Brissago-Valtravaglia: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Varese, Lombardia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Brissago-Valtravaglia
The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.
For example: Via Provinciale 1, Brissago-Valtravaglia.
Brissago-Valtravaglia, hills above the shore of Lake Maggiore
The municipality sits in the hills at around four hundred metres, in the Valtravaglia, the valley that climbs from the Lombard shore of Lake Maggiore between Luino and Laveno. The lake is a few minutes' drive away, but life here is lived among the woods rather than on the water. The Swiss border is not far.
The population is growing: there are 1,308 residents (2023), up 4.6% on 2011. The age profile confirms it, with an average of 44.9 against 46.5 in the province of Varese and over-65s at 21.9%. Foreign residents make up 5.9%, and households have 2.49 members on average. Average declared incomes are well below the provincial average.
The market offers detached houses, village houses and the occasional rustic building to restore, with prices to be checked area by area. For work, secondary schools and services, people rely on Luino and the other lakeside towns, and on Varese further south. Winters are cold (climate zone E), so insulation and heating matter; houses in the woods can get little light in the winter months, something to look at when you visit.
All 136 municipalities in the province of Varese are in seismic zone 4, the lowest class, and the expected acceleration here is 0.040 g. Roof, damp and systems matter more than the structure.
On wooded slopes and along the streams running down to the lake, ground conditions change from plot to plot. The report finds the land parcel on the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) maps and checks the official landslide and flood maps for that address.
Key points
- Wooded Valtravaglia hills above Lake Maggiore.
- 1,308 residents, up 4.6% since 2011.
- Average age 44.9, below the provincial average.
- All 136 municipalities in the province in seismic zone 4.
Overview
Brissago-Valtravaglia is a municipality in the province of Varese, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 1,308 residents, ranked 109 of 136 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Brissago-Valtravaglia is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 136 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.040 g, a low value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
In zone 4 the risk is low, but for an older building it is still worth asking about the state of the structure.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 4.6%. The estimated average age is 45 years, lower than the province average (46). 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 5.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.5 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Brissago-Valtravaglia declared an average taxable income of 19,663 euros, below the provincial average (27,186 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Brissago-Valtravaglia is in climate zone E, with 2,772 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 429 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Brissago-Valtravaglia has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 sports facility.
The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
Public transport
The open timetables available for the area do not list any stops within the territory of Brissago-Valtravaglia.
How built-up it is
Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 7.9% of the land in Brissago-Valtravaglia, compared with 21.1% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
Brissago-Valtravaglia is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Lombardia in 2023. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list no contaminated sites in Brissago-Valtravaglia.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Brissago-Valtravaglia: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.
House prices
The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.
Land registry
The cadastral maps for Brissago-Valtravaglia are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.
Liveability area by area
The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 12 inhabited census areas in Brissago-Valtravaglia. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 61 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 72.8%
- good 27.2%
Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.
The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out
Data sources
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Public transport timetables (GTFS): Trenord, Regione Lombardia - Trenord, orari ferroviari (GTFS). Licence CC BY 4.0, version 20261111.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Radon priority areas (Legislative Decree 101/2020), Regione Lombardia, national list compiled by ARPA Lombardia. Licence Atto pubblico (art. 5 L. 633/1941), 2023.
- Contaminated sites, Regione Lombardia. Licence CC0 1.0 (pubblico dominio), updated to 15 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 012022. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.