Belluno is the only Italian provincial capital entirely enclosed within a national park: a city suspended on a spur between two rivers, with the Dolomites overlooking its highest quarters.
A balcony city between two rivers
Belluno stands on a rocky spur above the terrace where the Ardo stream meets the Piave river, a naturally defensive position that dominates the passage of both watercourses: it is exactly this shape that makes the city a true panoramic “balcony”. The old town, once encircled by walls of which only a few stretches survive along Via Dino Buzzati, looks north onto the mighty Schiara dolomitic group, which at 2,565 metres dominates the city’s skyline together with Monte Serva and Monte Talvena; from several points in the centre, the distinctive spire of the Gusela del Vescovà is also visible.
Belluno is the only Italian provincial capital entirely within the boundaries of a national park, the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park, part of the Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage site. Among the official walking routes proposed by the town council is one named precisely “Dolomiti”, connecting Piazza Piloni to Piazza Duomo, crossing the heart of the old town with its historic streets and squares.
The quarters of the upper town
Beyond the historic centre, Belluno is made up of quarters and areas that developed over the centuries around the old nucleus: Cavarzano and Fisterre, ancient settlements that grew up outside the Roman walls; Campitello, which became the urban centre of gravity after nineteenth-century development; Borgo Piave, the riverside quarter along the Piave; and San Fermo, on the opposite side of the city. Each of these quarters preserves different views of the surrounding mountains, offering ever-new perspectives on the Dolomiti Bellunesi depending on the vantage point.
Nevegal, the UNESCO panoramic balcony
South of the city, in the Faverghera-Nevegal area, a traditional destination for locals for skiing and walking, the sixth “panoramic balcony” of the Dolomites UNESCO network — the second in the province of Belluno — was inaugurated on 29 August 2020: an equipped viewing point from which the Valbelluna, crossed by the Piave, unfolds below, with views of the Monti del Sole, the Schiara group and the Monti Pallidi. Nevegal is thus the natural high-altitude gateway to the belvederes surrounding the balcony city of the Dolomites.
To discover in the historic centre
Belluno’s centre holds a rich heritage of squares, streets and historic palaces — among them Piazza Duomo, Piazza delle Erbe, Porta Dante and Palazzo dei Giuristi — and is home to the Belluno Civic Museum (Museo Civico di Belluno), with collections of sacred art and local archaeology.
Sources: Wikipedia, Comune di Belluno, dolomitiunesco.info.