Madonna del Buon Consiglio Festival

A village festival at the foot of Monte Rosa

The Madonna del Buon Consiglio Festival is one of the most cherished events for the community of Calasca Dentro, a hamlet in the municipality of Calasca-Castiglione, in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Piedmont. Nestled in the picturesque Anzasca Valley, which rises toward the Monte Rosa massif, this small Alpine village pauses its daily routine for a few days to gather around its oratory, creating an authentic religious festival far from the main tourist flows.

The 18th-century oratory

The heart of the celebrations is the Oratory of the Madonna del Buon Consiglio and the Angels, a building with ancient roots. Since the 15th century, the inhabitants of Calasca Dentro gathered at a chapel dedicated to Saint Mary to discuss community affairs. The decision to build a proper oratory dates back to September 11, 1680, but work, hindered by the poverty of the locals, only gained momentum thanks to a bequest in 1763. The oratory was completed in 1766 and blessed on August 11, 1771.

Inside, it preserves the 1766 altarpiece donated by Antonio Tognola, which depicts the Madonna del Buon Consiglio — the famous Virgin of Genazzano — surrounded by praying angels, with Saint Joseph and Saint Anthony of Padua in the lower section. The same benefactor also brought the Via Crucis paintings from Rome, a testament to the devotional bond between this valley and the Italian Marian tradition.

The highlights of the festival

The festival takes place over two days. On the eve of the feast, residents gather in the village square for a convivial dinner: a moment of community where local families share a meal under the sky of the Ossola Alps. The day of the festival itself is dedicated to religious services in the oratory and the traditional procession that winds through the streets of the hamlet, with the statue of the Madonna carried among the stone and wood houses typical of Walser and Ossola architecture.

A heritage to discover

Visiting the festival also means discovering a little-known corner of Piedmont. Calasca-Castiglione is part of the Ossola Protected Areas and offers numerous trails among its hamlets, along the ancient Stra' Granda of the Anzasca Valley. The Madonna del Buon Consiglio Festival is the ideal opportunity to combine an experience of faith and popular tradition with the beauty of an unspoiled mountain landscape.