The plot of the Rai Uno mini-series Black Out – Suspended lives is breathtaking, but the setting in which it takes place is fabulous. An avalanche forces the guests and staff of a high-altitude luxury hotel to isolate themselves from the rest of the world.
fiction with Alexander Edel and Aurora Ruffino was shot in one of the most beautiful valleys of the Alps, the Valle del Vanoi, in Trentino, thanks to the support of the Trentino Film Commission.
Where is the hotel
First of all, the hotel where the protagonists of the series are trapped due to the avalanche is actually not a hotel but the visitor center of the Paneveggio Park: Villa Monguelfo.
The villa, built in 1853, is in a heavenly location on a small lake. It was once the residence of the Welsperg counts. Renovated in the 1990s, it is now the headquarters of the Park Authority, which can be visited with an exhibition tour that traces the history of the valley.
The glorious valley of “Black Out – Suspended lives”
Nestled between the Dolomites, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Lagorai massif, this valley owes its name to the stream that flows through it. Isolated for a long time because it was difficult to establish connections with the outside world (only in the 1990s the tunnel under Mount Totoga was just over 3 kilometers long to reach it), the Vanoi Valley has preserved its exceptional natural heritage almost intact, one of the most varied and intact of the region, earning it the nickname “Green Heart of Trentinoincluded in the Paneveggio-Pale di San Martino Natural Park.
For those who already know a little of this area of eastern Trentino, the Valle del Primiero, the Pale di San Martino, the Val Venegia and the Val Canali are also recognizable in fiction.
There are more than a hundred peaks exceeding 2,000 meters surrounding the valley. The mountains dominate steep green slopes with villages (caoria – in fiction the village of Valdena –, Canal San Bovo and Lausen, Prade, Zortea, Gobbera, Ronco and Cainari, Cicona and many other small hamlets), vast pastures, coniferous forests, lakes, streams, huts and numerous farmsteads farmers.
there Vanoi Valley It is very rich in water, with lakes – such as the five Laghetti Monte Stelle delle Sute over 2000 meters or Lago Nero – and streams including the main torrente Vanoi.
In short, a valley still intact, untouched by man, whose virginity can be discovered during a holiday dedicated to beauty and authenticity, as well as outdoor activities in summer and winter.
Discover the valley in summer
Summer is the best season to discover the Vanoi Valley. There are many activities that can be undertaken, from the quieter ones such as Nordic walking (among the recommended routes there is the magnificent one path of flowers), fishing, mushroom picking in the forests, kayaking in the mountain lakes, mountain biking on the many marked trails and horseback riding, as well as other adrenaline-pumping activities such as rock climbing, canyoning and rafting in the rivers and paragliding.
What to do in the Vanoi Valley in winter
But winter also has some nice surprises in store. It’s wonderful to discover the valley with the snowshoes on your feeti, dive into the fresh snow and walk between huts, forests and clearings.
But you can also practice ski mountaineering thanks to the countless routes that it offers along the slopes of the mountain ranges and cross-country ski trails around the enchanting Calaita Lakea body of water of natural origin in the Paneveggio Natural Park.