Vallaise Castle

In Arnad, at the foot of the hillside, stands a large pale building flanked by square towers. This is Vallaise Castle, also called the lower castle to distinguish it from the ruins of the Castellaccio higher up. For a long time it was the most luxurious residence of the Vallaise family.

From fortified house to palace

It began in the 14th century as a fortified house. Between 1660 and 1670, Baron Félix-Charles-François de Vallaise turned it into a stately residence. Later, Alexandre de Vallaise, Foreign Minister to the King of Sardinia, who died in 1823, made it his summer home and gave it its present appearance. The building has three floors and two square towers.

Painted rooms

The interior is the great surprise. The walls are covered with 17th-century paintings, in the taste of the minor Savoyard nobility of the period. In the main drawing room you can see the lands the Vallaise family owned. The first-floor gallery is devoted to heroines of the Bible. In the park, a six-sided chapel houses a Baroque altar in coloured marble.

Bought by the Region

The Vallaise family sold the castle in 1848 to a Turin merchant, Giacobini. It then passed to the De Bernardi family in 1926. The Region bought it in 2010. Since then it has been the subject of studies and works, with the help of European funds. It remains closed to the public apart from a few special openings, such as in November 2010, in August 2019 during the Lard d’Arnad festival, and in September 2023.

Seeing it

Vallaise Castle
Hameau Costa
11020 Arnad (AO)
+39 0165 274 363

The castle is closed for works. You can see it from outside, from the village. The interior opens only for events announced by the Region and the municipality: keep an eye on the summer programme, especially around the Lard d’Arnad festival at the end of August.