Dear Wandering Spirit,
Around 2 hours’ drive from Venice, a small town in the Dolomitic Alps still preserves much of its simple yet fascinating mountain charm. This place, called Cibiana di Cadore, is a hidden gem in the Cadore valley. Its population is estimated around only 362 inhabitants in 2021.
Hidden Gem in the Dolomites
Perched at less than 1000 metres over the sea level, Cibiana is quite a secret spot in the valley. Even though, the most famous Cortina d’Ampezzo, with its ski resorts, is only half an hour away.
The village is enclosed by the mountains and a small mountain stream. In other words, you won’t stumble into it by accident. 🏡 For this reason, in the Eighties, the town came up with a great idea to promote tourism: murals all over the place to tell the local history.
Street art in Cibiana di Cadore
Cibiana di Cadore is indeed known as the Town of the Murals. Since 1980, around 50 painters were commissioned to create mural works all around the village. I assure you that it is definitely worth the pain to reach this spot. 🎨
The lovely stories are told on the stone walls of the houses belonging to the dairyman, the blacksmith, the carpenter, and so on. The common thread between them is the courage of this population to resist the heaviest conditions (the mountain climate and their isolated position).
If you decide to stop by (and you won’t regret it at all!), plan half a day. You can grab a printed map or download it online, then follow the recommended route. There are many spots waiting to be photographed all over Cibiana, and local people are very friendly too.
If you are not used to them, you will notice public drinking fountains. Be sure you have a water bottle in your bag 
to taste this amazingly fresh clear water from the mountains.
Visit Cibiana's Local Museums
Cibiana hosts a truly interesting spot: the Keys and Iron Museum. In fact, this very ancient craftmanship has been a local excellence all over Cadore valley for centuries. 🗝️ The materials were extracted from the near mines from the second part of the 18th century. Cibiana workshops intensively produced keys for the commerce of Venice.
Unfortunately, as WWI started, men had to participate in the conflict and the key production was interrupted. What is left from this old tradition remains, and it echoes within the rocks of Cibiana’s buildings. The little number of people left here are very proud of its history.
The stunningly beautiful landscape will make you fall in love even more with the Cadore valley. 🏔️ If you can stay longer, visit the near “Museum in the Clouds” or Messner Mountain Museum. It is dedicated to the rocks and the Alpinism in the Dolomites region.
Having said that, a visit to Cibiana di Cadore is an exciting experience to discover more about mountain life. I absolutely loved this place, and I wish I could spend more time discovering the fantastic murals. Not too far away, the town of Pieve has also important buildings.
Are you curious about the keys production? And why they are made this way? You will discover more when visiting the Keys Museum in Cibiana di Cadore. Also, check out my Dolomites travel journal to plan your next trip to Italy!
Also, subscribe now to the blog for many more useful travel tips. ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️
