Aosta City and Pila
The city of Aosta, also the region’s capital, offers many cultural activities throughout the year. Exhibitions, museums and cultural activities follow one another throughout the year attracting many tourists from all over the world. For winter sports lovers, Aosta offers the opportunity to ski by putting your boots on in the city. In just 17 minutes, the Aosta-Pila cable car brings you right to Pila with its spectacular views and many ski slopes. Open also in summer, one can enjoy the stunning scenery of Pila on the bike or while participating in some other of its many opportunities for sport, nature and relaxation.
Founded by the Romans in 25 BC in the middle of the Augustan age, Aosta is named after Augusta Praetoria. The small Roman city quickly grew in importance until it was considered the Rome of the Alps, one of the most important crossroads of goods and culture of the time. The typical orthogonal layout of the city center is still clearly visible and can be visited by tourists.
The Roman theater
Among the most important ruins recently restored and easily accessible, the Roman Theater is certainly one of the most spectacular. The southern facade of the 22-meter high theater welcomes tourists and stunns them with its beauty. A theater capable of welcoming more than three thousand spectators was clearly a proof of the great importance of the city of Augusta Praetoria in Roman times.
The Roman Forum
Near the Cathedral of Aosta, from Piazza Giovanni XXIII, you can access the forensic cryptoporticus. This monumental construction was originally located in a sacred area dedicated to worship. However, it is also believed that, due to its horseshoe-shape and the double corridors, the cryptoporticus was used as a military warehouse and granary, while the marble colonnade served as a backdrop for the temples of the sacred area.
The Porta Praetoria
Today a ruin, but at the time it was the majestic main access to the city of Augusta Praetoria. Equipped with three openings still visible, it had an internal area used as a courtyard of arms. The grooves where the gates flowed are still clearly visible, while on the outside some of the marble slabs that completely covered the monuments are still visible today.
The Arch of Augustus
The Arch of Augustus stands along the road leading to the ancient Porta Pretoriana. Sign of the Roman military power which, in 25 BC, definitively defeated the Salassi. The Arch, in late republican style, is 9 meters wide and is flanked by pillars with half-columns and Corinthian capitals. It is undoubtedly one of the most visited and photographed monuments in Aosta.