Lake Maggiore

Lake Maggiore essentials

Lake Maggiore spans the border of Italy and Switzerland, characterized by the Borromean Islands' Baroque architecture and elaborate terraced gardens. Significant landmarks include the 12th-century Santa Caterina del Sasso monastery built into a rock face, the 35-meter Sancarlone statue, and the medieval Rocca di Angera. The Swiss northern shore features the 220-meter Verzasca Dam and the pilgrimage site of Madonna del Sasso overlooking Locarno.

Daderot / Public domain

Palazzo Borromeo

17th-century Baroque palace featuring ornate shell-covered grottoes, a gallery of Flemish tapestries, and historical rooms that once hosted Napoleon Bonaparte.

Giardini dell'Isola Bella

Ten-tiered Italianate gardens featuring a stone amphitheater, statues of mythological figures, and roaming white peacocks set against a backdrop of the Alps.

Geobia / CC0

Sanctuary of the Madonna of the Rock

The Madonna del Sasso is a Marian Pontifical shrine in Orselina, above the city of Locarno in Switzerland.

Daderot / Public domain

Giardini Botanici Villa Taranto

The Giardini Botanici Villa Taranto are botanical gardens located on the western shore of Lake Maggiore in Pallanza, Province of Verbano…

Bruteforce7 / Public domain

Santa Caterina del Sasso

Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sasso is a Roman Catholic monastery located in the municipality of Leggiuno, in the Province of Varese and…

Martin Abegglen / CC BY-SA 3.0

Verzasca Dam

The Contra Dam, commonly known as the Verzasca Dam and the Locarno Dam, is an arch dam on the Verzasca River in the Val Verzasca of Ticino,…

Phyrexian / Public domain

Rocca Borromeo di Angera

The Rocca Borromeo di Angera, or Rocca d'Angera, also called Borromeo Castle, is a rocca on a hilltop above the town of Angera in the…

Sygic Travel User / CC-BY-SA

Ascona

Swiss lakeside town featuring a Mediterranean-style promenade and the historic Monte Verità hilltop, known for its early 20th-century artistic and philosophical colony.

MOs810 / CC BY-SA 4.0

Mottarone

Mottarone is a mountain in the Western Alps of Piedmont, north-western Italy, with an elevation of 1,492 metres.

Isola Superiore

Also known as Isola dei Pescatori, this is the only Borromean island with a permanent population. It is characterized by narrow medieval streets and traditional fishing heritage.

Isola Madre

Site of an extensive English-style botanical garden and a 16th-century palace. The grounds are known for exotic birds and rare plant species, including a massive Kashmir cypress.

Pfloriginale / CC BY-SA 3.0

Sancarlone

The San Carlone or Sancarlone or the Colossus of San Carlo Borromeo is a massive copper statue by Giovanni Battista Crespi, erected…

Rocca Vitaliana

16th-century fortification ruins located on small rocky islets. Built by the Borromeo family to replace an earlier castle used by the outlawed Mazzarditi brothers.