Switzerland Guide
Ticino
Valle Maggia
Valle Maggia comprises a complex valley system stretching north of Locarno into the high Alps. This is wild countryside, not easy to explore: about 30km into the main valley, roads split to follow three separate upper valleys, the Val Rovana, Val Bavona and Val Lavizzara, which are cut off from each other and which all come to a stop against impassable rock. It is, however, superb territory for walking.
North from Pontebrolla, a village above Locarno at the junction of the Centovalli, the valley is deep, rugged and very narrow. It opens out further along around Gordevio and the village of Maggia, home of the local tourist office (www.vallemaggia.ch); across the river from Maggia at Aurigeno is the SB hostel Baracca (www.backpacker.ch; Up to Fr.100). At Cevio (416m), the largest town in the valley, a road branches west into the Val Rovana, climbing to the village of Bosco/Gurin (1503m). This is the highest settlement in Ticino, and also its only German-speaking community. With lift access up to 2400m, the remote village has become a centre for winter sports, and there are some good walks in summer.
Just 2km north of Cevio is the idyllic village of Bignasco (438m), where the valley divides. Of a handful of lovely restaurants here, the Turisti has excellent food and a shaded terrace, as well as some rooms (091 754 11 65; Up to Fr.100). Northwest from Bignasco, a road climbs into the wild Val Bavona, a strip of valley floor 10km long and hemmed in by sheer scarps. There are twelve rustic hamlets in the valley, including Foroglio, with a restaurant huddled next to a splendid waterfall. A short climb above San Carlo (960m), the final hamlet, characterized by tall, narrow sixteenth-century stone houses, is a cable car up to the eyrie of Robiei (1905m), overlooked by the Basodino glacier. The top station has a terrace restaurant and accommodation (091 756 50 20, www.robiei.ch; Up to Fr.100; dorms Fr.25).
From Bignasco, another road climbs northeast into the Val Lavizzara. After Peccia (849m) the switchbacks get tighter up to Mogno (1180m), where, on your right, you'll spot the tilted circular roof of the church of San Giovanni Battista through the trees. This small building, set on a marble plaza, is dazzling. The interior is supremely elegant, bare and silent, encircled in striped marble, the transparent roof bathing the altar in sunlight.