Visiting Ricetto di Candelo

By Vicky · Published Nov. 11th, 2024

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Ricetto di Candelo is an almost perfectly preserved medieval hamlet with cobbled streets, defensive walls, and stone towers.

Ricetto di Candelo Map

Location

Ricetto di Candelo is on the edge of Candelo town, not far from Biella in Piedmont, northern Italy. The car park right in front of the Ricetto is time-limited, but there’s a convenient free car park not far away.

Tips

It’s free to enter Ricetto di Candelo.
There are plenty of little shops inside, and several cafes and restaurants just outside.
Outside of summer, the cafes and shops inside the Ricetto may be closed. However, in Nov-Dec there’s a Christmas market and Apr-May there’s a flower festival inside.
For more walks and hikes, check out our Italy Hiking Page.

Ricetto di Candelo Visiting Route

The medieval streets of Ricetto di Candelo

From the car park, head along the road past the church and turn left. This will bring you to the main and only entrance to Ricetto di Candelo. There’s a little tourist information to the right of the gate if you want more information about the nearby region.

Once through the gate, there are a myriad of ways to choose from. The narrow cobbled streets are mainly in a grid order and you should explore wherever the feeling takes you. Try to check out the wall on the right-hand edge, and don’t miss the viewpoint in the opposite corner.

Views on a walk around Ricetto di Candelo

Ricetto was never a typical village, nobody ever lived there. Locals built it as an area to store the harvest and other goods, and a place of retreat in times of danger. That’s why there are high defensive walls and lookout towers. Today little shops and cute cafes fill the cute streets, with some workshops making traditional goods.

Once you’ve finished looking around the inside, it’s time to walk around the outside. Turn right once you leave the gate, then take the right just after the corner tower. Keep right to stay underneath the walls and admire their defensive nature. At the next corner, you can take the path to the road and then walk across the park back to your car.