La Thuile
The Wind of Change
Over the last two centuries, La Thuile has undergone profound transformations. Its present appearance still preserves original features that tell the story of its people and their constant ability to adapt to the challenges of modern times.
Once a small mountain village, remote and surrounded by peaks, La Thuile benefited from an enviable strategic position, in direct contact with France and the rest of Europe thanks to the Alpine pass of the Little St Bernard — an ancient crossing point for people and goods.
The mountain climate and altitude have never favoured agriculture, which remained limited to the cultivation of rye — a hardy, resilient grain — potatoes, and a few other crops.
The subsistence economy, based on agriculture and the tireless work of families cultivating the steep slopes for survival, was joined, from the mid-19th century onwards, by the intensive exploitation of the rich anthracite deposits in the surrounding mountains.
a Thuile became a mining village. Extraction tunnels, service buildings, and new job opportunities transformed local farmers into miners. The population grew, wealth arrived, and the very face of the village changed. Its agricultural soul expanded, shaped by the imposing remains of mining activity that still invite visitors to explore its past.
The mining period lasted until 1965, when the mines were permanently closed. A new and exciting era then began — one that had been slowly taking shape: mountain tourism.
La Thuile evolved into a tourist destination, especially in winter, with the creation of the first ski lifts and hotels. From that moment, rapid and unstoppable development followed, leading from the pioneers of mountaineering and skiing to the present day: winter sports, a cycling paradise, countless hiking trails, and an open-air museum of alpine life.
It All Begins with a Mountain Village
Rural life required constant labour, changing and adapting with the rhythm of the seasons. Each family grew its own small vegetable garden (courtì) beside the house, providing vegetables and herbs to be used fresh during summer or stored for the winter months.
Splashes of colour, neatly arranged and carefully tended, stood among the stone and wooden houses, whose slate roofs — overlapping stone slabs — were laid so closely that the eaves almost touched, creating sheltered walkways between homes for protection during the harsh winters. The land surrounding the villages was laboriously cultivated, often terraced to create flat plots or left as meadows. Grass was essential for livestock farming — mainly cattle, but also goats and sheep. Dairy cows required abundant fresh grass or hay to sustain milk production throughout the year. Every summer, haymaking took place — once done entirely by hand — while in spring and early autumn, cows grazed in the valley pastures. In summer, herds moved up to the alpine pastures, high-altitude areas rich in fresh, fragrant grasses and flowers.
The Craftsman – Objects Made to Last
In a village where farming and livestock were the foundations of survival, people learned to craft the tools and objects essential for work and daily life, using materials that were readily available.
The craftsman could shape wood, stone, leather, and iron to create everything needed — rakes, baskets, pots, bowls, furniture, barrels. These useful objects were made to last, used and reused until they wore out, and whenever possible, repaired time and again. Craftsmanship was born out of necessity but developed over time as skill and savoir-faire were refined, passed down, and shared within the community. Those who knew how to make something would help those who didn’t, turning individual knowledge into a collective heritage.
Over time, craftsmanship evolved, giving rise to objects that combined functionality with beauty. Hearts, crosses, animals, flowers, and geometric carvings began to adorn everyday items, while purely decorative works also appeared — wooden statues of saints and artistic carvings created to enrich chapels and homes. Wood was carefully selected in winter and worked during the long evenings by the hearth. It was also the time when toys for children were carved.
“Cornailles” and “tata” are among the oldest and most enduring expressions of Valdostan craftsmanship: the former are stylised cows carved from a forked branch; the latter are small wheeled horses, more complex and requiring greater skill and patience.
Lost Trades – The Muleteer
As a village evolves and changes, some trades inevitably disappear, giving way to new ones.
The ski instructor and hotelier became the emblematic professions of La Thuile’s emerging tourism industry, while older crafts gradually faded into memory.
One of these was the muleteer, known locally as “lo melatì” — a profession both essential and poetic.
He was the man who lived in close partnership with his mule, walking beside it along mountain paths that the animal itself had traced over years of travel.
The job, arduous but profitable, involved transporting coal, sacks of provisions, construction materials, and at times contraband goods such as salt, tobacco, cigarettes, coffee, cowbells, or handcrafted items crossing the border.
The mule was also vital for farming: ploughing fields, carrying hay and sheaves of grain, hauling carts loaded with earth for terracing, manure for spring fertilisation, or coal from the mines.
In early autumn, as herds descended from the high pastures and the first snows arrived, the mule would open a well-trodden path for the cows to follow back to the village.
At the end of the procession came the mules, pulling large sledges laden with everything to be brought home — including, sometimes, calves and newborn animals.
The Birth of Skiing and the First Lifts
At the beginning of the twentieth century, La Thuile was still a mountain village rooted in farming, herding, and mining. Winters were long and harsh, but they also offered opportunities for new forms of leisure and movement across the snow.
The first skis appeared in the valley in the early decades of the 1900s, brought by travellers and soldiers who had seen or practised this new way of moving across the mountains of Northern Europe. Before long, local inhabitants began making their own wooden skis, shaping planks by hand and fastening simple leather straps to secure their feet.
During the 1930s, with the construction of the road to the Little St Bernard Pass and the arrival of the first tourists, La Thuile began its transformation into a winter resort. The first ski races and ski schools were organised, led by pioneering instructors who taught with passion and a spirit of adventure.
After World War II, amid economic revival and a renewed sense of optimism, the first proper ski lifts were built. In 1948, the Plateau cableway was inaugurated, soon followed by other lifts that connected the slopes and made the higher areas accessible.
From that moment on, skiing became an integral part of life in La Thuile, marking the shift from a subsistence economy to a modern tourist destination.
The Skier Changes Too
The very first skiers in La Thuile practised on the Arly Plain. In the early 1900s, the “Sci Club Rutor” was founded, initially focusing on cross-country skiing; downhill skiing was added only in the 1930s.
La Thuile is one of the Alpine villages that can claim to be a cradle of skiing in Italy. This sport was practised here at the dawn of the century by a small group of pioneers. As early as 1905, the Alpine Troops Inspectorate organised the first skiing courses for alpine units. La Thuile was chosen as a training site for its ideal snowfields and abundant winter snow.
At first, skiing was considered a pastime for the few and demanded great effort. Skiers climbed on foot, the slopes were unprepared, and skis were made of heavy ash wood—so long they matched the skier’s height with their arm raised. They were painted a dark colour to make them easier to find in the snow, but not too dark, as heat from the sun would melt and cause the snow to stick.
In the 1950s, not everyone welcomed the construction of ski lifts. Many believed the mountains should remain untouched by pylons and cables, reserved for those willing to climb them on foot, as in the early days of mountaineering.
The first hotels also appeared. New skiing techniques arrived from Austria and Switzerland: telemark, snowplough, and classic stride.
During military courses, soldiers were housed in the Enzo Zerboglio barracks in Bathieu, while officers stayed at the Nazionale Paris Hotel in the town centre or at the Jacquemod Hotel in Grande Golette.