Let us take you back in time
The history of Valcrosa and the monastery in which our rooms and apartments are located, dates back to the end of the eleventh and beginning of the twelfth century. In that period, monks settled here because of the availability of sufficient clean water, fertile agricultural land and the weather: not too hot in the summer and not too cold in the winter. By using everything that nature had to offer, this community grew to about 50 families. They also made bricks and tiles themselves, the remains of which you can still see in our B&B.
Original wood-fired ovens
The monastery had two wood-burning ovens: one outside, for the shared use of the residents of Valcrosa and one in the monks’ kitchen. You can now find that oven in the shared dining area of our B&B, a nice place to eat together, play a game or just stare into the fire. The outside oven is also still in use. From the twelfth to about the nineteenth century, little is known about Valcrosa. The only thing we know is that during that period almost all the oaks were cut down for the production of sleepers for the railway lines that were being built.
Rapetti family
In 1929, the family of the current owner, Emilio Rapetti, bought a piece of land and the monastery. Emilio’s grandfather later bought another 11 hectares of land and the house that stands on the hill, near the monastery. Emilio’s father restored the outdoor oven, which we still use to heat the dinning room of the B&B.From around 1970, Valcrosa and the surrounding area were uninhabited and slowly fell into disrepair – until 2003. From that year on, Emilio bought almost all 70 hectares of land and the associated buildings in a few years and became the owner of the entire Valcrosa valley. From 2005, the restoration of the landscape and the restoration of the buildings began. The principles of the first inhabitants of Valcrosa, the monks, were used for this. The biological system was the starting point for the restoration and restoration – with respect for nature, animals, people and life in general. Every year, on the first Saturday of August, the grain harvest festival (trebbiatura) is still celebrated on Valcrosa. Of course, the “Ollandesi” (read: guests of B&B Valcrosa) are also allowed to join in the feast.
