San Romedio Sanctuary

Have you ever heard of the San Romedio sanctuary? I am sure you have because this gem is the envy of the whole of Europe! The building is an ancient hermitage where, according to legend, Saint Romedio lived with his bear.

Is this why everyone up here is said to be a bit grumpy, like a bear with a sore head? Joking apart, let me tell you this: if you come to the Val di Non, put San Romedio right at the very top of your list of things to see. Why’s that? I will give you at least three good reasons. Let’s leave the bear until last, trust me, there is much more.

1. Above all, there is the magic of the place. Five little churches stacked on top of each other, all built on a rocky outcrop joined together by a long staircase with 131 steps. Exhausting! But don’t complain, when you get up there you will thank me for it.
2. Second reason? The path in the rock that leads to the hermitage. Enchanting, relaxing, a little bit vertiginous: in short, it is the perfect way to prepare yourself emotionally for your visit to the San Romedio Sanctuary.
3. And, last of all, the famous bear. Don’t rush to judgement, hear me out about why the bear is here: his name is Bruno and since 2013 he lives in the enclousere outside the sanctuary. He was saved from a long and sad period of captivity and taken to San Romedio to spend his last years in traquillity and well looked after.

The Santuary is always open to the public and here you find all the information in order to visit it!

San Romedio is one of the stops on the pilgrimage Il Papa delle Dolomiti, organized for the Jubilee 2025.
The route winds through the sanctuaries visited by Blessed John Paul I; as a child, Pope Luciani often visited the sanctuary with his grandparents and fellow villagers. Later, he even wrote a unique letter to San Romedio’s bear.