West of Aosta: three locks
To the west of Aosta, the road and railway line run through the main valley near a series of castles. They are easy to reach using public transport, and after visiting them, you can catch a bus or an opportunity and go further into one of the valleys of the Gran Paradiso National Park.
Castello di Sarre
One of these castles is the thirteenth-century Castello di Sarre (VII-hal. IX Wed-Mon.
10.00-11.00 and 14.30-16.30; VI only sb. and Sun.; 2000 L), which can be reached by bus or train from Aosta. From the bus stop on the main road, you should go down the unmarked side road just before the toll booth for using the road. However, from the railway station you have to go 10 minutes uphill on the road leading among apple orchards. Sarre is the former hunting palace of Victor Emmanuel II, which the king bought by mistake. He initially intended to purchase the Aymaville Castle opposite it., but the representative sent by him made a mistake about the direction of the river and ended up buying Sarre.
Victor Emmanuel, however, did what he could., to beautify the interior of an unwanted castle according to your unusual taste. It was difficult to mark the hunting motif more: horns of wild ibex hang along the main hall, and thousands of skulls of white chamois were woven into plaster garlands and medallions, surrounding stuffed ibex heads . The museum, however, is most proud of having the first Capricorn killed by the king.. According to the curator, many of the animals stuffed here ended their lives naturally, but of course, caring about his reputation as an excellent hunter, Victor Emanuel did not want to proclaim this fact..
Dedicated to the House of Savoy, the rest of the castle is a place of pilgrimage for Italian monarchists , full of family trees, portraits and photographs, and the walls are plastered with newspaper articles about the royal family living in exile today.
Castello di Saint-Pierre and Castello Sarriod de La Tour
Five minutes further by train, above a rocky cliff is surrounded by walls and towers Castello di Saint-Pierre (IV-X 9.00-12.00 and 15.00-19.00, closed. wt. except VII and VIII; 2000 L). In the one erected in XII, but rebuilt in the eighteenth century castle houses a small, natural history museum of interest mainly for ornithologists.
Not far from the main road, a little behind Saint-Pierre, on a small hill invisible from the road above the river stands Sarriod de La Tour (V-IX Avg-Mon. 9.30-12.00 and 15.00-19.00; 2000 L). Surrounded by outbuildings, this building resembles a medieval tower more than a castle in its rural character.. In countless halls you can admire beautiful frescoes, as well as visit the archaeological museum.