — Thin wafers cooked between two decorated iron plates, flavoured with anise or lemon.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Vittorito: 0864 727100
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Vittorito
- Trattorias and restaurants in Vittorito: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Prezza 480 m
Altitude
480 m
Municipality
Prezza
A village perched on the hill closing the valley to the west, where a medieval castle guarded the road to the Cocullo pass. In the village the Renaissance church of Santa Lucia, and outside it the 12th-century church of Santa Maria del Colle.
Things to do
Did you know? A legend explains why Saint Lucy is the patron saint: her statue was meant to be taken to another village, but the mule carrying it refused to leave Prezza.
Local food
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
- Lamb with egg and lemon — Lamb stew finished with egg and lemon, the Easter dish of L’Aquila.
- Caggionetti — Fried sweet Christmas ravioli filled with chestnuts or chickpeas, chocolate and cooked must.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Prezza: 0864 45138
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Prezza
- Trattorias and restaurants in Prezza: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Introdacqua 642 m
Altitude
642 m
Municipality
Introdacqua
A village on a hill where two valleys meet, above Sulmona, with its medieval tower and stone houses. A local variety of Sulmona red garlic, with a milder flavour, is grown here.
Things to do
Did you know? On the evening of 17 January, for Saint Anthony the Abbot, the streets fill with bonfires and stalls of local dishes; at Easter the ‘Madonna che vola’ (flying Madonna) is staged again.
Local food
- Sulmona red garlic — Red-purple skins, intense flavour and traditional braids from the Valle Peligna.
- Polenta on the wooden board — Polenta poured onto the wooden board with sausage sauce and eaten by everyone together.
- Caggionetti — Fried sweet Christmas ravioli filled with chestnuts or chickpeas, chocolate and cooked must.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Introdacqua: 0864 47116
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Introdacqua
- La Maestria Via Santa Lucia, 1, Introdacqua · 0864 45154
- Trattorias and restaurants in Introdacqua: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Pettorano sul Gizio 625 m
Altitude
625 m
Municipality
Pettorano sul Gizio
One of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy, it spreads out below Cantelmo castle, one of the valley’s great fortresses. The village lies inside the Monte Genzana and Alto Gizio reserve, in the Majella Park: woods, beech forests and the river Gizio, home to bears and wolves.
Things to do
- The Monte Genzana and Alto Gizio reserve
- Roccaraso and the Alto Sangro slopes
- The Majella National Park
- Sulmona
Did you know? The waters of the Gizio are the ones Ovid sang of: ‘Sulmo is my homeland, rich in icy streams’, the poet wrote in the Tristia.
Local food
- Sulmona red garlic — Red-purple skins, intense flavour and traditional braids from the Valle Peligna.
- Lamb with egg and lemon — Lamb stew finished with egg and lemon, the Easter dish of L’Aquila.
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Pettorano sul Gizio: 0864 48115
- Nature reserve Monte Genzana e Alto Gizio: 0864 487006
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Pettorano sul Gizio
- Trattorias and restaurants in Pettorano sul Gizio: search on TripAdvisor
The village
Bugnara 580 m
Altitude
580 m
Municipality
Bugnara
One of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy, on the side of the valley, dominated by the Di Sangro ducal palace, the 12th-century ‘Rocca dello Scorpione’, enclosed by walls. From here the road climbs towards the Sagittario gorges and Anversa degli Abruzzi.
Things to do
Did you know? The ducal palace was built in the 12th century by the Di Sangro family, who lived there until the 16th century: today it is the heart of one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy.
Local food
- Sulmona red garlic — Red-purple skins, intense flavour and traditional braids from the Valle Peligna.
- Scrippelle ’mbusse — Crêpes rolled with pecorino and served in chicken broth, the festive first course of Teramo.
- Sulmona confetti — Almonds coated in sugar, made since the 18th century: in Sulmona confetti are also shaped into flowers and ears of wheat.
Useful numbers
- Municipality of Bugnara: 0864 46114
- Emergencies and mountain rescue: 112 · 118
- municipality website
Where to eat in Bugnara
- Trattorias and restaurants in Bugnara: search on TripAdvisor
At the table
Food and traditions
Local dishes and products, with the recipes and guides on our site.
Peligna cooking is that of the Sulmona basin: red garlic, sugared almonds, pulses and Pratola beans, scrippelle, sagne, the stuffed Christmas ‘ceci ripieni’ and the valley’s wines, Montepulciano and Cerasuolo.
- Sulmona red garlic — Red-purple skins, intense flavour and traditional braids from the Valle Peligna.
- Sulmona confetti — Almonds coated in sugar, made since the 18th century: in Sulmona confetti are also shaped into flowers and ears of wheat.
- Sagne e fagioli — Flour-and-water pasta cut into pieces and cooked with beans, tomato and chilli.
- Scrippelle ’mbusse — Crêpes rolled with pecorino and served in chicken broth, the festive first course of Teramo.
- Lamb with egg and lemon — Lamb stew finished with egg and lemon, the Easter dish of L’Aquila.
- Ferratelle or pizzelle — Thin wafers cooked between two decorated iron plates, flavoured with anise or lemon.
- Caggionetti — Fried sweet Christmas ravioli filled with chestnuts or chickpeas, chocolate and cooked must.
- Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC — The region’s signature red, from the Montepulciano grape: with arrosticini, lamb and mutton.
- Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC — The cherry-coloured rosé from Montepulciano grapes, great with cured meats, fish stew and pasta.