Walser in Ossola Valley

Macugnaga and Formazza are Walser settlements that have preserved their architecture, splendid traditional costumes and gastronomic and linguistic traditions: during a visit to these places, you are likely to hear titsch, a very distinctive language of Alemannic origin.
However, many other settlements in the Ossola Valley have now lost their important connection with the Walser dialect. So-called linguistically extinct communities include Ornavasso and Migiandone, along with Salecchio and Agaro, charming Walser villages with a fascinating history.

The Walser who inhabit the entire Alpine region meet every three years in a different settlement for the traditional Walsertreffen, which will be held for the first time in Ossola Valley in Ornavasso in 2022.

The Walser culture, which is safeguarded and celebrated by two of the best museums in the entire Ossola Valley, the Casa Forte in Formazza and the Casa Museo Walser in Macugnaga, is now a highly important tourist attraction: the vestiges of sometimes mysterious stories, the unique characteristics of the Walser houses and the traditional recipes, which have been rediscovered and enhanced, allow you to dive into a distant and fascinating past.