Liguria · Savona
Millesimo
A fortified borgo, where Napoleon broke the Austro-Sardinian army in April 1796.
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 13 min from Genoa
- Population
- 3,185
Known for
TRUFFLES
Black and white truffles from the Val Bormida hills, recognized by the Città del Tartufo network and celebrated at the September fair.
BATTLE OF 1796
Napoleon defeated the Austro-Sardinian army here on 13-14 April 1796, using the Del Carretto palazzo as headquarters.
PONTE DELLA GAIETTA
Twelfth-century fortified bridge over the Bormida, one of the few of its kind still standing in Italy.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J9°
- F11°
- M12°
- A15°
- M19°
- J23°
- J27°
- A28°
- S23°
- O18°
- N13°
- D9°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
The festa: Nostra Signora del Monte Carmelo, 16 July
Why come
Millesimo sits sixty kilometers inland from Genoa, over the Apennine watershed, in the upper reaches of the valley that gives the wider area its name. Enrico II Del Carretto turned the village into a fortified borgo in 1206, and his successors raised the castle later in the same century on the high ground above the settlement. The town itself grew on the right bank of the river below that castle, its stone houses laid out in a triangle around the central piazza, with the fortified bridge carrying the crossing at the valley floor and the pilgrimage sanctuary set apart on the outskirts as the valley's separate religious focus.
More than three thousand casualties fell on each side when Napoleon Bonaparte defeated the combined Austro-Sardinian forces here on 13-14 April 1796, directing the campaign from the Del Carretto palazzo on the piazza that now serves as the town hall. The pattern is one of a small defensive settlement whose river crossing, castle and family seat all sit within sight of each other, later put to use for a battle whose scale had nothing to do with the size of the place that hosted it.
The Sunday letter
Millesimo 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 Millesimo comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Millesimo in our articles
The best small towns inside a nature park that eat well in Liguria6 towns, Millesimo among them.
The best towns inside a nature park that have a serious restaurant in Liguria6 towns, Millesimo among them.
The prettiest villages inside a nature park in Liguria6 towns, Millesimo among them.
The best towns known for their meat within two hours of Genoa7 towns, Millesimo among them.
How to get there
From Genoa (GOA), about 1h 8m by car.
Turin (TRN) is about 1h 46m away.
By car from the centre of Milan 2h 31m.
Coming by train into Genova Piazza Principe? Millesimo is about 1h 12m away by road.
What to see
Ponte della Gaietta
The old fortified body still spans the river below the village, narrow enough that its defensive purpose is obvious from either bank.
Castello Del Carretto
Tower, keep and east wall stand above the village on the high ground, the stronghold that gave the marquis line command of the valley approach.
Palazzo Del Carretto
The family palazzo faces the central piazza and now serves as the town hall, its rooms the setting for the 1796 headquarters rather than a battlefield relic.
Centro storico
Triangular layout of stone houses around the central piazza, on the right bank of the Val Bormida below the castle.
Santuario di Nostra Signora del Deserto
Pilgrimage sanctuary on the outskirts, the religious focal point of the valley's calendar.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Millesimo 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.
We recommend
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.
Locanda dell'AngeloRistorante
A spot in the Michelin Guide, at Locanda dell'Angelo.
Through the year
What happens here
Feasts and festivals that come back year after year. We give the month rather than the date, because the date moves and the month rarely does. Check with the source before you plan a journey around one.
XXXIV Festa nazionale del tartufo della Val Bormida a Millesimofood festival
usually held in October. Lamialiguria - Eventi in Liguria
Living here
- Population 3,185
- In-betweeni
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Genoa, 1 h 8 min drive
- Regional capital Genova, 1 h 13 min drive
Common questions
- What is Millesimo known for?
- Millesimo is a fortified borgo at 429 meters, where Napoleon broke the Austro-Sardinian army in April 1796.
- Where is Millesimo?
- Millesimo is a comune in the province of Savona, in Liguria.
- What is the nearest airport to Millesimo?
- Genoa (GOA), about 1h 8m by car.
- How long is the drive from Milan to Millesimo?
- About 2h 31m by car.
- When is the best time to visit Millesimo?
- Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 28 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Millesimo?
- Yes. XXXIV Festa nazionale del tartufo della Val Bormida a Millesimo. October is when the first of them falls.
- Which other towns are like Millesimo?
- Varzi, Lucignano and Citerna.
- How many people live in Millesimo?
- 3,185 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
The numbers
- Elevation: 429 m
- Population: 3,185
- Surface area: 15.96 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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