A unicorn ridden by Cupid towers over the summit of Isola Bella. Because only an imaginary animal could fit effortlessly into a location that has brought the Baroque dream to life, an island that is like a stunning ship of art and stone sailing through the waters of the lake. Seen from Carciano, the sloping terraces of its remarkable Italian garden appear like the stern of a galleon setting sail towards Baveno. On the other side, Palazzo Borromeo, with its semi-circular central body, extends like a prow hunting the Malghera Rock.

Until the 1630s it was a simple rocky outcrop occupied by a tiny fishing village, two churches and some vegetable allotments, about 400 meters from the shore, north-west of Stresa.

Count Charles III Borromeo renamed it in honour of his wife, Isabella d'Adda, from which it became Isola Isabella and, finally, Isola Bella. The Count and his son Vitaliano VI transformed it into a princely residence, commissioning talented architects, engineers, gardeners, cabinet makers, plasterers, craftsmen and artists to work their magic. The family’s descendants continued to maintain and perfect this lakeside gem rising above the waters of Verbano up until the twentieth century.

The palazzo, open to the public, enchants visitors with its priceless works of art, tapestries, sumptuous halls and elegant bedrooms on the main floor. In the lower part, the fascinating caves that once entranced Stendhal are to be found. While another great author of the nineteenth century, Dickens, described it as follows: ‘However fanciful and fantastic Isola Bella may be, it is nevertheless simply beautiful.’

After the visit to the palazzo, not to be missed are the splendid and lavish Italian Baroque garden, divided into ten sloping parterres embellished with basins, fountains and a multitude of statues, dating back to the second half of the seventeenth century, representing the personifications of rivers, seasons and winds.