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After exploring Upper Town (Città Alta) in Bergamo, we decided to head up to San Vigilio, which is a hill above the city. At the top are fantastic views of Bergamo as well as a castle.
Porta Sant’Alessandro
To get there, we walked through Porta Sant’Alessandro, which is one of four gates accessing Città Alta. The gate was constructed in 1561 by the Republic of Venice, and it’s possible to see the Lion of St. Mark above the gate. The gate and the Venetian walls of the city are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Porta Sant’Alessandro was built on the site of a cathedral with the same name. The name was transferred to what is now the Cathedral of Sant’Alessandro (Cattedrale di Sant’Alessandro) on Piazza del Duomo.
Funicular
In front of the gate is the San Vigilio Funicular (Funicolare di San Vigilio). It opened in 1912, but was closed for 15 years between 1976 and 1991. The funicular line is 630m long and makes the journey in under three minutes.
Once at the top, we noticed a lively restaurant with outdoor seating just outside the funicular station. Also, from the funicular station, there were spectacular views of Bergamo.
Views of Bergamo
From there, we walked up the street towards the castle. Again, there were phenomenal views of the city and countryside.
San Vigilio Castle
After a few minutes, we reached the castle walls. San Vigilio Castle (Castello di San Vigilio) was the residence of Bergamo’s rulers for several centuries. It was first fortified in the 6th century by a Christian community. The Christians were ousted in 889 and it turned into a military outpost. By the end of the 19th century, it had turned into a tourist attraction. It now contains a luxury hotel and restaurant.
We wandered the grounds next to the castle walls for a bit and noticed a fountain and small park where we sat and rested for a few moments.
From there, we climbed a stairway in a damp and dark tunnel to get into the actual castle.
We were treated to even more incredible views of the countryside.
There were also great views of Bergamo and we could spot the fountain just outside the castle walls.
