Stresa and the Borromean Islands: Lake Maggiore at Its Most Spectacular
Stresa and the Borromean Islands together form one of the most celebrated lake destinations in Europe — a combination of elegant lakeside town, aristocratic island palaces, and botanical gardens that has drawn travelers, writers, and artists to the western shore of Lake Maggiore for over three centuries. Stresa itself is a town of wide promenades, grand hotels, and views across the water toward the Alps that define the visual vocabulary of the Italian lakes at their most refined. From its waterfront, the Borromean Islands — Isola Bella, Isola Madre, and Isola dei Pescatori — are visible at all times, close enough to reach by ferry in minutes, and entirely different in character from one another. Together they represent a concentration of beauty and historical significance that makes the western shore of Lake Maggiore one of the most rewarding destinations in northern Italy.
Isola Bella: The Palace and the Terraced Gardens
Isola Bella is the most famous of the Borromean Islands and one of the most extraordinary examples of Baroque landscape design in Italy. The island was transformed from a barren rock in the mid-17th century by Count Carlo III Borromeo, who commissioned a palace and a series of terraced gardens that would turn the island into a statement of dynastic power and aesthetic ambition visible from every point on the western shore of the lake. The Palazzo Borromeo, still owned by the Borromeo family, contains a sequence of state rooms decorated with tapestries, paintings, and furnishings accumulated over four centuries — among them the Sala di Napoleone, where Napoleon and Josephine stayed in 1797. The gardens rise in ten terraced levels above the lake, each one planted with formal parterres, citrus trees, camellias, and topiary, crowned at the summit by a theatrical arrangement of obelisks, statues, and a unicorn — the Borromeo family emblem — that is visible from the water below. The combination of palace interior and garden exterior makes Isola Bella one of the most complete expressions of 17th-century aristocratic taste anywhere in the lakes region.
Isola Madre: Botany and Tranquility
The largest of the Borromean Islands, Isola Madre is given over almost entirely to its botanical garden — one of the oldest and finest in Italy, with a collection of rare trees, exotic plants, and flowering shrubs that benefits from the exceptionally mild microclimate of the central lake. White peacocks wander freely through the grounds, and the garden paths wind past century-old Himalayan cypresses, magnolias, camellias, and rhododendrons that flower from early spring through summer in a succession of color that makes each visit different from the last. The palazzo on Isola Madre is smaller and more intimate than the one on Isola Bella, its rooms furnished in a domestic style that gives a sense of how the Borromeo family actually lived when they were not performing dynastic ritual. The island is quieter and less visited than its neighbor, which makes it the better choice for those who want the botanical experience without the crowds.
Isola dei Pescatori: The Living Fishing Village
The smallest of the three main islands, Isola dei Pescatori — the Fishermen’s Island — is the only one that has remained a permanently inhabited village rather than an aristocratic estate. Its narrow lanes, painted houses, and small restaurants preserve something of the original character of lake life before tourism transformed the shoreline. The island has no formal attraction, no entrance fee, and no garden — which is precisely what makes it worth including in any visit to the Borromean Islands. Arriving by ferry and walking its single main lane from end to end takes less than ten minutes, but the atmosphere is entirely different from the palatial grandeur of its neighbors.
Stresa and Lake Maggiore on a Piedmont Self-Drive
Stresa and the Borromean Islands connect naturally into a self-guided tour of Piedmont that can combine the lake with Venaria Reale and Turin to the south, or extend north along the lake shore toward the Swiss border. The drive along the western shore of Lake Maggiore — through Baveno, Verbania, and the garden peninsula of Villa Taranto — is one of the most scenic lake roads in northern Italy. Explore the full Piedmont region to see how Stresa and the Borromean Islands connect with the broader landscape of lakes, alpine foothills, and wine country that surrounds them.
Italy Trails at Stresa and the Borromean Islands
Italy Trails builds Stresa and the Borromean Islands into Piedmontese and northern Italy self-drive itineraries with accommodation selected on the lakefront or in the hills above, ferry connections to the islands included in the daily planning, and routes that connect the lake with the rest of the region. Contact our team to start planning, or learn more about how a self-guided tour works.
