stresa
Offering excellent transport connections, a gorgeous lakeside promenade, a pretty pedestrian core and three spectacular island hamlets, as well as a fascinating belle époque history, the sedate town of Stresa makes the obvious base for a holiday on Lago Maggiore.
What makes Stresa truly unique though is the fact that the town boundaries encompass both Isola Madre with its Mediterranean climate and Mottarone, a ski resort. The two are separated by a short boat trip and a thirty minute drive up which offers a fascinating telescoped view of changing habitats.
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Stresa boasts two attractive squares, both bursting with outdoor restaurants and bars.
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The atmosphere is undeniably touristy, with foreigners probably outnumbering Italians, but nevertheless very agreeable and convivial. There are few better places to sit down in company over lunch or in the evening to enjoy the local, very reasonably priced fare.
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There is also an eclectic mix of shops selling an interesting assortment of items.
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One aspect of the town that people find endearing is a certain toy-town aura. Unlike many similar-sized resorts in other areas, it has managed to retain all those features which in the popular consciousness, should be a feature of any self-respecting town.
Just to give an idea, it has at least one butcher, a baker, a cobbler, cake-shops, a grocers, a supermarket, several trinket shops and clothes shops, a cheese shop, two churches, a train station and several schools.
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As the town is within easy reach of Milan, it has always been a popular weekend destination, especially since 1906 when the railway was built and the town provided a convenient get-away location for the city’s wealthier residents.
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In fact, generations of Italians have promenaded up and down its beautiful lakefront dressed in their Sunday best.
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So put on your best clothers and head for the stunningly photogenic stretch of genteel lakefront to the north of the town, just before the village of Carciano.
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During the summer months, the area is often given over to crafts and food fairs.
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The word sedate is commonly used when describing Stresa. It may come as a surprise to learn that once upon a time, Stresa was anything but demure and represented the height of sophistication and fun for stylish Milanese who, every winter, during the interwar years would travel up from Milan by train, take the funicular to the top of Mt Mottarone for a spot of skiing before descending to party the night away.
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Ghosts of its belle époque past can be seen in abandoned dance halls, several crumbling villas whose windows stare vacantly out over the lake and vestiges of the narrow gauge railway.
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But above all in the magnificently showy turn of the century villas with their sometimes outlandish adornments.
The town has been world-famous for over 150 years and has been much loved by the literati (Stendhal, Hemingway etc) and statesmen.
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In 1935 there was a key conference attended by Britain, France and Italy to reaffirm the Locarno and Versailles Treaties whilst in its role as a conference centre, Stresa has frequently played host to political figures and celebrities, both Italian and foreign.
These figures would usually stay at one of the two magnificent belle epoque five star hotels, which over the years have thankfully lost none of their nostalgic charm.
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A few words on travelling by boat. Unless you have your own, the choice is between the public and private services.
The latter can be somewhat off-putting with men wearing captains’ hats pestering you to follow them onto their private boats.
Your first reaction may understandably be to spurn their attentions and head for the public boats, but bear in mind that the private service does offer several important advantages. First of all, depending on the number of people in your party, it can work out cheaper.
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The private boats are invariably quicker and more stylish especially if you manage to nab one of the older wooden hulled boats.
If you need a return trip from the island, arrange the time to be picked up. There’s no need to be anxious about being left stranded and benighted.
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Your boat captain will be at the appointed spot at the agreed time Another tip is to take the boat, either private or public (the latter not running in winter) from Carciano rather than Stresa proper.
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As the journey time is shorter, the fare is cheaper. Lastly, for detailed information on Stresa there is no better source of information than stresasights.com, run by our good friend, Dana.
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Beaches
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If you're staying in a Stresa hotel, all you have to do is cross the road to visit one of a string of pebble and shingle beaches near the town centre. What could be more convenient? Especially if you have time to kill whilst awaiting a boat to one of the islands.
The handful of town beaches are also great for people-watching with so much going on: holiday-makers strolling along the lakeside walk, private boat captains hustling for custom, ferries and private boats endlessly toing and froing.
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If you’re looking for an all-day beach destination you could try Lido Blue opposite Regina Elena. It offers the full range of facilities including a wonderful retro style bar/restaurant where you can sit and watch the world go by.
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There is another Lido in Carciano, 20 minutes’ walk north of the town centre along the stunningly scenic lakeside promenade.
The views of the islands are excellent. Given the number of motor boats in the vicinity you probably wouldn’t want to swim here though.
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If you’re looking for somewhere more secluded, Lov Bar, a few hundred metres south of town and opposite the entrance to Villa Pallavicino zoo, might be a good bet with its quieter, stony beach.
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What we like about Lov is its Mediterranean beach hut vibe: white painted driftwood with a few splashes of red paint. This beach is popular with dog owners as pets are allowed access.
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Parking
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There is free parking at Lov Bar and at the Lido. Also free parking in the residential part of Stresa above the railway.
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Villa Pallavicino
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Now reopened as part of the portfolio of properties managed by the Borromeo family, Villa Pallavicino comprises a small zoo and landscaped gardens within the grounds of a fine turn-of-the-century mansion.
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A few hours at Villa Pallavicino are ideal if you need a break from the hectic pace of shopping and sightseeing, especially if you enjoy floral displays, manicured lawns, ancient trees and heritage architecture and if you’re looking for something to entertain your children.
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There is parking by the lakeside on the opposite side of the road to the entrance and the ticket office; otherwise, the villa is within strolling distance of Stresa.
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