Trentino-Alto Adige · Trento
Pieve Tesino
A plateau village in eastern Trentino, birthplace of Alcide De Gasperi, shaped by centuries of families who left to trade prints across Europe.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Pieve Tesino is on our list
It holds Borghi più belli d'Italia.
Subscribe and you get Pieve Tesino's letter the day it comes out.
Visiting
- Best time
- May–Oct
- By car
- 53 min from Trento
- Population
- 669
- J6°
- F8°
- M9°
- A12°
- M16°
- J21°
- J24°
- A24°
- S19°
- O15°
- N10°
- D6°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Pieve Tesino sits at 843 meters on the Altopiano del Tesino, a small plateau in eastern Trentino about forty kilometers from Trento, shared with the villages of Castello Tesino and Cinte Tesino. The plateau's isolation shaped its economy: with little arable land to keep them, generations of families went out across Europe instead, working as itinerant sellers of prints, books and small art objects, and some of them settled permanently, founding shops as far off as Madrid and Saint Petersburg.
That outward movement sits alongside the village's other export, a man rather than a trade. Alcide De Gasperi was born here in 1881 and went on to lead eight successive governments between 1945 and 1953, working alongside Schuman, Adenauer and Monnet on the early shape of European integration. Above the houses, the arboretum climbs through alpine flora to a garden built in the shape of a parliamentary chamber, a piece of landscaping that answers his career directly rather than referring back to the trading families below.
The plateau, in other words, has sent two things outward across the same borders: goods carried by hand, and an idea of how the continent's institutions might fit together. Both are commemorated here, but neither was built here to stay.
How to get there
From Treviso (TSF), about 1 h 50 min by car.
Verona (VRN) is about 2 h 5 min away.
By car from the center of Trento 53 min, Bolzano 1 h 28 min or Padua 1 h 51 min.
Coming by train into Trento? Pieve Tesino is about 52 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Treviso airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Casa Museo Alcide De Gasperi
The statesman's birthplace, opened as a museum in 2006 and set on the European route of the founding fathers' homes, recognized with the European Heritage Label.
Museo Per Via
A museum tracing the generations who left the plateau to sell prints, books and small art objects abroad, with the routes and trades they built laid out in detail.
Arboreto di Pieve Tesino
Meadows, wetlands and woodland between 800 and 845 meters, crossed by a signed route of an hour and a half through alpine flora.
Giardino d'Europa
A garden within the arboretum laid out in the shape of a parliamentary chamber, planted with species drawn from across the continent.
Cima d'Asta and Lagorai
Granite range to the north of the village, with the 2,847-meter Cima d'Asta as its highest peak, alpine lakes and a network of hiking and First World War trails.
Living here
Could you live here?
Pieve Tesino is at the end of the road.
- A village of 669. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Borgo Valsugana, is 32 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Trento, a city of 118,640, is 53 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 669, down 1.3% since 2015
- Nearest city Trento, 53 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Borgo Valsugana, 15 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €1,200 to €1,450 per m² to buy, €2.90 to €3.50 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Remote
- Pharmacy in town
- Full fibre reaches 95% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 3, low hazard
- Treviso airport (TSF), 1 h 50 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Trento, 53 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
6% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Nigeria, Romania and Ukraine, against 9% across Italy. There are 343 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 73% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Trento province ranks 1st of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Borgo Valsugana, 15 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Trento, 38 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Trento, 38 km away. The nearest IB school is Realgymnasium Bozen, 50 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is H-Farm International School Rosà, 40 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
Trento has its own property tax, IMIS, in place of IMU. 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 Trentino-Alto Adige spends about €2,620 a month, €500 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €302 a year for water, on the Trentino-Alto Adige average. In Trento, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.41, a meal in a pizzeria €13.90 and a man's haircut €24.84.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone F, the coldest of Italy's six, with no national limit on when the heating runs. 6% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate medium for floods. 4% 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
DE GASPERI
Birthplace of Alcide De Gasperi, prime minister of Italy 1945-1953, founding father of European integration. The museum carries the European Heritage Label.
PRINT-SELLERS
Tesino families traveled Europe for centuries selling prints, books and art, founding shops from Madrid to Saint Petersburg, documented at the Museo Per Via.
ARBORETO
Fourteen-hectare arboretum above the village with the Giardino d'Europa, a parliamentary-shaped garden of European plants honouring De Gasperi's vision.
CARNE SALADA DEL TRENTINO
The commune lies inside the Carne Salada del Trentino IGP production zone.
Common questions
- What is Pieve Tesino known for?
- Pieve Tesino is a plateau village in eastern Trentino, birthplace of Alcide De Gasperi, shaped by centuries of families who left to trade prints across Europe.
- Where is Pieve Tesino?
- Pieve Tesino is a comune in the province of Trento, in Trentino-Alto Adige, at 843 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Pieve Tesino?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Treviso (TSF), about 1 h 50 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Trento to Pieve Tesino?
- About 53 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Pieve Tesino?
- Best in May–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 24 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 25 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Pieve Tesino?
- Faeto, Cicala and Letino.
- How many people live in Pieve Tesino?
- 669 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Pieve Tesino a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Pieve Tesino is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Borgo Valsugana, is 32 min away. The nearest city, Trento, is 53 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Borgo Valsugana, 15 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 95% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
The numbers
- Elevation: 843 m
- Population: 669
- Surface area: 69.23 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 Pieve Tesino appears in
- The best small high-altitude villages within 90 minutes of TrentoNear Trentoabove 800 mwithin 90 minsmall6 towns · smallest 266 residents · closest 39 min away
- The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of PaduaNear Paduawithin 2 hourscured meat zone7 towns · smallest 669 residents · closest 35 min away
- The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of VeronaNear Veronawithin 2 hourscured meat zone7 towns · smallest 669 residents · closest 46 min away
- The prettiest villages in the province of TrentoTrento provinceprettiest villages8 towns · smallest 266 residents
- The prettiest small villages within 90 minutes of TrentoNear Trentowithin 90 minprettiest villagessmall9 towns · smallest 266 residents · closest 42 min away
- The 10 best high-altitude villages in the province of TrentoTrento provinceabove 800 m10 towns · smallest 266 residents
Similar
Towns like Pieve Tesino
What all six share with Pieve Tesino: mountain-valley towns · under 1,000 people · high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
The letter
Read a sample letter
Chioggia | Everyone is wrong about this town
It’s not an alternative to Venice
Letters from the towns we visit. Free.
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.