Ovada lies where the plain ends and the foothills of the Ligurian-Piedmontese Apennines begin, at the confluence of the Stura di Ovada with the Orba: a crossing place, and the name indeed comes from the Latin vadum, a ford. It is the centre of the Ovadese, the southern tip of the province of Alessandria, bordering Liguria.
The hills around produce Dolcetto, the wine that made the town known: in 2024 Ovada was European Wine Capital together with Acqui Terme, Casale Monferrato and the hills of Ghemme and Gattinara. The first mention dates from 967, when Otto I gave marquis Aleramo an estate in Ovada territory; then came the Malaspina, Genoa and the Adorno, until 1499. The patron saint is Paul of the Cross, on 18 October.
Santuario di Nostra Signora della Guardia · chiesa di Nostra Signora Assunta · Castello di Lercaro and 2 more
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Next up: Saint Paul of the Cross, born after a plague, Sunday 18 October
Nearest airport: Genova, 29 km away
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📅 Every year, on 18 October
Ovada celebrates its patrons Saint Paul of the Cross and Saint John the Baptist on 18 October; the birthplace of the former, from 1694, has been a national monument since 1918.
Santuario di Nostra Signora della Guardia Ovada's Genoese sanctuary, its stone brought back into view in the nineties. 
chiesa di Nostra Signora Assunta Sober baroque inspired by Genoa, with twin bell towers and Pietro Ivaldi's vault. 
Castello di Lercaro A Lercaro fortified villa of 1570, given to the town in 1872 as a hospice, now a ruin 
chiesa dell'Immacolata Concezione A plague vow of 1631, first stone in 1640, and an almost total rebuild after the 1935 fire 
chiesa di Santa Maria delle Grazie Founded by Dominicans in 1481, with a high altar brought from Genoa in 1690 Straight-line distances from the town centre. Tap a point to open its page.
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
Outside Ovada, but an easy day trip away.
