Built to connect Mondovi's two main districts, Breo downstream and Piazza upstream, the funicular was inaugurated on 27 October 1886.
Designed by the engineer Alessandro Ferretti, a great expert and designer of mountain railways including the Monte dei Cappuccini in Turin, San Luca in Bologna and Monreale in Palermo, the cars ran on steam and could carry around 700 people a day.
The following year, in 1887, following an accident that also partially destroyed the Breo station, the first technical changes were made, replacing the steam traction with water counterweight traction, which remained in operation until 1926 when the funicular was electrified.
Unfortunately, as early as 1975 the funicular was abandoned for economic reasons, so the tracks were covered with brushwood and weeds, and only in 2005 did work begin on demolishing the old system to inaugurate a completely new one in 2006. The new cabins, designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro, are very spacious (they can hold up to about 70 people) with large windows that allow you to enjoy a marvellous view of the entire city of Mondovi during the ascent.
The restoration and recovery work has brought the stations and the system back to life, while maintaining the original 19th-century style, particularly in the entrance portal, which was designed by the sculptor Antonio Roàsio in 1871 as a grand gateway to the pedestrian street that was once used to reach two districts.
The funicular, now a symbol of the town, combines memories of the past with modern facilities capable of quickly and pleasantly connecting Mondovi's two souls. At the top of the climb, as soon as you exit the funicular, you will find Piazza Maggiore, the centre of the oldest district of the city, which dominates the whole town from above.
In past centuries it was the nerve centre of the life of the Monregalese and surrounding communities, and even today it is considered a village within a village, with its network of narrow streets, small squares and glimpses of hidden and very suggestive corners.
It is certainly the most interesting part of Mondovì from a tourist point of view, offering visitors the chance to come into direct contact with the peculiarities of the place while remaining off the usual routes of mass tourism.
The main points of interest in the town face the central square, starting on the right with the Church of the Mission, originally dedicated to San Francesco saverio, and facing it on the opposite side is the Cathedral of San Donato, Mondovì's central church and a jewel of Piedmontese Rococò Baroque.
From the square we reach Belvedere Park, which opens out onto a panorama encompassing the entire surrounding area from the Langhe to the Alps, and inside which we find the Torre Civica and the Parco del Tempo.
The visit to the Piazza district ends with two characteristic museums, the Museum of Ceramics housed in the 18th-century Palazzo Fauzone, and the Museum of Printing.
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