Rifugio Avanzà

Rifugio Avanzà is an alpine hut (rifugio alpino) situated at 2,578 metres above sea level in the Cozie Alps, within the municipality of Venaus in the Susa Valley, Piedmont, Italy, close to the French border. The structure began as a military redoubt built to control the nearby Colle Clapier. After years of abandonment, it was restored from 1973 onward by a group of volunteers from the Pro Loco of Venaus and converted into an alpine hut. The rifugio sits near the Avanzà pass on the southern slope of Monte Giusalet and serves as a starting point for the southern ascent of that mountain. The French frontier passes a few hundred metres to the west near the Lago della Vecchia. Access is possible from Bar Cenisio or by climbing the ridge between the Cenischia valley and the Clarea valley. The hut is owned by the Comune di Venaus and its official page is hosted on the municipal website. It is a modest but historically significant mountain hospitality facility rather than a commercial chain, and it remains a point of reference for hikers and climbers in the upper Susa Valley.

The site of Rifugio Avanzà was originally occupied by a military redoubt (ridotta) built to control the nearby Colle Clapier. For many years the structure was completely abandoned. Starting in 1973, a group of volunteers belonging to the Pro Loco of Venaus restored the building and turned it into an alpine hut. The restoration is documented in a local history book by Vincenzo Bonelli, published in 2013, which chronicles the volunteer effort. The hut is owned by the Comune di Venaus and its official page is hosted on the municipal website. It remains an active alpine hut at 2,578 metres above sea level in the Cozie Alps, serving hikers and climbers in the Susa Valley near the French border.

• 2013

  Vincenzo Bonelli publishes a local history of the hut and its volunteer restoration.

• 1973

  Volunteers from the Pro Loco of Venaus begin restoring the abandoned military redoubt and convert it into an alpine hut.

A volunteer-restored, municipally owned alpine hut offering basic mountain hospitality and a historic base for climbs in the Cozie Alps.

• Alpine hut accommodation

• Mountain meals and refreshments

• Base for Monte Giusalet ascent

• Traverse to Rifugio Piero Vacca

1. 1Rifugio Avanzà – Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Rifugio Avanzà – Wikipedia (Italian)it.wikipedia.org
3. 3Official page on Comune di Venaus websitecomune.venaus.to.it