Lago Maggiore Villas, gardens and holy mountains

Study Tour Overview

Less glamorous than Lake Como and less developed than Lake Garda, Lake Maggiore is perhaps the most idyllic of the Italian lakes. Nestled at the foot of the Swiss Alps as they descend towards the Po Valley, Maggiore shares its shoreline between Lombardy in the east and Piedmont in the west. The lake’s worldwide fame rests on the latter, specifically the area of the Borromean Gulf, extending from the busy resort of Stresa, dominated by truly grand hotels, to the beautiful lakeside village of Pallanza, which has a more intimate feel. Between them lie the magical floating garden terraces of the Isola Madre and Isola Bella, and the Isola dei Pescatori. The combination of picturesque villages, old villas and parks offering views framed by oleander shrubs and palm trees thriving in this subtropical microclimate, has been our romantic dream of an ideal Italian landscape come true, and for centuries the blend of natural and manmade surroundings was hailed among the Italy’s greatest sights. In addition to the world’s aristocracy, it was the literary elite that promenaded and sat by the shore, gazing across the waters; their accounts of the lake were legion, from Dumas to Dickens, from Heine to Hemingway. Stendhal even went as far as to urge his readers that anyone in possession of a heart and a shirt should sell the shirt to visit Lake Maggiore and its surroundings. Shirted or otherwise, we invite you to come and see for yourselves.

Programme Details

Day 1	Morning flight with British Airways from London Heathrow at c. 9am to Milan Linate. By coach to Lainate for a light lunch and to visit Villa Litta, laid out at the end of the 16th century in 1585 for the Milanese aristocrat Pirro I Visconti Borromeo. The villa’s nymphaeum, consisting of a succession of rooms decorated with mosaics and artificial caves, is considered one of the most important grottoes in northern Italy for the richness of the decorations and the variety of water features. From there continue to the beautiful lakeside town of Pallanza, where the tour will be based in an elegant hotel right by the waterfront.
Day 2	A full-day excursion by private boat across Lago Maggiore to visit its main attractions, the three Borromeo islands. Under the powerful Borromeo family, Isola Bella was transformed in the 17th century from a barren crag into a sumptuous Baroque terraced garden fantasy, famously inhabited by roaming white peacocks. A grand palace, rising above a little fishing village, dominates the island’s western end. After lunch on the picturesque Isola dei Pescatori, continue to Isola Madre, the largest of the trio. Its palace is older than Isola Bella’s, its plan more measured but no less beautiful, with expansive 18th-century botanical gardens  of rare plants, laid out ‘all’inglese’.
Day 3	By coach into the Piedmontese hills of Varallo whose Unesco World Heritage Sacro Monte, the most spectacular of Piedmontese pilgrimage complexes, consists of over 40 chapels that overlook the town from rocky outcrops. The chapels’ interiors are filled with life-size sculptures and wonderful Renaissance frescoes by local master Gaudenzio Ferrari, spectacularly staged to represent episodes from the Life of Christ. In Orta San Giulio on the shores of the small but lovely Lago di Orta, a second, slightly later Sacro Monte tells the story of St Francis of Assisi in this lively and most memorable manner.
Day 4	Today we explore the northern part of Lago Maggiore and into Switzerland. At Ascona we will cross to the twin Isole Brissago, the Botanical Garden of the Canton Ticino: the larger a well-tended botanical garden of abounding subtropical flora, the smaller an untamed natural paradise. Continue to Locarno for lunch and a visit to the Pinacoteca Casa Rusca, housing a collection of paintings and sculptures by the 20th-century Franco-German artist Jean Arp, one of the founding members of Dada movement. A short funicular ride will take us to the 16th-century Sanctuary of the Madonna del Sasso, perched magnificently over the town. From there return by coach to Pallanza.
Day 5	Morning coach excursion to the picturesque towns of Domodossola, which sits on the confluence of two alpine rivers, and Baceno, to admire the great Lombard Romanesque church of San Gaudenzio. After lunch, return to Lago Maggiore and the lovely town of Cannobio, which sits along one of its most spectacular stretches.
Day 6	A morning to explore Pallanza proper, including the Renaissance church of the Madonna di Campagna, and the botanical gardens of the Villa Taranto, a 1930s labour of love by the Scottish millionaire Neil McEachern. After lunch, cross the lake to roam the park of Villa Pallavicino and independent exploration of Stresa, for more than a century a famed aristocratic retreat, its shoreline dotted with luxury hotels of the Belle Époque. Alternatively, you may just want to enjoy the peace and quiet of the secluded hotel grounds.
Day 7	In the morning, depart the hotel by boat for the Hermitage of S. Caterina del Sasso, clinging to the rock on the lake’s Lombard shore. From there continue by coach south to Angera for a visit to the imposing mediaeval Rocca Borromeo, whose Hall of Justice preserves rare 13th-century murals. After an early lunch break continue to Milan Linate airport for an afternoon flight to London Heathrow, scheduled to land at c. 5pm.