Country Article / Postcards
Tax-free Since 1805
Date: 02/19/2004Dear Reader,
Skiing, ice-climbing, snowboarding, ice-skating, skidooing, telemark, rally driving on ice... I'm not very good at any of them.
It's just as well I spend my winter vacations in Livigno. In addition to offering all the above (see below for details), this little Italian village is an easy day trip to exclusive Swiss resort St. Moritz and just four hours from Milan and Zurich...and everything's tax-free year-round (Napoleon granted Livigno "custom sovereignty" in 1805).
Here, Irish whiskey--the same bottle you pay 35 euro ($44) for in Ireland--costs 8 euro ($10). American brand cigarettes are 2 euro ($2.50). Electronics, watches, perfume, designer clothes (and this is Italy, remember) all benefit from a similar discount.
As you wander though the village, don't be drawn to a store just because it has a bright neon sign saying "Duty Free Shop." They're all duty-free shops, whether the sign says so or not. And it's worth your while to give every store a chance. Livigno has some of the world's most eclectic store owners. One store sells bed linen and train sets; another sells antique clocks and umbrellas; still another sells sporting goods and kitchenware.
Some stores are less expensive than others; some restaurants deserve your custom...others are thinly disguised fast-food joints; you'll find hidden treasure troves...and tacky dens of junk. I won't ruin the surprises. Livigno is really just one main street that occasionally divides and meets back on itself--half the fun is discovering the finds for yourself.
I will give you this, though. Don't eat at the much-touted La Locanda on via Canton. Instead, go across the street to Mattias. Better food, fewer people.
Len Galvin
For International Living
P.S. The group I go skiing with is made up of experienced skiers who, among them, have clocked hundreds of hours on Europe's slopes--Austria, France, Andorra, Italy, and Switzerland--and they keep coming back to Livigno. As well as being the cheapest ski resort in the Alps, Livigno is also one of the most snow sure. The season runs from December to March, but it snows November to May. A lift pass for the week costs 130 euro ($165) and includes transport around the resort and access to the ski lifts at St. Moritz.
Rate this Postcard:
Rating: 3/5 (33 votes cast)