A Weekend to Discover Lake Orta’s Treasures

Duration: 3 days, preferably a weekend

Itinerary: from Milan to Lake Orta, a 200-km journey

Equipment: sunglasses and a picnic blanket

While it may be smaller and less known than its popular neighbour, Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta is a true gem. For those who are looking for a weekend getaway, hop aboard your Vespa and prepare for a drive along the lake front that will be poetry for the eyes. Don’t waste any time, grab your keys, helmet and head out from Milan towards Lake Orta. Plan on a couple of hours to reach your destination (with a necessary coffee break in the middle).

You’ll want to begin with one of the most beautiful villages in Italy: Orta San Giulio. Park at the entrance to the village, which is a pedestrian only area, and wander in. Getting lost here is highly unlikely, so enjoy all that the main street has to offer, starting with the small shops selling local products, including the mortadella Ortese. Soon enough, you will be in the main square, Piazza Motta, overlooking the Lake. From here, you’ll understand why it is one of the most beautiful villages in Italy. If you want to take nice pictures from above, climb the Broletto Bell Tower, the village’s main hub. Once you have visited the Tower, with your back positioned towards the Lake, take the road that leads to the Church of Santa Maria Assunta. The view from here is stunning, and be sure to peek inside the parish church built in the late 15th century.

It will be time then to go explore the island of San Giulio, the focal point from the square. In only ten minutes, you will be catapulted into a timeless and tiny island: 275 meters wide by 140 long – thus, not very suitable to play hide and seek! Originally, the island was inhabited only by canons, while today there are the Benedictine cloistered nuns. The elements for writing a novel are all there, but after such a busy day you will feel more like food and sleep rather than starting your career as an author. Get your Vespa and in just a ten-minute drive along the Lake you will arrive at the Hustaria Cà dal Rat for typical Piedmontese cuisine and breathtaking views. Simply the best.

Awakening to a lake view will make you refreshed and full of energy. Start with the hills behind Orta. Go up the road and get to the special reserve of Sacro Monte Orta. Here, you will find 20 chapels dedicated to the episodes of St. Francis’ life, set in beech, fir, linden tree woods and laurel edges. Back on the saddle, continue towards Omegna, the northern point of the Lake. A 40-minute journey and you’ll come across a simple village, and the birthplace of author Gianni Rodari. Walking around Omegna will be pleasant, and its canals and colourful houses will steal your heart. Indulge in a nice lunch here on the canals – a sandwich with a view. Then it’s time to hit the road again, this time towards Nonio, on the western shore of the Lake.

Get lost through the alleys, but do not forget to visit the parish church dedicated to the martyr Saint Blaise. You might be lucky enough to run into one of those days with a "double sunset". The sun sinks behind the Castle and after a few minutes... it reappears again! It will be the right time for an aperitif, therefore stop for a glass of wine, without spoiling your appetite for dinner. Try the Toma del Mottarone cheese stuffed ravioli, or the donkey stew – perhaps at the Osteria Rifugio del Pescatore.

The last day on the Lake Orta should be a true collection of treasures. Start from Nonio and reach Cesara in less than an hour. A small but precious village: the Romanesque church of San Clemente hosts 15th-century frescoes, watched over by the beautiful bell tower with monofore, bifore and trifore windows – a good time to review your architecture vocabulary! Stop for a coffee and get back on the road because the road to Madonna del Sasso will be quite long: 30 kilometres to be covered in just over an hour. Afraid of heights? Hopefully not, because you will be overlooking the Lake, on a rock called Il Balcone del Cusio. Such a panorama will be the envy of many; the Baroque Church has a beautiful frescoed dome, plus unparalleled views. Just below the cliff is the town Pella – a perfect place to stop for lunch and then a stroll along the Lake. Here you can have stuffed perch rolls and whitefish fillets. Where exactly? Head to the Imbarcadero restaurant, the last lakeside gourmet stop before getting back on the road towards Milan