Attractions

Strolling and relaxing seem to be the main activities in Stresa. The action is at the lakeside promenade, running from the center of town north past the grand lakeside hotels, including the Iles des Borromees, where Hemingway set A Farewell to Arms. Sooner or later, though, most visitors climb into a boat for the short ride to the famed islands themselves, the Borromean Islands.

Budgeting Your Time -- To squeeze as much of Stresa's sights as you can into a day, note that the ferry back from the Isole Borromee stops first at the Mottarone cable-car area before chugging down the coast to the center of Stresa and the main docks. You can hop off at this first stop to either ride the cable car up the mountain or simply to walk back into Stresa itself along a pretty lakeside promenade, past crumbling villas and impromptu sculpture gardens, in about 20 minutes.

Borromean Islands (Isole Borromee)

These three islands, named for the Borromeo family, which has owned them since the 12th century, float in the misty waters off Stresa and entice visitors with their stunning beauty. Note that Isola Bella and Isola Superiore have villages you can hang out in for free, but Isola Madre consists solely of the admission-charging gardens.

Public ferries leave for the islands every half-hour from Stresa's Piazza Marconi; a 12€ ($15) three-island pass is the most economical way to visit them -- and if you buy your admission tickets for the isole sights at the Stresa ferry office along with your ferry tickets, you'll save 1€ ($1.30) off each -- though the generally grumpy ticket agents will not advise you of this; you have to ask. Buy tickets only from the public Navigazione Lago Maggiore (tel. 800-551-801 or 0322-233-200; www.navlaghi.it), in the big building with triple arches. Private boats also make the trip out to the island -- at obscene rates; you'll see other ticket booths as well as hucksters dressed as sailors trying to lure you aboard (for large groups, the prices can be reasonable, but do your negotiating on the dock before you get on the boat). For more information, visit www.borromeoturismo.it.

Isola Bella -- Isola Bella (5 min. from Stresa) remains true to its name, with splendid 17th-century gardens that ascend from the shore in 10 luxuriantly planted terraces. The Borromeo palazzo provides a chance to explore opulently decorated rooms, including the one where Napoleon and Josephine once slept. It's open daily: March to September 9am to noon and 1:30 to 5:30pm (until 5pm Oct 1-24). Admission is 11€ ($14) for adults and 4€ ($5.20) for children ages 6 to 15. Audio tours help make sense of it all for 3.50€ ($4.55) each or 5€ ($6.50) to rent two sets of headphones. For more details, call tel. 0323-30-556.

Isola Superiore -- Most of Isola Superiore, also known as Isola Pescatori (10 min. from Stresa), is occupied by a not-so-quaint old fishing village -- every one of the tall houses on this tiny strip of land seems to harbor a souvenir shop or pizza stand, and there are hordes of visitors to keep them busy.

Isola Madre -- The largest and most peaceful of the islands is Isola Madre (30 min. from Stresa), every inch of which is covered with the exquisite flora and exotic, colorful birds of the 3.2-hectare (8-acre) Orto Botanico (tel. 0323-31-261). The map they hand out at the entrance/ticket booth details all the flora; you're on your own to ID the various peacocks, game fowl, exotic birds, funky chickens, and other avians that strut, flit, and roost amid the lawns around the central villa (1518-85), filled with Borromeo family memorabilia and some interesting old puppet-show stages. The botanical garden is open daily: March 27 through September 9am to noon and 1:30 to 5:30pm; and October 1 to October 24, 9:30am to 12:30pm and 1:30 to 5pm; admission is 9€ ($12) for adults and 4€ ($5.20) for children ages 6 to 15.