Villa Minozzo is located in the upper Reggio Emilia Apennines. It’s a very large area included within the ridge of Mount Cusna and the valleys of the Dolo and Secchia rivers, in the heart of the National Park of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines. Since 2015 this area has been part of a Man and Biosphere Reserve recognized by UNESCO http://www.mabappennino.it/
It is located about 65 km from Reggio Emilia, but to reach the highest hamlets it takes about 80 kilometres.
The village is surrounded by fodder fields, crops and farms that produce milk for Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
A special feature is the museum dedicated to the tradition of popular representations of the "dramatic May", which take place outdoors and tell tales of knightly and mythical deeds, whose origin is ascribed to the propitiatory rituals that can be found in all European cultures.
There are many restaurants and mountain lodges that attract those who are passionate about gastronomic tradition and local products.
For example: fried gnocco with cold cuts and cheeses, erbazzone, cappelletti, tortelli. These are appreciated dishes, cooked in the majority of cases with Km0 ingredients. Not to mention Parmigiano Reggiano, chestnuts and porcini mushrooms, all part of many traditional recipes.
There are many hamlets in the municipality of Villa Minozzo with ancient architectural types, with fifteenth-century, seventeenth-century or nineteenth-century buildings, such as in Monteorsaro or Cervarolo.
Civago is located in the high valley of the river Dolo, it is the last town and precedes some of the most interesting areas of forests and grasslands at high altitudes of the Apennine; it is an holiday resort and a privileged starting point for hikes to the peaks of the ridge.
Minozzo rises on an ophiolite outcrop, on which the ancient fortress of the village was built in medieval times. There is also the Pieve of S. Maria Assunta, built in 1600 in a beautiful location in the area of Bismantova and Val Secchia.
Febbio is the last village in the Val d'Asta, located at 1053 m asl. at the foot of Mount Cusna. It is a tourist resort that in winter offers the opportunity to ski, thanks to the ski lifts, and in summer it is a central hub for hiking, excursions, mountain biking or horse riding. The chairlift of Febbio 2000 is active in both winter and summer time.
