NATURE
In 1817 Stendhal wrote "Nothing in the world can compare to the fascination of these ardent days of summer spent on the
lakes (...) in the chestnut woods, so green they seem to have immersed their boughs in the water..."
Lake Maggiore has been the destination of tourists from all over the world for centuries. The villas built on its shores and on the islands served as fashionable summer residences for generations and then became tourist attractions in themselves.
Thanks to its year-round mild climate and an abundant water supply, Lake Maggiore became famous for its many nurseries and numerous botanical species appeared in Italy for the first time here with the result being that rhododendron and azaleas were soon blooming all over the area. Today Villa Taranto and Isola Madre boast exceptional collections of these plants.
The gardens on the lake were created according to the Belle Époque style, harmoniously mixing art and nature.
But Lake Maggiore has many other facets, most of which are related 
to nature. One of these is the territory inland from the lake whose vast dimensions mean that real variety can be found from one area to another. By moving away from the tourist coast in towards the valleys, a less well-known aspect , but equally as fascinating as that traditionally extolled by visitors, can be discovered. An impressive number of parks of inestimable natural value are located here such as the Parco Nazionale della Val Grande (the largest wilderness area in Italy).
To conclude this brief introduction once again Stendahl had this to say about Lake Maggiore: "Anyone with a heart must visit Lake Maggiore and its surrounding areas even he has to sell his shirt to get there".
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