Three Castles

After being here for a month, we finally discovered the town of Bellinzona, just 30 minutes away by train, and it has three spectacular old castles on its hills. Yes, it would be another day of walking!

The first castle, closest to the town, is Castelgrande.

It's believed to have been inhabited in Roman times, and has been rebuilt in the 13th, 14th, and 17th centuries.

This one is 50 meters above the town, and one of the battlements extends right down into the town. Follow the green line and see how far it extends into town!

The castle was built on a giant rock, and it can still be seen in places around the castle.


The next castle, up the hill further, is Castello di Montebello, 90 meters above town. This castle was built to defend the town , probably in the 13th or 14th century. It has amazing views for miles away, including great views of both the Castelgrande and the highest castle of all, Sasso Corbaro.

Like the Napa Valley, there are many vineyards (grape vines) in the area. The climate here is very much like Sacramento and Napa.

Here you can see the drawbridge, designed to close out those enemies attacking the castle!

One current castle resident is a very friendly cat!


The final castle, Sasso Corbaro, is 230 meters above town (all steep hills again...!) It was built in 1479 and took only 6 months to build! Since it was so high, and offered a complete view of the area, it gave the very best protection of the Ticino Valley. It is a much smaller castle, but has amazing views and architecture.



On our walk to Sasso, we met many lizards, enjoying the warm sun!


This was a tiring, but spectacular, day!