Monte Mottarone is one of the most beautiful natural terraces in all of Piedmont. Located between Lake Maggiore and Lake Orta, its summit, of just under 1,500 meters, offers a breath-taking 360° panorama that spans from the Po Valley to the peaks of the Alps, comprising Monte Rosa and the seven lakes (Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta, Lake Mergozzo, Lake Varese, Lake Comabbio, Lake Monate and Lake Biandronno) which extend between Piedmont and Lombardy.

The ‘mountain between the lakes’ is beautiful in all seasons, perfect for a day trip immersed in nature, and for the various tourist activities it offers.

During the summer season, Parco del Mottarone is the ideal destination with its paths and tracks for long woodland walks and its numerous bicycle trails. Sports enthusiast can challenge themselves with climbs or opt for the adrenaline boost of a paragliding flight. It also has an Adventure Park and Alpyland, a thrilling 200 m bobsleigh rail track for a high-speed panoramic descent.

However, in the winter season, its snow-covered slopes become a major ski centre where enthusiasts can immerse themselves in nature by following snowshoe circuits or enjoy 15 kilometres of pistes divided into 17 ski and snowboard slopes for all abilities, plus a ski school camp for children, and some slopes dedicated exclusively to bobsleigh.

Naturally, there is no shortage of bars and restaurants offering mountain enthusiasts the typical mountain dishes, such as the Rifugio Genziana and the Bar Stazione.

For many centuries, Monte Mottarone - which has seen the discovery of various archaeological finds attributed to the Lombard era - was an idyllic landscape for sheep and livestock farming. It was only with the Belle Époque that nobles and artists re-evaluated its beauty, enchanted by its fascinating panoramas. Its success was followed by a surge in popularity after the (now abandoned) narrow gauge rack railway was inaugurated in 1911 which led from Stresa, on the shores of the lake, up to the summit.