Lo Carlevà dla Val Soana

The carnival of the magical valley

In the heart of the Canavese mountains, in the province of Turin, the Soana Valley celebrates its carnival every year: Lo Carlevà dla Val Soana, aptly subtitled "the carnival of the magical valley." It is a collective event that involves the small municipalities of the valley—Ronco Canavese, Ingria, and Valprato Soana with its hamlets of Forzo and Servino—uniting their respective Pro Loco associations in one great community celebration.

Two days of food and masks

The program follows a well-established structure and takes place over a weekend in March. Saturday evening is dedicated to conviviality: the masquerade dinner is held in the multi-purpose hall (or village hall) of Ronco Canavese, featuring a mountain menu of polenta and wild boar or polenta and stew, followed by a grand ball and the awarding of the best costumes.

The parade of allegorical floats

The heart of the festival is the parade of allegorical floats on Sunday. The gathering takes place in Piazza Mistral in Ronco Canavese: from here, the floats, built during the winter by groups from the various villages, travel up the valley along the classic Ronco - Forzo - Valprato route, with delicious stops in the villages along the way. The parade concludes in Valprato Soana, where the floats are awarded prizes, accompanied by refreshments offered by the Pro Loco. Among the themes that have won over the jury in recent years is the "medieval world" float, meticulously detailed and full of costumed participants.

The closing dinner

To seal the carnival, there is the closing dinner, traditionally hosted in the parish hall of Ingria, featuring a signature dish of the valley: beans and pork rinds (fagioli e cotenne). It is a moment that brings together residents, local age groups, and friends of the valley in a familiar, festive atmosphere.

An alpine and Franco-Provençal tradition

The Soana Valley is one of the Gran Paradiso valleys that preserves the Franco-Provençal language and culture, and the very name of the festival—Lo Carlevà—is a testament to this. The carnival is a precious opportunity to experience the authenticity of these mountain villages in Piedmont, far from mass tourism, and to discover the gastronomy and traditions of an alpine community that turns the carnival into a moment of strong collective identity.