ISOLA BELLA

This small rocky spur of 320 meters long was nevertheless a simple fishing village until the middle of the 17th century... Indeed, it was only at that time that the Borromeo Counts, lords of the region, decided to make it an island of pleasures by building a complex as sumptuous as it was harmonious, the Palazzo Borromeo, surrounded by its incredible Baroque gardens.

Count Charles III Borromeo undertook to transform the islet into a garden island, a true place of delights, and renamed the island "Isola Bella", in homage to his wife, Isabella d'Adda. The construction of the monumental palace began in 1671 and was completed, together with all the gardens, in 1671. The building rises compactly on four levels at the northern end of the island. Preceded by a beautiful staircase, it houses a grandiose collection of works of art, the private collection of the Borromeo family. Among the series of sumptuous rooms, the following are particularly noteworthy: the large central hall, circular in plan and covered with a dome, with an impressive ceiling height, the Music Room where, in April 1935, the Stresa Conference between Mussolini, Laval and MacDonald took place, and the Napoleon Room, where Bonaparte stayed with his wife Josephine de Beauharnais in 1797.

Following the visit, you will discover the Galleria dei Quadri, also known as the Gallery of General Berthier (a faithful follower of Napoleon), which houses about 130 master paintings, and where you can admire works by great Italian painters of the 17th and 18th centuries.

In the basement of the Palazzo, the famous baroque caves complete the picture. Very fashionable fantasies in the 17th century, they are entirely covered with tuff scales, shells and mosaics of black and white pebbles in an aesthetic typical of that period. There's always a bit of coolness in the summer.

Finally, one reaches the gardens after passing through the great Tapestry Gallery, covered with marvellous 17th century Flemish tapestries. In the park, which is divided into ten terraces that slope down to the lake on a 37-metre drop, exotic and rare plants grow. Between fountains, ponds and statues, in this beautiful Italian garden, live and strut magnificent specimens of colourful peacocks and albinos, adding magic to this already surprising and unusual place. When you reach the island by boat, Isola Bella appears as a magical vessel floating on the blue waters of the lake. The place is breathtaking!