VERBANO CUSIO OSSOLA | PIEDMONT

Discover Verbano-Cusio-Ossola

The province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, called VCO for short, is the amalgamation of three separate areas: Verbano, Cusio and Ossola.
Verbano-Cusio-Ossola is a young province, created by law in 1992 and active in local elections since 1995.
Nature lovers will appreciate the large number of beautiful landscapes in this province. In the territory of Verbano is Lake Verbano and the Borromeo Islands.
You can reach the islands from Stresa, the true pearl of this province. In addition to the 18th-century palaces, the Parish church and the Villa Ducale, the great attraction of Stresa are its parks and wonderful gardens.
Around Stresa there are about eighty green areas coloured with azaleas, rhododendrons, camellias, magnolias, roses and hydrangeas.
From Stresa, a visit the Borromean Islands is a must: Isola Bella, Isola Madre and Isola dei Pescatori.

Isola dei Pescatori is a small jewel, less well known than the other islands, but deserving the attention of the true traveller. Three and a half hectares in size with a small rustic village, it is a contrast to the splendour of the other beautiful islands. The island has maintained a good balance between human inhabitants and their construction and its natural beauty. There are no certain facts, but it seems the island was formerly called the Island of Olives. On the island you can try perch fillets ‘alla Borromea’ and excellent seafood risottos. On Isola Madre you can visit the botanical garden populated by peacocks, and on Isola Bella the extraordinary Italianate garden will amaze you.
A few hundred metres from Stresa is the beautiful Villa Pallavicino, and at Verbania, Villa Taranto.
Lake Mergozzo is smaller in size, and even a portion of Lake Orta is in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola.
This young province is the guardian of the Val Grande National Park and the Veglia Alp and Devero Alp Park with their beautiful valleys, such as Val Formazza and Val Divedro.
Among the prized examples of natural heritage in the province of Verbano-Cusio Ossolaof is Monte Rosa.
Centres of cultural tourism are the scenic monuments of the Sacred Mount of Domodossola and the Sacred Mount of Ghiffa, defined as world heritage sites by UNESCO in 2003.