Savda

thumb The village has been settled since Roman times, during which the villagers subsisted on a sparse crop of rye and meat, and was a spa resort as early as the 18th century, because of its sulphurous springs. It began to grow during the 19th century's fashion for alpinism, and Italy’s first alpine guide society was established here. In the 20th century, it developed as a ski resort. The opening of the Mont Blanc tunnel in 1965 greatly improved road access from northern Europe. thumb The core of the village is the 1 km pedestrianised section of Via Roma, between Hotel Courmayeur at the south end and the town hall at the north end. About 500 m SW of Hotel Courmayeur, down Via Volpi, is the base station for the main cable-car; the north end of the village is served by the smaller Dolonne cable-car. These both rise to the 1702 m station of Plan Checrouit, a small plateau with restaurants, bars and ski rental & schools.