Climbing up from the lower valley towards Aosta, you travel the roads of lords and knights of the past, admiring in sequence: Castel Savoia, near Gressoney-Saint-Jean, with its five pointed turrets, each different from the other, and the lush botanical garden, where rare and fragrant plants grow.
The 14th-century Verres Castle, reopened this year after careful restorations, whose military fortress profile is softened by the rich decorations of doors, windows, and chimneys.
Issogne, just over 2 km away, with stately interiors, wonderfully decorated, and a beautiful porticoed courtyard, at the center of which stands an octagonal fountain, featuring a spectacular wrought iron pomegranate tree. Fenis, perhaps the best known and most visited, with splendid battlemented walls and majestic towers.
Sarre, just beyond the city of Aosta, transformed in 1869 into the hunting residence of King Vittorio Emanuele II. And Sarriod de la Tour, in the municipality of Saint-Pierre, protected by an extensive curtain wall and not far from the fresh waters of the Dora. Completing the circuit are 13 other castles, currently closed for restoration, of which only the exteriors and gardens are visitable.
