Often touted as Lake Garda and Como’s frumpy cousin, Lake Maggiore’s promenade is lined with slightly worn grand hotels, once visited by the rich and famous, and the sleepiness of its small towns dotted around the lake make it often cast aside for the glitz and glamour of the other lakes.
Promenade of the sleepy Lake Maggiore.
The tranquil waters of Lake Maggiore.
And long may it stay that way. I visited in mid June expecting to have to battle crowds of tourists and I couldn’t have been more wrong. The quiet sleepy promenade of Stresa allowed for long and peaceful walks with stunning views across the magnificent lake, and the heady scent of all the flowers in bloom follows you everywhere. Free from water sports and speedboats, the lake’s tranquility is mesmerising. A tranquility and panorama made all the more beautiful by the bewitching islands that rise up from the middle of the lake with an ethereal beauty.
Stresa itself is a sleepy town consisting of about three streets and a small piazza, but at only an hour by train from Milan it makes a great base for exploring the area. Thriving nightlife you will not find here, but there are a decent selection of restaurants and bars creating a bustling atmosphere, and there are regular boats services to all corners of the lake, including across the border into Switzerland.
The pretty main square of Stresa filled with cafes and bars.
Eating
Most of the more upmarket restaurants are located on Isola dei Pescatori, and so the choices in Stresa tend to be more casual. The main square, Piazza Cadorna, is full of casual eateries and I ate at ‘Ristorante Centrale‘, where the food was surprisingly good. Its kitchen is open longer during the day than most other places which is handy, and their prices are cheap but the food is decent quality and it makes a good lunch spot. ‘Il Portico‘ (Via Ottolini 9) nearby was also cheap and cheerful, but with good service and decent food, and lots of outdoor tables overlooking the street. ‘Lo Stornello‘ (Via Cavour, 35), tucked down a small side street, has nice tables both indoors and outdoors on a raised outdoor terrace. A bit more upmarket with white tablecloths and a more limited menu, the food was good quality and I enjoyed a delicious asparagus risotto. For a cozy and authentic experience, ‘Il Vicoletto‘ (Vicolo del Pocivo, 3, 0323 932102) is a small restaurant hidden away down a small street a few minutes walk from the main square. With a small but interesting menu, featuring some local fish dishes, this is a great choice and booking is essential. The Grand Hotel Borromees also has a very upmarket restaurant with tables on a terrace overlooking the lake.
One of the cute streets in Stresa lined with restaurants and shops.
Il Vicoletto offers an authentic Italian dining experience with great food.
DRINKING
There are some nice bars dotted around, perfect for either a pre or post dinner drink, or even an afternoon drink as that’s what lake holidays are all about, relaxation! For a bar with a view head to ‘Sky Bar‘ (Via Duchessa di Genova, 1) which is on the fifth floor of the modern 5* hotel ‘La Palma’. Upmarket, sleek and modern, in the evening this is where people come to be seen. With comfortable couches to lounge on, and a good selection of cocktails to choose from, this is a great place to chill out and watch the sun set over the lake.
Comfortable loungers and a beautiful view at Sky Bar, the rooftop bar of the ‘La Palma’ hotel on the lake front.
In the town centre there is the cute wine bar ‘Al Buscion‘ (Via Principessa Margherita, 18), serving a selection of light meals, tapas and a good selection of wines by the bottle and glass, and it has a nice atmosphere both inside and out. ‘Da Giannino‘ (Piazza Cadorna, 9) is another wine bar which had an interesting and extensive selection of wines by the glass, all of them good. I would definitely recommend coming here for some decent wine and it makes a great spot for people watching too with its outdoor seating overlooking the main square.
The cute wine bar ‘Il Buschion’ serving nice wines and a variety of tapas.
Sleeping
Whilst many hotels exude a kind of faded grandeur, there are also some luxury choices. I stayed at the ‘Grand Hotel Borromees‘, once a firm favourite with Ernest Hemingway and various members of the elite. Immediately impressive from the outside, inside is decorated in a beautifully ornate Art Nouveau style invoking the grand opulence of a bygone era. I took advantage of their Sunday special, they offer discounted rates on a Sunday and Wednesday. Opting for a room with garden view I was very pleased to learn I had received a free upgrade to a room with lake view complete with private balcony. Whilst the rooms are a touch old fashioned, their old world charm soon grows on you, and relaxing on the balcony with a glass of Prosecco whilst watching the boats chug slowly across the lake was wonderful. The hotel has a large outdoor pool with loungers around it, and there is an upscale restaurant on the beautiful terrace overlooking the lake as well as a small, beautiful garden perfect for relaxing in.
Relaxing private balcony overlooking the lake at the wonderfully luxurious ‘Grand Hotel Borromees’.
The hotel is grand and impressive inside and out, and has a beautiful terrace for breakfast, also used for the restaurant which serves lunch and dinner.
Whilst the main draw of this area is visiting the islands, there are still some things to do around Stresa. The Mottarone cable car takes you up into the mountains, with a stop half way to change cable cars. The beautiful Alpine gardens are only a fifteen minute walk from the changing point, or you can carry on up the mountain on a chair lift to the summit where you will find some beautiful views across the lake.
Stunning views across the lake from under the shade of the many trees in the Parco villa Pallavicino.
Only a ten minute walk from the centre there is also the ‘Parco Villa Pallavicino‘, a 19th century mansion set in parkland which is home to a huge variety of trees as well as some manicured gardens. Climbing its way up a hill, the paths lead upwards and the trees offer a wonderful respite from the heat, and there are plenty of beautiful views across the lake as you make your way through the park. There is also a petting zoo further into the woodland, and whilst I wasn’t overly keen on it due to improvements needing to be made, there was also an area nearby with deer roaming free which was wonderful. As you wander round the park you will also come across peacocks roaming freely around making their presence felt with their beauty and resounding shrieks. Whilst the park is not as stunning as the gardens of the islands, I felt it was an underrated attraction. In the end it was a great place to visit to relax and wander around for an afternoon, especially as you tend to come across more wildlife than people as you explore the paths and trails within the park.
Beautiful, empty paths leading through the Parco Villa Pallavicino, Stresa, Lake Maggiore.
It was a wonderful moment when this peacock approached me and started fanning his tail.
Deer roaming free in the wooded area of the park.
