ASIAGO

Asiago, Italy

Pronunced Ah-zay-ah-go, The Asiago Plateau (the Altopiano di Asiago or Altopiano dei Sette Comuni) is in the Province of Vicenza in the Veneto region of Northeastern Italy and in the foothills of the Alps. This region boasts Europe's largest network of loipe - an incredible 537 kms! The principal town is Asiago, which is central and equidistant (60km) from the major cities of Trento to the west and Vicenza to the south. The area is famous for Asiago cheese and for being the site of a major battle between Austrian and Italian forces on the Alpine Front of World War I. The tourist office claims over 500kms of cross country ski tracks; somewhat optimistic even when blessed with favourable snow conditions, which is sadly not often. Asiago is therefore best left as a ‘last-minute’ destination and you should only commit to going after assessing the current snow situation.


The surrounding areas of Asiago, featured on their separate pages, are - Campolongo, Cesuna, Enego , Fontanella, Gallio Campomulo and Monte Corno and offer a variety of different cross country opportunities. Most information on this page is supplied with thanks to John Farmer.

Getting to Asiago by Air

The nearest airports are Verona, Venice Marco Polo and Venice Treviso, the latter two having frequent flights from a number of UK airports. Combining your Asiago ski trip with a couple of nights city break in Venice, Verona, Vicenza, Padua is an option.

Getting to Asiago by Train/Bus

Cheap and frequent shuttle buses connect the airports with their respective train stations (Mestre or Treviso in the case of Marco Polo) and then by train to Vicenza or Bassano del Grappa (via Castelfranco Veneto). If your arrival in Bassano will be too late for the onward bus it is another interesting place to stay overnight (several hotels and a hostel) and explore at leisure in the evening.

There are buses to Asiago from Bassano del Grappa and Vicenza. It is a long and somewhat roundabout route from Bassano but very interesting and you go through historic Marostica and past some xc ski areas. 

Useful travel planning web sites include https://www.rome2rio.com
Ski bus information/timetable



There are ski buses from the main square in Asiago to Campolongo and Campomulo. The timetables are somewhat complicated and changeable and details and explanations are best obtained from the Tourist Office.

Cross Country Ski Maps of Asiago



Asiago cross country ski map
Cross Country Ski Tracks and Routes
Ski tracks are well prepared for both cross country skiing techniques and snow on the slopes is also ensured by the use of artificial snow cannons. Asiago has 45 km of easy to medium difficulty tracks, with others being available nearby at the other resorts - see top of page. The Centro Fondo Asiago Golf Arena is the centre for Nordic skiing and has 4 different tracks (Golf, Prunno, Fratta and Barenthal) making a total of 42.5 km.

You can get an excellent series of ski maps for the area as a whole; plus each individual centre is available from the Tourist office. The day ticket for track entry is €10 which can be bought at the Centro Fondo Asiago - Gold Arena on Via Meltar, and you can also hire cross country ski equipment from them.

Please visit the other pages for the additional track information at nearby Campolongo, Cesuna, Enego, Fontanella, Gallio Campomulo and Monte Corno.

Asiago Cross Country Ski Routes
  • Asiago - 2km - illuminated

    There is a 2 km illuminated track starting at the back of the old railway station with tickets available from the bar.

  • Asiago Golf Track - 5 km - Easy

    This track is certainly among the sunniest slopes of the entire Asiago plateau and is the easiest of the Centro Fondo Asiago. It is 5 km long and runs entirely on  the Meltar plain. The wide track provides both  classic  and skating skiers with a perfect track,  frequent ups and downs  alternating with  long flat stretches.


    The track starts on the Golf plain  and is suitable for beginners. The golf course is equipped with an artificial snow system which allows the possibility of skiing even when there is a lack of snow.

  • Asiago Prunno - 10 km - Easy / Medium

    Taking its name from  the Prunno locality which is a clearing  immersed in the spruce woods that frame it, this is  a 10 km track of mixed difficulty. The  first part is the same as that of the golf course route so is easy. What follows becomes a little more complex, and thenreturns to an easy stretch at the end.


    As you follow the Golf plain, you reach the  crossroads for Prunno, after which the route becomes more suitable for expert skiers. From here you face a more demanding first downhill section, then in rapid succession a second, less steep, section of descent that quickly moves away from the edge of the woods and returns immediately afterwards to the Prunno plain. After rounding the ring, go up towards the Meltar and enter the Golf track again, so that the track becomes easy again.


    The Prunno is an excellent track for  race training, for those who like to cross country ski competitively and is often used by the Italian national ski team.

  • Fratta - 15 km - Medium

    This track has a long and varied path, which winds between the Golf plain, the Prunno clearing and the locality of Fratte. It is 15 km long, and can be considered an  easy track but, given the length of the route and some stretches of descent (especially the one that leads to Prunno), it  is better suited to expert skiers .


    It has a first section in common with the Golf track and shares a second with the Prunno track. Once you reach this location, the track goes up again following the path of the forest road. It then rings the locality of Fratte and descends towards Prunno. From here you go along a last stretch towards the plain of the golf courses.

  • Barenthal - 15 km - Medium

    Amongst all of the tracks in the Centro Fondo Asiago, this the one that is least affected by temperature changes. The particular exposure of the track, in fact, helps to maintain the ideal conditions for a cross-country ski trac, so much so that it is not uncommon to ski on the Barenthal track until the end of March.


    The route firstly follows the road that leads to  the English Cemetery  and then to the  junction of Pria dell'Acqua. From here you can follow  two routes, the first on the left towards  the Granezza refuge, or the second towards the Baita dei Pastori refuge.  This track is  easy in the first section (until the junction of Pria dell'Acqua) then the track climbs and becomes more suitable for expert skiers.

Cafes on Cross Country Routes

All of the track systems have Rifugios/cafes at the centre itself and/or en-route. 

Where to Stay


For an initial visit it is strongly recommended that you stay in Asiago town itself, particularly if you do not have a car and are relying on public transport. It is a fascinating place and there are a variety of accommodation options (see Asiago.it).


One budget hotel that is central and comes with a personnel recommendation is the Hotel Alpi https://www.hotelalpiasiago.it/.


Outside of Asiago it is possible to stay in Gallio and the Rifugios Campolongo, Campomulo and others. However, this will be somewhat restrictive, particularly if relying on public transport.   

For a small group or family self catering option you could rent the Amore di Confine Apartment which is managed by Nick.  It's situated on a quiet road at the southern edge of Asiago and marked on the cross country ski map above with a red dot. It has its own garage for parking, which is also useful for ski storage and a waxing area.

The apartment is a few minutes walk to the local bakery and mini supermarket and a little further to the main town with a range of bars and shops.


It is also not far from the ice hockey stadium of the local team who are the national champions, and going to a match is also an option. The club is called H C Asiago and Nick's cousin is the club captain. 


Nick has created  an Asiago apartment website that will give you a better feel of the property layout and Asiago itself, and the link above will take you to the Air B&B website.  Don't forget to tell him you found it on GoXski if you book!

Webcams


The Asiago webcams 

Cross Country Ski Rental/Retailers


A ‘unique’ feature of the plateau is that at some centres ski equipment hire is bundled in with the day ticket and thus taking your own equipment does not save you any money. The standard of the equipment can be quite basic however and you may prefer to take your own, particularly if skating. 


Bars and Restaurants


There is no shortage of restaurants, pizzerias and bars in Asiago and don’t forget hotel restaurants. Most options are  good value and unpretentious and its great fun to take an evening promenade and note those that are full of locals by 7 pm. Go there on following days, but earlier! 

Cross Country Ski Races


The Granfondo Millegrobbe (actually starts in Lavarone, Trentino but on the ‘edge’ of the plateau.


MarciaBianca – Enego


Here is an article about the 2013 British Masters Cross Country Ski Association's races in Asiago.

Other Things to do



Dominating the town is the ‘Sacrario Militare’, an imposing mausoleum dedicated to the Italian soldiers who died in WW1. This is a short walk from the central square. At the other end of town is the old Railway Station which is surrounded by a Park and the nearby Ice Hockey Stadium; where you can watch a good standard of hockey. As always visit the tourist office for other ideas and a ‘whats on’ list. Incidentally, ‘Rode’ ski wax is manufactured in a small factory on the outskirts of town.

Tour Companies who Feature Asiago

We don't know of any - do you?

Tourist Office | Resort Information | Twitter | Facebook


Asiago Tourist Information

Centro Fondo Asiago - Golf Arena email is - info@centrofondoasiago.it

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