Emilia-Romagna · Reggio nell'Emilia
Canossa
The Reggiano commune holding the ruined castle where an emperor stood three days in the snow to beg forgiveness in 1077.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Canossa is on our list
It holds Borgo dei Borghi.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 46 min from Parma
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 3,770
- J8°
- F12°
- M14°
- A17°
- M22°
- J27°
- J31°
- A30°
- S25°
- O19°
- N12°
- D8°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Canossa sits on the Apennine slope thirty kilometers south of Parma and twenty-five southwest of Reggio Emilia at the seat in Ciano d'Enza. The commune is named for the ruined fortress on a white limestone outcrop eight kilometers east, built before 950 by Adalbert Atto of Lucca and held by Matilde di Canossa until her death in 1115. The fortress was destroyed by Reggio Emilia in 1255.
The commune was itself called Ciano d'Enza until 1992, when it took the older name back, so the seat in the valley and the ruin on the hill now share one name across two places. Vineyards on the surrounding slopes produce Lambrusco and the Spergola white grape, and the path between Ciano and the castle ruin remains the Sentiero Matilde, the same climb that once carried Henry IV to the gate where Gregory VII made him wait. A commune this small holds an outsized memory: a valley seat, a demolished hilltop stronghold, and a name discarded and then reclaimed, all turning on three days that happened at the top of the path.
How to get there
From Bologna (BLQ), about 1 h 30 min by car.
Verona (VRN) is about 2 h 10 min away.
By car from the center of Parma 46 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Bologna, Verona or Milan?
Coming by train into Parma? Canossa is about 46 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Bologna airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Castello di Canossa
Fortress on a white sandstone outcrop, its walls reduced to a ruin standing over the valley since the demolition of 1255. The site now houses the Museo Nazionale Naborre Campanini.
Castello di Rossena
Best-preserved of the Matildic castles, built in the tenth century on volcanic rock to guard the western approach to the ruin on the neighboring hill.
Torre di Rossenella
Square watchtower a kilometer from Rossena, built on a separate basalt pinnacle as a forward observation post for the defensive system below.
Sentiero Matilde
Marked footpath linking Ciano d'Enza to the castle ruin, climbing through vineyards and oak woods over four kilometers.
Museo Nazionale Naborre Campanini
Small museum at the castle site, holding medieval sculpture fragments, ceramics, and documents recovered from the fortifications on the hill above.
Living here
Could you live here?
Canossa is at the end of the road.
- A village of 3,770. The nearest town of 5,000 people, San Polo d'Enza, is 19 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Parma, a city of 198,693, is 46 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
- A station of its own. Trains are the overlooked way to get around Italy: no parking, straight into the center.
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 3,770, down 3% since 2015
- Nearest city Parma, 46 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest national health service hospital Montecchio Emilia, 15 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €700 to €1,000 per m² to buy, €3.10 to €4.40 per m² a month to rent
Weighing a move here? See the moving year.
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- In-between
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 93% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 3, low hazard
- Parma airport (PMF), 1 h 2 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Market day Saturday
- Regional capital Bologna, 1 h 34 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
9% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Morocco, Romania and Ukraine, against 9% across Italy. There are 226 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 36% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Reggio Emilia province ranks 20th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Montecchio Emilia, 15 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Reggio nell'Emilia, 20 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Reggio nell'Emilia, 20 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Modena, 36 km as the crow flies.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.06% 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 between 0.6% and 0.8% to your income tax, depending on your income, with nothing due on income under €12,000. 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 Emilia-Romagna spends about €2,500 a month, €560 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €604 a year for water, on the Emilia-Romagna average. In Reggio Emilia, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.27, a meal in a pizzeria €12.08 and a man's haircut €25.85.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone E, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from October 15 to April 15, up to 14 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. 4% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods, 4% in a high or medium one. 9% 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
WALK TO CANOSSA
January 1077 penance of Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV before Pope Gregory VII, three days in the snow at the castle gate.
MATILDE DI CANOSSA
The Tuscan countess who ruled most of northern Italy from this hill until her death in 1115, ally of Gregory VII and Urban II.
SPERGOLA
White grape native to the Canossa hills, vinified still and sparkling under the Colli di Scandiano e Canossa DOC.
PROSCIUTTO DI MODENA
The commune lies inside the Prosciutto di Modena DOP production zone.
Common questions
- What is Canossa known for?
- Canossa is the Reggiano commune holding the ruined castle where an emperor stood three days in the snow to beg forgiveness in 1077.
- Where is Canossa?
- Canossa is a comune in the province of Reggio nell'Emilia, in Emilia-Romagna, at 219 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Canossa?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Parma (PMF), about 1 h 2 min by car.
- Can you get to Canossa without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Parma to Canossa?
- About 46 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Canossa?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 31 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Canossa?
- Minervino Murge, Borgo Val di Taro and Caiazzo.
- How many people live in Canossa?
- 3,770 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Canossa a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Canossa is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, San Polo d'Enza, is 19 min away. The nearest city, Parma, is 46 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Montecchio Emilia, 15 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 93% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 219 m
- Population: 3,770
- Surface area: 53.08 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.
The ranked lists
Lists Canossa appears in
- The best hidden towns you can reach by train in Emilia-RomagnaEmilia-Romagnaby trainhidden7 towns · smallest 3,770 residents
- The best hill towns within 75 minutes of ParmaNear Parmahill townwithin 75 min7 towns · smallest 2,017 residents · closest 45 min away
- The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of BolognaNear Bolognawithin 2 hourscured meat zone10 towns · smallest 2,428 residents · closest 26 min away
- The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of ParmaNear Parmawithin 2 hourscured meat zone10 towns · smallest 244 residents · closest 38 min away
- The best towns you can reach by train within 75 minutes of ParmaNear Parmaby trainwithin 75 min10 towns · smallest 3,770 residents · closest 4 min away
Similar
Towns like Canossa
What all six share with Canossa: inland, away from the coast · between 3,000 and 10,000 people · hill towns
Minervino Murge
Province: Barletta-Andria-Trani
both have a railway station in the comune
Borgo Val di Taro
Province: Parma
both have a railway station in the comune
Caiazzo
Province: Caserta
both have a railway station in the comune
Balsorano
Province: L'Aquila
both have a railway station in the comune
Sammichele di Bari
Province: Bari
both have a railway station in the comune
Cerreto Sannita
Province: Benevento
Our guide
Our nearest guide, 52 km away
Apuan Alps: the towns, when to go, how to get there
The Apuan Alps guide came out of the letter. Letters from the towns we visit. Free.
Read the guide: The mountains behind Versilia. 8 towns, the drive and train times, the months, where to eat and sleep.
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