Information about the valley
The Gressoney-Valley, which is also called Lys-Valley, is the longest and the most varied lateral valley in the region. Its lower part is flanked by rocky walls, while further up it gets wider and wider and it is characterised by big plateaus where there are some popular holiday resorts. Its upper end is closed by the big Lys-Glacier and Monte Rosa's marvellous mountain range. Lys is also the name of the torrent flowing through the valley and crossed by bold Roman bridges.
The Gressoney-Valley is full of waterfalls and scattered hamlets that Queen Margherita of Savoy liked very much. That's why she had a castle built there. Her retinue imitated her and this explains the presence of many noble residences which are not really built in the "alpine" style. The valley has two main centres: Gressoney-La-Trinité and Gressoney-Saint-Jean. Both municipalities are situated at Lys-Valley's upper end. Saint-Jean is the more refined one and it is located lower, while La-Trinité with its hamlets and majestic "stadels" (mountain huts made of larch wood and supported by mushroom-shaped stone pillars) is higher. These particular buildings represent the precious vestige of the ancient Walser traditions. The Walsers are a Teutonic ethnic group that settled down in the Swiss Valais and in the valleys around the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa's massif during the 13th century. The Walser language, which is called "titsch", is still spoken and nowadays there is also a dictionary with 13000 words. The Walsers' history fascinates the visitors who drive up the valley after starting from Pont-Saint-Martin. Their journey leads them first of all to Perloz with its beautiful castle (belonging once to the nobles of Vallaise) and then to Lillianes' parish church and to Fontainemore's typical houses gathered around the medieval stone bridge. Further up the valley there is Issime, which is known for the 17th-century fresco of the Last Judgment on the façade of its parish church. After leaving Issime and passing through Gaby, the travellers arrive at Gressoney-Saint-Jean, whose ancient beauty is attested by the old buildings in the square Piazza Umberto, by the Art-Nouveau houses and by the parish church dating back to the 16th century. The worldly pleasures are limited to the ritual of a hot chocolate or of a so-called Weiss, a raw wheat beer that a man called Beck, coming from Gressoney, was able to launch in Germany. This beer is by now a famous trade name. Castle Savoia and the Alpenfaunamuseum with its collection of hunting trophies and old weapons are worth a visit. Those who like winter sports will find in our valley first-rate slopes for alpine skiing as well as very good tracks for cross-country skiing. On the contrary, during the summer you can spend exciting days in the woods thanks to numerous trekking routes and walks. There are about thirty well-marked paths, whose length ranges from 30 minutes to 6 hours. Some of them are also suitable for biking. In the numerous refuges along these walks you can have a rest and eat something. Moreover, Gressoney-La-Trinité is the starting point of the main ski lifts leading up on both sides of the valley: from Staffal to Bettaforca and from Staffal to Passo Salati and Punta Indren. They make it possible to cross some high mountain passes and to ski down into the nearby valleys: Sesia-Valley (Alagna) and Ayas-Valley (Champoluc). In the summer these ski slopes change into paths for pleasant walks between Gressoney-Saint-Jean (1385 m) and Refuge Quintino Sella (3600 m).
Particularly interesting is St. John's procession on the 24th of June. On this occasion women usually wear the precious Walser costume, which is characterised by a bonnet made of filigree.