Riserva Naturale della Vauda, Regional nature reserve in Metropolitan City of Turin, Italy

The Riserva Naturale della Vauda is a protected reserve spread across seven municipalities in the Turin metropolitan area, containing a mosaic of different landscape types. Wetlands, shallow lakes, heathlands, and valleys formed by streams create the physical structure of this natural area.

The Piedmont Region established the Vauda as an Integrated Nature Reserve in 1993, covering 2,600 hectares across seven municipalities. For about 185 years, roughly half of the area has belonged to the Military State Property as a firing range, used only sporadically in recent decades. Sporadic surveys have revealed Celtic-Roman artefacts in the area.

The reserve's first visitor centre opened in Vauda Canavese on 29 November 1999, with exhibition rooms and a teaching laboratory. It closed after about ten years and reopened in 2019 as a documentation centre. The heathland also holds Celtic-Roman finds from sporadic surveys, and the gentian Gentiana pneumonanthe blooms in late summer.

The reserve is open year-round and features natural trails suitable for walking, cycling, and horseback riding through its varied landscapes. It is useful to wear proper footwear as some areas can be wet and muddy, especially after rain or during certain seasons.

About half of the protected area belongs to the military and was used as a training ground for many decades, which shaped the land in an unusual way. This military presence paradoxically helped preserve the natural habitats by keeping the area away from commercial development for a long time.