Trento: if you’re moving from a city, start here
If you are considering a move to Trentino but do not want to give up city life, Trento is the most natural place to start. It is the provincial capital and the only city in Trentino with more than 100,000 residents. This is where you will find the main public institutions, the university, research centres and many companies, including some of the province’s largest employers, particularly in the northern part of the city. If you work in Trento, living here too is a realistic option, without turning your commute into a second job.
Services, schools and transport: everyday life in the city
Trento sits on the valley floor, rather than high in the mountains, and everyday life reflects that. Snow in the city is more the exception than the rule. There are schools at every level, while urban and regional buses connect the centre with neighbourhoods and surrounding districts. For many everyday needs, it is possible to manage without a car, something that is much less straightforward in other parts of Trentino.
Public transport is also heavily subsidised. Secondary school students can travel throughout the province for €20 a year, while UniTrento students pay €70 a year. Specific concessions are also available for older residents, including free public transport for eligible residents aged 70 and over.
Quality of life in Trento: what the data says
In 2025, the province of Trento ranked first in Il Sole 24 Ore’s annual Quality of Life survey, which measures 90 indicators covering employment, services, the environment, safety, culture and leisure. Trentino has reached the podium fifteen times since the ranking began in 1990. Like any ranking, these figures are better read as an indication than a promise. What matters is how they translate into ordinary life: services are close by, distances are manageable and nature is always within reach.
University, research and culture
The University of Trento is spread between the city centre and the hills above it, with its science and engineering campuses in Povo and Mesiano. Fondazione Bruno Kessler is also based in Povo. You can work in artificial intelligence, biotechnology or engineering and leave the office already within walking distance of a woodland trail.
Culture in Trento is closely connected to science and history too. MUSE, the science museum, is one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks. Then there are less expected places, such as Le Gallerie di Piedicastello, just outside the centre: two former road tunnels, each around 300 metres long, where cars passed until 2007 and exhibitions and events are held today. It says something about Trento: this is a city that finds new uses for its spaces rather than simply leaving them behind.
Nature just beyond the city centre
In Trento, nature begins where the city ends. At Ponte Alto, only a few kilometres from the centre, the Fersina stream has carved a canyon over thousands of years, with two waterfalls more than 40 metres high. On a guided visit, suspended walkways and stairways lead through the gorge to a viewing platform hidden behind the falling water.
Above the city rises Monte Bondone. Peaks such as Cima Palon exceed 2,000 metres, around 1,900 metres above the valley floor. In winter you can ski; in summer you can hike; and at Viote you will find one of the oldest and largest Alpine botanical gardens, managed by MUSE.
Sardagna, on the slopes of Monte Bondone, is already connected to the city by a cable car that has been operating since 1925. A broader connection towards the mountain is still a project: the first section, between Trento and Sardagna, is currently being designed, while different options for continuing towards Monte Bondone are still under consideration.
If you want city life without giving up the mountains, Trento is the most straightforward choice: you do not have to choose between the two.
Sources: Il Sole 24 Ore, Quality of life 2025; Istat, Permanent Polupation Census (Trentino, 2024); Municipality of Trento, Trento in figures 2024; Autonomous Province of Trento, public transport fares(2025); Autonomous Province of Trento, Press Office (Trento-Bondone cable car), University of Trento; Fondazione Bruno Kessler; MUSE; Trentino Historical Museum Foundation (Le Gallerie); Visit Trentino (Ponte Alto Gorge); APT Trento, Monte Bondone. Sources consulted in Semptember 2026.
