Lombardy · Brescia
Cimbergo
A village of 533 at 851 meters above the Oglio, with castle ruins on a spur and UNESCO petroglyphs on the slopes below.
- Best time
- May–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 44 min from Brescia
- Population
- 533
Known for
UNESCO ROCK ART
Engraved surfaces in the Ceto-Cimbergo-Paspardo reserve, part of Italy's first UNESCO World Heritage site from 1979.
CASTELLO RUINS
Medieval castle on the rock spur above the village, host to the 1378 Guelph-Ghibelline parley and the 1430 Venetian investiture of the Cemmo-Cimbergo county.
851 METERS
Balcony altitude above the Oglio, with views across the valley and access to high pasture on the flanks of the Concarena.
When to visit
Best · May–Oct
- J6°
- F9°
- M10°
- A13°
- M17°
- J22°
- J24°
- A24°
- S19°
- O16°
- N10°
- D6°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Cimbergo holds a balcony position at 851 meters above the Oglio, looking across Val Camonica toward Paspardo and Capo di Ponte. The reason most visitors climb up here is the Riserva Naturale delle Incisioni Rupestri di Ceto, Cimbergo e Paspardo, the UNESCO-listed rock-art protected area that shares its name with the commune. On a granite spur above the village stand the ruins of the medieval Castello, where in 1378 Guelphs and Ghibellines of Val Camonica met to attempt a peace, and where in 1430 Bartolomeo of Cemmo received the investiture of the Cemmo-Cimbergo county from Venice.
The frazioni Cimbergo and Paspardo were united and re-divided more than once between 1805 and 1947. Today the village keeps its narrow lanes and stacked stone houses, and the surrounding woods open onto sandstone outcrops covered in figures cut between the Neolithic and the Iron Age.
The Sunday letter
Cimbergo is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Cimbergo comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Cimbergo in our articles
The 8 best towns inside a nature park in the province of Brescia8 towns, Cimbergo among them.
The best high-altitude villages in Lombardia8 towns, Cimbergo among them.
The best towns with a World Heritage site in Lombardia8 towns, Cimbergo among them.
The best mountain towns within two hours of Brescia10 towns, Cimbergo among them.
How to get there
From Milan (BGY), about 1h 52m by car.
Verona (VRN) is about 2h 29m away.
By car from the centre of Brescia 1h 44m.
What to see
Castello di Cimbergo
Ruined medieval castle on a granite outcrop above the village, site of the 1378 peace attempt between Guelphs and Ghibellines of Val Camonica.
Incisioni rupestri di Cimbergo
Sector of the UNESCO Ceto-Cimbergo-Paspardo reserve, with engraved surfaces accessible from marked paths below the village.
Chiesa di San Martino
Parish church at the center of the village, with a bell tower visible from the valley floor.
Balcony view over Val Camonica
The piazza and the lanes around the castle ruins give a clean line of sight across the Oglio valley toward Paspardo.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Cimbergo fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
Living here
- Population 533
- Very remotei
- Pharmacy in town
- Nearest high school over ~30 minutes away
- Nearest airport Milan, 1 h 52 min drive
- Regional capital Milano, 2 h 38 min drive
Common questions
- What is Cimbergo known for?
- Cimbergo is a village of 533 at 851 meters above the Oglio, with castle ruins on a spur and UNESCO petroglyphs on the slopes below.
- Where is Cimbergo?
- Cimbergo is a comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy.
- What is the nearest airport to Cimbergo?
- Milan (BGY), about 1h 52m by car.
- How long is the drive from Brescia to Cimbergo?
- About 1h 44m by car.
- When is the best time to visit Cimbergo?
- Best in May–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 24 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 23 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Cimbergo?
- Guardia Perticara, Glurns and Sadali.
- How many people live in Cimbergo?
- 533 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 851 m
- Population: 533
- Surface area: 24.71 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.
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🏛️ UNESCO
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