A location deep in the greenery of the Orobie Prealps, where you can easily set off on excursions, trekking and hiking tours, where you can practice sports and outdoor activities: the Orobie Alps Resort is the perfect sports hotel in Lombardy.
Some of the Orobie Prealps’ top naturalistic itineraries start right in Roncobello.
Among the excursions we recommend:
Directly from our Resort you take the mule track that leads to the small hamlet of Sottocorna – where you can fill in your bottles in one of Roncobello’s best water springs. Here starts the Strada Piana, a totally flat beautiful trail of about 1,5 km surrounded by the forest that takes to Vendulo in about 20 min, where a small shrine marks the end of the Strada Piana. From here continue following the directions to Porta delle Cornacchie / Cima Baresi. In about 20 min. you’ll find yourself on a natural terrace at an altitude of about 1.200 mt where you’ll enjoy an all-round panorama, one of the most suggestive in the upper Brembana Valley. Depending on weather the trail is feasible all year round. On your way back you can take the mule track that goes to Piccarelli, one of the oldest hamlets in Roncobello, still nowadays only reachable on foot, and from here go back to our Resort following a gentle trail.
Difficulty: Easy
Our tip: it is a perfect walk both in the morning and in the afternoon depending on seasons; before leaving ask Paolo to tell you the legend of the Porta delle Cornacchie.
As you leave you first reach the hamlet of Sottocorna and then follow the trail that connects the small hamlets of Cornello and Fraggio. These hamlets, once homes of local farmers, are left untouched like they used to be in the past. This trail twists and turns among forests, small clearings and panoramic spots. A worthwhile excursion all year round. To end the loop, you can go back to the Resort following the panoramic Strada Piana.
Difficulty: Easy
Local mountain huts are open on weekends (on Saturday and Sunday) in May-June and September-October, every day from mid-June to mid-September.
it’s one of the Orobie’s most favorite trails, starting from the Mezzeno parking which is at the end of the road of Roncobello at an altitude of 1.600mt, reachable by car from our Resort in just 10 minutes. From here you start walking taking trail number 215; climbing through alpine pastures you reach the Mezzeno Pass (2.142 m) and then go down to the Laghi Gemelli (“Twin Lakes”, 1.968 m) and the well-known mountain hut of the same name. If you are well-trained, you can walk the loop that passes through five lakes (trail 250, about 2,5 hour-loop).
Difficulty: Medium – difference in height +600mt.
From the Mezzeno parking you take trail 219, cross the slight slope of the Mezzeno Valley and reach the Branchino Pass at an altitude of 1.800mt in about one hour; from here you can go down to the lake and to the Branchino hut for a break with a tasty dish of polenta and cheese or a delicious slice of cake (it is a small hut: if it is your final destination check opening first). Or, you can continue along the “Sentiero dei Fiori” (“Trail of flowers”), a spectacular nature loop trail that leads to Rifugio Capanna 2000, where you’ll enjoy an amazing view on the whole valley floor till the plain of Bergamo. If you are well-trained, you can test yourself with the climb to Mount Arera (2.512 m), also reachable through trail 219 from the Rifugio Capanna 2000.
Difficulty: Medium – difference in height +400mt.
From the Mezzeno parking you take trail 215 until the junction for Mount Campo, where you take trail 217 that leads to Baita Tre Pizzi (used as refuge) and to the small Lake Pietra Quadra (on a hot day don’t miss a dive!); from here you can climb Mount Pietra Quadra (2.356 m) or the northern peak of the Tre Pizzi (2.153 m). This itinerary is also feasible leaving straight from our Resort, passing through trails in the pine grove to Mount Campo. In this case you have to add 2 hours more for a round trip; Paolo will give you his advice depending on your training conditions.
Our tip: you’ll enter one of the most beautiful, suggestive places of our untouched territory, a less frequented trail due to the lack of mountain huts. That’s the reason why we recommend you to take with you your packed lunch. The view you’ll enjoy from Mount Campo will left you speechless!
Get ready for a hike in the name of adventure, among perfumes and essences of larch and mountain pines. You won’t find huts or lines of people walking before you, but it will be a plunge into genuine, pristine nature. If you’re well trained, you can start directly from our Resort. The trail clambers into the woods passing through the hamlet of Cornello; from here a steep slope will take you on top of the Mount Corno which dominates Roncobello from above. The drop is almost of 800mt, but as soon as you are on top, the scents and nature will make you forget the effort. As you get to the Roccolo del Corno, the trail keeps the same altitude (about 1.800mt), and will offer a series of panoramic views, old hunter shelters and passages through mountain pines and centuries-old larches. As you reach the Roccolo per Verroppio, take the trail descending to the bottom of the valley till the small hamlet of Caprini and from here you’ll get to our resort in 10 minutes.
But not just hiking: in the surroundings of Roncobello you can practice many other sports activities all year long. You can practice fishing, canoeing and kayaking on Lake Bernigolo or the Brembo river; there are several interesting cycling routes, as the Ciclabile della Valle Brembana that connects Bergamo to Piazza Brembana, and an appreciated climbing wall; in winter you can practice cross country skiing (in Roncobello there are two different loops), ice-skating, snowshoeing, ski mountaineering and alpine skiing in Foppolo, Piazzatorre and Valtorta-Piani di Bobbio.
In Piazzatorre (in Tagliata) there is also an Adventure Park for kids and grown-ups with ziplines, Tibetan bridges, ropes and pulleys. In 2022 also opened the Ponte Tibetano di Dossena, with its 505 meters the longest in the world with discontinuous tread and without lateral tie rods.
