Festa di Sant'Ambrogio a Cusino

A late summer festival

In addition to the patron saint Saint John the Baptist, the community of Cusino also celebrates Saint Ambrose, the great bishop of Milan and patron saint of Lombardy, in the village church named after him. The festival falls on the second Sunday of September and ideally marks the end of the summer season in this corner of Val Cavargna, a pre-Alpine valley in the Como area.

The tradition of the "canestri"

The heart of the festival is the celebration of mass in the morning in the church of Sant'Ambrogio, followed in the afternoon by the "canestri". This is a typically mountainous tradition: in the past, participants brought their own provisions, collected in baskets (canestri), to consume together in the meadows around the church, in a large open-air community picnic.

Today: the community lunch

Over the years, the format has evolved: today the parish, with the collaboration of the owners of the nearby huts, organises a lunch with traditional valley dishes. However, the original spirit of conviviality, simplicity, and connection with the land remains intact. It is a festival that brings families and holidaymakers to the village, in a spirit of reunion that precedes the arrival of autumn.

Discovering Val Cavargna

Participating in the Festa di Sant'Ambrogio means coming into contact with the most authentic soul of the Larian Alps. Val Cavargna, with its mountain pastures, trails, and centuries-old traditions, is an ideal destination for those seeking slow and genuine tourism, far from the more crowded circuits of Lake Como.