Exploring the Oasi Zegna following in the footsteps of the solitary traveller

It all started from a love of nature and above all from a philanthropic vision of the environment and society. It is said that the entrepreneur Ermenegildo Zegna loved to walk and in cold springs would go in search of the flowers that bloomed early in the morning. When he saw workers working for more than 12 hours without getting up from their machines, he was saddened. Thanks to Ermenegildo Zegna Trivero, a small village in the Biella Alps, unknown to most, became one of the world centres of luxury textiles and the group of the same name closed the first half of 2025 with revenues of 928 million. But it is no less important what Zegna achieved by investing in his community, building schools and hospitals and initiating a massive reforestation plan. In 1938, a road was started to allow locals to access and experience the mountains and nature above Trivero. A well-being that Ermenegildo Zegna perceived for himself and also wanted for his employees. It was from this vision that the Panoramica Zegna project was born, destined to transform the impervious mountain landscapes into an accessible and enjoyable heritage for everyone. Not to be missed in spring is the Conca dei Rododendri (Rhododendron Basin): one is immersed in a palette of colours of extraordinary beauty, the result of the planting of more than 500,000 conifers and hundreds of azaleas, dahlias, hydrangeas but above all rhododendrons, mainly from nurseries in Belgium. The decision to build one of the first roads with clear tourism and territorial promotion purposes meant rescuing the poor mountain sites, often connected only by the rough paths opened by transhumance, from isolation and made it possible to tap into the tourist potential of certain still virgin places in a sustainable manner. Above all, that choice made it possible to leave a visible legacy (100 km of protected nature) to future generations.

The heirs continued this project and in 1993 the Oasi Zegna was born, which covers 100 km² and has received the patronage of the Fai (Italian Environmental Fund) and Fsc certification for sustainable forest management. It is one of the few Italian examples of a regenerated ecosystem thanks to an industrial project that has been able to look beyond production to embrace the entire territory. The mountain of the Oasi Zegna has nothing to do with certain transformations that we unfortunately witness more and more often in the Alps: there are no designer hotels, high-altitude restaurants offering fish that arrives from far away, ultra-modern snowmaking systems, super-organised trails. It is a mountain that has preserved its original appearance and is proud of it, in tune with the territory where you can count on hospitality in small hotels and inns, do slow activities (walking, cycling, enjoying the view) and where, when the snow comes, you can ski and snowshoe. The cuisine is rustic and strictly zero-kilometre.

Almost 100 years since the Panoramica was started, a few weeks ago the Cammino di Ermenegildo arrived, a 51 km-long loop trek divided into three stages and designed for intermediate level walkers. It starts in Trivero Valdilana, the historic home of the Zegna Wool Mill, and winds towards Bocchetto Sessera, passing through unspoilt landscapes, geological faults, disused mining sites and inns that tell stories of mountains and communities. The second stage crosses the wild Valsessera, the heart of the Zegna Oasis, and the third closes the loop with a scenic return among old mule tracks and regenerated forests. The Walk is a true tale on foot, in the footsteps of the "solitary wayfarer" through a lived landscape, the result of a project started almost a century ago and more alive than ever, oriented towards sustainability and collective wellbeing.