Lombardy · Pavia
Varzi
A medieval Malaspina town in the Staffora valley of the Oltrepò Pavese, the seat of one of Italy's first DOP cured meats.
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 39 min from Milan
- Population
- 3,008
Known for
SALAME DI VARZI DOP
Recognized by Europe in 1996, one of Italy's first cured-meat DOPs, with 503,561 certified salami produced in 2023.
MALASPINA
The Apennine feudal family held Varzi from 1164, leaving the thirteenth-century Witches' Tower and the castle remains.
VIA DEL SALE
Medieval salt-trade route through the Apennine from the Po plain to the Ligurian coast, the reason salami was invented here.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J9°
- F12°
- M13°
- A16°
- M21°
- J26°
- J29°
- A29°
- S24°
- O19°
- N12°
- D9°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
The festa: San Giorgio, primo lunedì dopo il 23 aprile
Why come
Varzi sits in the Staffora valley of the Oltrepò Pavese, a strip of Lombard Apennine that runs south toward Genova rather than north toward Milano. The name comes from the Ligurian root Var, meaning torrent. In 1164 the village fell under the Malaspina, the Apennine feudal family who held it as part of their network of upland fiefdoms; the Malaspina tower, called the Torre delle Streghe, dates to the thirteenth century.
The Via del Sale ran through Varzi from the Po plain to the Ligurian coast, and the salami invented to feed traders on that route is now one of Italy's first DOP cured meats: Salame di Varzi, recognized by Europe in 1996, produced by a handful of small companies in and around the town. The 2023 production was 503,561 certified salami. The second Sunday in June, the Sagra del Salame fills the medieval streets. The Sant'Alberto di Butrio hermitage, fourteen kilometers south through the Apennine, is the older religious anchor of the valley.
The Sunday letter
Varzi 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 Varzi comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Varzi in our articles
How to get there
From Genoa (GOA), about 1h 46m by car.
Milan (BGY) is about 2h 22m away.
By car from the centre of Parma 2 hours.
What to see
Torre delle Streghe
Thirteenth-century Malaspina tower in the centro storico, also called the Witches' Tower, the surviving keep of the medieval defenses.
Castello dei Malaspina
Remains of the Malaspina castle, the seat of the feudal family that held Varzi from 1164 onward.
Centro storico medievale
Stone streets and arched passages of the medieval borgo, with the surviving village gates from the defensive walls.
Chiesa dei Cappuccini
Capuchin church on the edge of the centro storico, with the convent that served the Apennine community.
Mercato del salame
Salami shops and producers along the centro storico streets, the centre of the Salame di Varzi DOP production cluster.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Varzi 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.
BusconeRistorante
A Michelin Bib Gourmand, at Buscone.
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.
Festa della Birra e della Salamellafood festival
usually held across July and August. itinerarinelgusto.it
Living here
- Population 3,008
- In-betweeni
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Genoa, 1 h 46 min drive
- Regional capital Milano, 1 h 39 min drive
Common questions
- What is Varzi known for?
- Varzi is a medieval Malaspina town at 416 meters in the Staffora valley of the Oltrepò Pavese, the seat of one of Italy's first DOP cured meats.
- Where is Varzi?
- Varzi is a comune in the province of Pavia, in Lombardy.
- What is the nearest airport to Varzi?
- Genoa (GOA), about 1h 46m by car.
- How long is the drive from Parma to Varzi?
- About 2 hours by car.
- When is the best time to visit Varzi?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 17 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Varzi?
- Yes. Festa della Birra e della Salamella. July is when the first of them falls.
- Which other towns are like Varzi?
- Millesimo, Lucignano and Citerna.
- How many people live in Varzi?
- 3,008 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 416 m
- Population: 3,008
- Surface area: 57.61 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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