In front of Sonogno

Last September, I went on my third trip to Switzerland. We were looking to explore the Italian-speaking region of the country, as we were also heading down to Northern Italy for the first time. I had seen YouTube videos on Valle Verzasca and was instantly taken by the beautiful footage of the medieval village, Sonogno.

Initially, we were looking to stay near Locarno, but the Locarno Film Festival was happening and many places were fully booked. We decided to stay nearby in Bellinzona instead. Bellinzona is the capital of the Ticino Canton and the town has three famous Castles - all deemed UNESCO World Heritage Sites.



Looking like a speck in front of Castelgrande

View from Castelgrande

We stayed at Hotel Unione Bellinzona, and had a view of Castle Grande from our balcony. :)

View from the Balcony

On the first day, we arrived mid-afternoon and spent the rest of the day exploring the town. For our meals, we really enjoyed Casa del Popolo and ate pretty much all our meals there. We were obsessed with the Ticinese Minestrone!

Lovely pasta dish from Casa del Popolo

The next morning we headed out early to visit Sonogno, as there was limited times for buses that went up into the Valley. Depending on how you get there from Bellinzona, it can take around an hour and a half to an hour and 45 minutes. For example, on our way there we took two buses (311 & 321 bus), which took longer. But on our way back, we took the 321 bus out of the valley and the train back to Bellinzona. 

Church tower in Sonogno

Sonogno is the last stop up in the Verzasca Valley. Along the way, you can stop by Ponte de Salti - a famous medieval double-arched stone bridge. We opted to see this on our way back as we wanted to have enough time to explore Sonogno and the waterfall. 

Sonogno is the perfect example of a Ticino Village with its stone houses. The bus drops you right in front of the village and immediately you can walk through the village and view the traditional stone houses.

Cutting through the village and about a 17 minute walk, you can also visit La Froda. On the walk to the waterfall, you can see the Valley in its full glory and more traditional stone houses along the path. It's hard to see it from the pictures, but it was breathtaking view to see the high mountains of the valley all around.

Video of the valley on the way to La Froda

Some of the stone houses were unique and had natural boulders built around or next to them!

See the boulder in the middle of the house? 

Since we went in July, it was peak summer season and extremely hot. By the time we reached the waterfall, we were very excited to take a dip in the fresh waters. 

Arriving at La Froda

La Froda :)

We spent 2 days and 1 night total in Bellinzona and Sonogno. It was the perfect day trip to see this wonderful medieval village, but if you want to spend more time and explore Valle Verzasca properly, I'd recommend staying an extra day. It was incredibly neat viewing the valley on the bus ride up/down. You could see the beautiful mountains and the huge flat rocks along the river. There were lots of people sunbathing on these large flat rocks. I can see why it's a popular summer destination for locals and definitely recommend visiting for a unique adventure.