Located on the plateau of the same name, Lavarone (Lavròu in Cimbro, Lafraun in German) is a municipality scattered over the province of Trento, which consists of 19 districts and villages, none of which actually bears the same name of their main centre. To quote a famous phrase of Sigmund Freud, for those who ever stayed here, "Lavarone is nowhere and everywhere". The name, reported for the first time in 1184, derives from the medieval words of Latin roots "fossa luparia" (wolves pit), clearly referring to the period when the plateau was covered by a large forest.
It is a resort visited all year round: in Winter, in fact, it is the ideal destination for lovers of skiing and winter sports, thanks to the slopes of the Forti Ski Tour, of the Ski Center Lavarone in the proximity of Millegrobbe, where it is possible to practice Nordic skiing. In Summer, instead, the area is appreciated for its long trails (on foot, horseback and mountain biking), its lake, the Palù Park and the charming villages along the way.
Although present in documents that date back to 1184, archaeological excavations attest the presence of settlement in the area since ancient times. In the I century B.C., the territories were subjected by various populations: Galli, Reti, Romans, Franks and Lombards. In 917 the Emperor Berengar assigned the territories to the Bishop of Padua, and subsequently it became part of the domains of the Bishop of Feltre. Encouraged by the Prince-Bishop of Trento, in the early XII century, the Cimbri settled here between Lavarone and Folgaria. In fact, up till the XIX century, in this part of Trentino the people commonly spoke Cimbro, an ancient German dialect.
Sites of Interest:
- Forte Belvedere-Gschwent, an Austro-Hungarian fortress built between 1908 and 1912, with the task of defending the area from the attacks of Italian troops. It is one of the finest examples of Austrian military architecture in the Trentino territory. Today it houses a historical museum with educational purposes, not only dedicated to Forte Belvedere and the strongholds of the Highlands, but also to the broader international and local issues reported during the First World War;
- the Church of St. Floriano, whose current appearance is due to refurbishments of the first half of the XIX century;
- the Chapel of the Assumption.
- Lake Lavarone.