Bionaz: Glaciers, Lakes and Alpine Trails

Bionaz is shaped by glaciers, water-carved landscapes and seasonal traditions. When looking for a hotel, you can plan your trip around the experiences that matter to you: the lakeside route at Place Moulin, hiking destinations from Ferrère, winter sports or cultural attractions in the municipality. The different route times and seasonal features can help you plan your days.

Glaciers and water shape the landscape

Around 15 percent of the municipality is covered by some twenty glaciers. Glacial meltwater and water erosion have shaped alpine lakes, gorges, waterfalls, streams and small ponds. The landscape ranges from still waters to flowing streams and deeply carved landforms. A notable structure at Place Moulin is the dam: it is 155 metres high and 678 metres long, and is one of the largest dams in Europe.

Trails at Place Moulin and from Ferrère

At Place Moulin lake, a flat lakeside route closed to traffic leads in about an hour to the historic alpine pasture settlement of Prarayer and the refuge of the same name. From Ferrère, two marked trails lead to different destinations: Trail 15 reaches the Arp-Damon alpine pasture in about 1 hour 30 minutes; Trail 14 leads to the Chentre-Bionaz bivouac in about three hours. For planning your day, you can choose between a roughly hour-and-a-half hike and an approximately three-hour hike to two different destinations. The municipality also provides four snowshoeing route maps.

Winter activities and Rebel Park

The Dzovennoz–Lexert cross-country ski trail is a seasonal winter activity. Its main loop is five kilometres long; there are also several shorter options, from one to three kilometres. This makes it possible to compare the trail lengths with the approximate hiking times without treating the different activities as equivalent.

Rebel Park adventure park is set among rocks, fir trees and larches. Its zip lines are up to 120 metres long. The easy “Percorso dei Leprotti” course is intended for children aged four to eight. This means there are specific activities for a stay with children, while hiking and winter sports offer different experiences.

Church and seasonal traditions

The parish church of Santa Margherita was built in 1694 by enlarging an older chapel dating from 1617. The church contains frescoes and paintings by the Genoese painter Ettore Mazzini, as well as a partially gilded Baroque wooden high altar. Its history and artistic features provide a cultural focus alongside outdoor activities.

The Inarpa and Desarpa festivals mark the seasonal movement of livestock up to the higher pastures and back down again. In May, the cows return outdoors; at the end of September, the herds leave the alpine pastures. A local tradition also continues in winter: rye bread is still baked in the ovens in the hamlets. At the Bionaz carnival, people wear traditional costumes said to represent the uniforms of French soldiers allegorically.

Getting there from Aosta

From Aosta, the road route follows the SS 27 of the Great St Bernard to the junction at Variney, then continues along Regional Road 28. The “Bionaz–Aosta” bus route reaches Bionaz from Aosta in about 50 minutes. As schedules may change, it is advisable to check the service before travelling. When planning your hotel stay, you can also take into account whether your journey will use the bus connection or the road route described above.

Discover more destinations: Breuil-Cervinia, Gressoney-Saint-Jean, Sarre, Ollomont, Issime, Saint-Rhémy-En-Bosses, Lillianes, Aosta

For the broader travel overview: Aosta Valley.