Tuscany · Pistoia
Abetone Cutigliano
The Apennine ski pass at 1,388 meters where the Granduca's two stone pyramids of 1778 mark the old Tuscan-Modenese border.
By Peter Benei
Written about. No. 11.
The letter
Abetone Cutigliano got its letter. One town at a time, free. The photo, the food, the festa.
Visiting
- Best time
- Jun–Sep, Dec–Mar
- By car
- 1 h 32 min from Florence
- Population
- 1,829
- J3°
- F5°
- M6°
- A9°
- M13°
- J18°
- J22°
- A21°
- S16°
- O12°
- N7°
- D4°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Abetone sits at 1,388 meters on the watershed of the Apennines, where Tuscany meets Emilia-Romagna at the pass of the same name. The merged commune, created in 2017 when Abetone and Cutigliano were joined, runs from 678 meters at Cutigliano up to 1,940 at the summit of Libro Aperto. The two stone pyramids on the pass, the Piramidi del Granduca, were erected in 1778 to mark the border between the Granduchy of Tuscany and the Duchy of Modena after the Brennero road through the pass was opened.
The ski area runs about 50 kilometers of slopes across Val di Luce and Doganaccia, the oldest organized ski resort in the central Apennines, established in 1937. Zeno Colò, the 1952 Olympic downhill gold medalist, was born in Cutigliano in 1920 and grew up on these slopes. The lower village of Cutigliano keeps a Palazzo Pretorio of 1377 with the coats of arms of fourteenth-century podestà set into the façade.
How to get there
From Pisa (PSA), about 1 h 49 min by car.
Bologna (BLQ) is about 1 h 59 min away.
By car from the center of Florence 1 h 32 min or Pisa 1 h 32 min.
Coming by train into Prato Centrale? Abetone Cutigliano is about 1 h 18 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Pisa airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Piramidi del Granduca
Two stone obelisks erected in 1778 on the Abetone pass, marking the border between Granducato di Toscana and Ducato di Modena.
Val di Luce
Open glacial valley above Abetone with the main ski lift system, around 50 kilometers of pistes shared with Doganaccia.
Palazzo Pretorio di Cutigliano
Fourteenth-century seat of the podestà in the lower village, with podestà coats of arms set into the façade.
Riserva Naturale Abetone
Mixed silver fir and beech forest that gave the pass its name (abete = fir), with trails along the watershed ridge.
Chiesa di San Bartolomeo
Romanesque parish church in Cutigliano, the older religious building in the commune.
From the guides
Where to eat
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
Da FagiolinoTrattoria
Da Fagiolino holds two Gambero Rosso prawns.
Nonno CiancoRistorante
Nonno Cianco holds a Slow Food snail.
Before you sit down: how to order at a restaurant, how to spot a tourist trap, what aperitivo is and how the Italian bar works.
Living here
Could you live here?
Abetone Cutigliano is at the end of the road.
- A village of 1,829. The nearest town of 5,000 people, San Marcello Piteglio, is 21 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Pistoia, a city of 88,889, is 59 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
- Population 1,829, down 15% since 2015 (Italy's emptying towns)
- Nearest city Pistoia, 59 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Barga, 14 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €1,250 to €1,700 per m² to buy, €5.20 to €7.50 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Very remote
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 67% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 2, medium hazard
- Florence airport (FLR), 1 h 29 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Florence, 1 h 32 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
6% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, Guinea and Burkina Faso, against 9% across Italy. There are 483 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 84% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Pistoia province ranks 66th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Alto Reno Terme, 22 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Pisa, 58 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Camaiore, 37 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Modena, 51 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Bilingual Preschool and Primary School Mimosa, 35 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.04% a year in property tax, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. The town adds 0.8% to your income tax. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Tuscany spends about €2,410 a month, €540 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €770 a year for water, on the Tuscany average. In Pistoia, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.19 and a man's haircut €23.80.
Climate and risk
2% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods, 2% in a high or medium one. 53% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
ALPINE SKIING
Around 50 kilometers of pistes across Val di Luce and Doganaccia, the oldest organized ski resort in the central Apennines (1937).
ZENO COLÒ
1952 Olympic downhill gold medalist, born in Cutigliano in 1920, who learned to ski on the slopes above the village.
PIRAMIDI DEL GRANDUCA
Two stone obelisks of 1778 marking the historic border between the Granducato di Toscana and the Ducato di Modena.
Common questions
- What is Abetone Cutigliano known for?
- Abetone Cutigliano is the Apennine ski pass at 1,388 meters where the Granduca's two stone pyramids of 1778 mark the old Tuscan-Modenese border.
- Where is Abetone Cutigliano?
- Abetone Cutigliano is a comune in the province of Pistoia, in Tuscany, at 1388 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Abetone Cutigliano?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Florence (FLR), about 1 h 29 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Florence to Abetone Cutigliano?
- About 1 h 32 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Abetone Cutigliano?
- Best in Jun–Sep, Dec–Mar. July is the warmest month, averaging 22 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 19 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Abetone Cutigliano?
- Ponte di Legno, Pescocostanzo and Roccaraso.
- How many people live in Abetone Cutigliano?
- 1,829 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Abetone Cutigliano a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Abetone Cutigliano is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, San Marcello Piteglio, is 21 min away. The nearest city, Pistoia, is 59 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Barga, 14 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 67% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 1388 m
- Population: 1,829
- Surface area: 74.94 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Near here, with a letter
- Written about. No. 1.
Barga
Province: Lucca
A medieval hilltop town at 410 meters in the Serchio valley, where Giovanni Pascoli wrote his last poems and the August festival serves fish and chips.
16 km away
- Written about. No. 9.
Castelnuovo di Garfagnana
Province: Lucca
The Garfagnana capital where the fortified medieval borgo sits at the confluence of the Serchio and the Turrite, where the Tuscan Apennines meet the Alpi Apuane.
21 km away
- Written about. No. 14.
Montecatini-Terme
Province: Pistoia
Eleven thermal springs in a Liberty-style park at the foot of the Apennines.
30 km away
The letter
Abetone Cutigliano got its letter. One town at a time, free. The photo, the food, the festa.
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.