Traditional festivals

Town festivals are opportunities for the social gathering of the communities, linked by their very roots, by their relationship with the land itself , by the very traditions. Such gatherings keep traditions alive and the people celebrate.

The bells chime their festival chimes, the band parades through the streets and festive crowds gather in the squares. There's something in the air on festival day! The festival of the patron Saint, the procession to the upper mountain sanctuary, the celebration of the grape harvest or the harvest festival were rare opportunities to celebrate in a life entirely dedicated to work. Of the patron festivals, that each parish and many village chapels celebrate on the anniversary, special mention goes to

that of San Grato, patron Saint of Aosta and the entire diocese, celebrated in Aosta on 7 September. The most solemn part of the festival is the procession that carries the Saint's treasures through the streets of the town centre, protected in the precious Mediaeval relic box; more spontaneous are the initiatives to celebrate special dates with firework displays: one in particular, on 29 June, the anniversary of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, wheneager participants

head for the main peaks of the Valle d'Aosta to light up the ritual fire before, obviously, spending the night on the summit. The festival of San Giovanni on 24 June also holds a certain importance, especially in the Gressoney-Saint-Jean area, where toasts and traditional snacks known as "spisie" accompany the fireworks.