San Martino di Castrozza/Rolle Pass

Passo Rolle, 1980 metres above sea level, connects San Martino di Castrozza with the other valleys in the Dolomites. This mountain pass is home to a small cluster of houses with a few hotels, restaurants, bars and shops at the foot of the magnificent amphitheatre of the Pale di San Martino, the south-western door to the Dolomites, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The area, dominated by the unmistakable outline of Cimon della Pala (3.186 m), is an excellent starting point to set off on walks, hikes and mountain bike outings. 
 

At 745 metres above sea level, this small town has about 500 inhabitants; it is the smallest municipality in Italy. The town dates back to around 1400 AC when the Primiero area, a fiefdom of the Welsperg family and part of the Austrian Empire, underwent an extraordinary economic growth, mostly due to the numerous copper, silver and iron mines in the area.

Among the historic buildings worth visiting, we mention the Church of Madonna Assunta (Our Lady of the Assumption), an old Gothic church home to a marvellous triptych that has long been conserved in the Museo del Buonconsiglio in Trento, the small Church of San Martino, the Church of Madonna dell’Aiuto (Our Lady of Perpetual Help) and the Palazzo delle Miniere (Mining Museum).

At 670 metres above sea level, Imèr has about 1200 inhabitants and was a borderland between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy until the end of the First World War. Every year, Imèr is host to the Festa del Canederlo, a food fair that celebrates this typical Trentino dumpling presenting it in all its different versions. Among the historic buildings worth visiting, there is the small church of San Silvestro, dating from the thirteenth century and visited by pilgrims on 31 December and 1 May every year.

At 765 metres above sea level, Siror and its hamlets of Nolesca, San Martino di Castrozza and Passo Rolle, is the northernmost municipality of the Valle di Primiero and is home to about 1200 inhabitants. Large polygonal stone fountains and rural frescoes decorating the façades mark its town centre hosting the renowned and picturesque Christmas Market every year. The magnificent views and natural hospitality of its inhabitants compare Siror to Schönberg, the small gem of a town in Stubaital with which it is twinned. Among the historic buildings worth visiting, there is the parish church of Sant’Andrea, built in the XIV century and restored in 1720, and the old Town Hall with sixteenth-century frescoes.
 

At 760 metres above sea level, the town of Tonadico has about 1500 inhabitants and is considered the oldest town in the Primiero valley. Nestled at the foot of the Castel Pietra ruins, this hamlet used to be the administrative centre of the valley. The town is known for the frescoed sacred images and mural paintings adorning the façades of the houses and dating from different periods. Among the numerous historic buildings worth visiting, there are the small Church of San Vittore, built in the XI century on a hill overlooking Tonadico, and Palazzo Scopoli, built around 1000 AC and housing the Town Hall after its refurbishment in 2003.

 

At 746 metres above sea level, Transacqua, with its nearly 2100 inhabitants, is the largest town in the Primiero area. The town and its two hamlets of Pieve and Ormanico enjoy a beautiful panoramic view over the surrounding mountains. Among its many important features, its carefully tended green spaces and pleasant and well-designed town centre have earned Transacqua the international "Comune Fiorito" (Town in Bloom) award. In the 15th century, Transacqua was an important mining centre with about 500 mining shafts producing silver, copper and silver-bearing lead.