La Casina del Lago - Lake Maggiore

Accommodates 5+1 — 3+ Bedrooms — 2 Baths

FINALLY, a lake property ideal for two couples! La Casina del Lago isn't the least expensive property we offer for its size. But you simply can't ask for a better position than this absolutely delightful little house, set in lovely manicured gardens right on Lago Maggiore’s western shore. The view of the lake itself and of the mountains surrounding it is quite wonderful.

La Casina del Lago is the private guest cottage of a villa lived in by its mother-and-daughter owners, who are particuarly charming and hospitable but also invisible if you want them to be. Its style is typical of Alpine Lombardy (technically, we’re in Piedmont): cream stucco and red tile roof on the outside, cotto floors and dark wood beams within. Lawn furniture is set out for you in a private area of the garden.

Arched French doors lead from outside into a very large sitting room lined with banquette-style sofas and dominated by a professional-quality billiard table at its center. Satellite TV. A separate dining room with table for 4 leads into the well-equipped kitchen. On this level, also, is a nice single bedroom and, adjacent to it, a 2-part bathroom with old-fashioned tub and separate modern shower. From the single bedroom, you have interior access to a newly created master bedroom suite with en-suite bath. This bedroom also has independent access from the outside. Overlooking the single bedroom from a lofted area is the second principal bedroom with a divisible matrimonial bed, and an air-conditioning unit. On this upper level is a second, smaller and more simply furnished single bedroom appropriate for a child under 10.

What's most important to keep in mind is that the new bedroom suite uses its bathroom, while the two single bedrooms and the "lofted" second master bedroom all share the bath adjacent to one of the singles. This is why the Casina del Lago is in our opinion most suitable for two couples, or two couples plus 1 or 2 really well-behaved children. Five adults really doesn't work, well, given the lack of privacy in the first single bedroom, and the simplicity of the furnishings in the second.

You need to bring your own cell phone here, and for laundry and internet connection, there are facilities in the village nearby.

So where is it, precisely? It’s well off the main road – so no noise issues – about halfway between Arona and Stresa. The nearest village is Solcio; the nearest significant town is Lesa. There’s a little supermarket just at the turnoff for the property from the main road, and other shops, restaurants, and services are within a short walk or drive. It’s best to have a car at your disposal here, even though bus, boat, and train transport means you could survive without. The Milan-Malpensa airport is only about 30 minutes’ drive from the property.

What’s to do? Apart from the obvious lake activities – walking, hiking, motoring, boating, water skiing, and swimming (right from your front yard!) – one thing you ought to know about this area is that it is famous for fine dining. Several Michelin-starred restaurants are within 30-60 minutes’ drive, for example, not to mention listings in the annual Osterie d’Italia. The owner of the Casina del Lago is an expert on restaurants in the immediate vicinity, and you can rely on her judgment. We recall one particularly wonderful sunset meal on a stifling summer evening at La Cinzianella on tiny Lake Comabbio, not far away.

The area abounds in National Parks. Two examples: The Park of the Valgrande, north of Verbania, offers splendid mountain scenery in one of Italy’s few true wildernesses, while the Park of the Ticino Valley, south from Arona, features an unusual landscape of farmland, wetlands, and mills dotted along the Ticino River. This last is an area particularly good for walking, cycling, birding, and other ecoactivities. The mill at Bellinzago has recently been restored, and its visitor center makes the ideal starting point for a visit to the park as a whole.

One important excursion you should take is via Macugnaga to see the Matterhorn.

Gardens? The Botanical Garden of the Villa Taranto is among the most famous, and the gardens of the Borromean Islands are unforgettable, stocked as they are with white peacocks in an incredible setting amidst the waters of the lake with the mountains looming behind.

Other lakes? Orta and Como, even Lugano, all make easy daytrips. Our opinion? A definite yes to nearby Lake Orta; the village of Orta San Giulio is one of our favorites in Italy. But Como and Lugano? Why bother, with so much at Lago Maggiore right out your door?

We love everything about La Casina del Lago: the furnishings; the grounds; the owners; where it is on the lake; everything, but most of all that intoxicating view.