European resort with multi-million pound renovation also has nearby scenic train rides and the ‘best pasta’
SIPPING espresso on the terrace of the Hotel Grand Des Iles Borromees is a moment I will never forget.
It is the perfect spot in the Italian town of Stresa, on the banks of Lake Maggiore, to feast your eyes on the sparkling water fringed by forested mountain peaks.
I am not the only one to have been seduced by the scenery — Queen Victoria once rented a villa here, and the five-star historic hotel has been welcoming royalty, celebrities and dignitaries for more than 160 years.
Named after the family who own the lake’s three Borromean Islands it is certainly grand after a glossy multi-million pound restoration.
Oozing classic Italian grandeur and set in landscaped gardens, the hotel shimmers as brightly as the lake.
Murano chandeliers sparkle in the marble corridors and in every ornate, gilded room.
Risk you won’t want to leave
Roman statues are dotted around and attentive staff are dressed as footmen in dark-green uniforms.
I even imagined the author Ernest Hem-ingway, who was nursed back to health at the hotel following World War One, might tip his hat and give me a wink from across the piano bar.
There’s a risk you won’t want to leave this heavenly hotel, spending sleepy afternoons in its fancy new spa or lounging by the pool.
My room alone was difficult to depart, with its intricate corniced ceilings, chandelier and damask walls.
But a smorgasbord of experiences bookable through Tui Lakes and Mountains will lure you away.
A thrilling train ride into the Swiss Alps and seeing a (long departed) saint up close provided us with more amazing memories — as did spending mornings swimming in the lake.
But pasta-making in Italy had to be the bucket-list moment. Stresa resident Gisella Motta invited us into her gorgeous home to learn secrets passed down in her family’s restaurant.
For the tastiest pasta, she told us to crack two eggs into a well of 200g of flour, when most recipes call for just one.
Then whisk with one finger, knead until ready to roll, and keep rolling.
Endless sprinkling of flour keeps the dough dry.
Our sauce was just four ingredients — Gorgonzola, Parmesan, milk and walnuts.
It was the best pasta I’d ever tasted — and Gisella’s wine-pairing and dessert of homemade Margheritine di Stresa biscuits, named after the first queen of Italy who grew up in Stresa, topped off the night.
Mouth-watering places at which to eat abound in Stresa.
Lo Stornello serves up traditional local cuisine such as polenta, risotto and fish from the lake.
Pizzeria La Papagollo offers unforgettable pizza with dough that has risen for 24 hours then rested for 36 more. I vowed to go back just for the Contadinella, topped with apples, Gorgonzola, and pistachio.
Wine-tasting at Al Buscion is 20 euros a head — including generous pours of Piedmont whites and reds, and a dreamy cheeseboard paired with delicious meats and moist focaccia bread.
Another Tui experience not to be missed is the Lake Maggiore Express train ride from Domodossola to Locarno in neighbouring Switzerland.
It promises two hours of jaw-dropping views of lush Alpine scenery and pretty villages, as the train crosses stone bridges and passes through mountain tunnels.
The on-board trolley serves up Aperol spritz as well as snacks and other drinks.
We hop off at Santa Maria Maggiore for a visit to the Chimney Sweep Museum, which shares stories of Italian children sent to work in cities across Europe in the Victorian era.
It now hosts an annual festival to honour them and sweeps visit from all over the world.
Island palaces
Arriving in Locarno, we had time for a quick caprese salad of mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and basil before boarding a boat at the northern tip of Lake Maggiore, where it reaches into Switzerland, for our return to Stresa past the Borromean isles of Madre, Bella and Pescatori.
Owned by the Borromeo family, the islands’ palaces and botanical gardens are now open to the public.
The Borromeos were so rich they once had their own army — and the Isola Bella palace, where marble columns line the ballroom, gives Buckingham Palace a run for its money.
Beneath the palace are grotto vaults made of volcanic stone which acted as the family’s natural air-con in summer.
On Isola Madre, the family’s “summer house” is another stunning mansion — with a theatre room filled with antique dolls and puppets that would probably terrify modern kids.
No matter how tempted I was to collapse on to a sun lounger on my last day, I am so glad we also made the pilgrimage.
Mary Gallagher
We also visited Pescatori (Fisherman’s Island) for an al fresco lunch at Belvedere restaurant. I devoured a plate of pike on a bed of capers with anchovies from the Cantabrian Sea.
No matter how tempted I was to collapse on to a sun lounger on my last day, I am so glad we also made the pilgrimage via car and taxi boat to Isola San Giulio on nearby Lake Orta.
The body of Saint Giulio is on display in a glass cabinet in the island’s very special church.
Attached to the ancient basilica is a convent that is home to a community of 75 silent nuns, who stay there for life.
After paying our respects, we follow the island’s Meditation Walk around the religious house.
This part of Italy may just be my happy place, and I thank our Tui guide for bringing me here. I know I’ll be back.
GO: LAKE MAGIORRE
GETTING / STAYING THERE: Four nights’ B&B at the 5H Hotel Grand Des Iles Borromees is from £931pp including flights from Gatwick on August 26. Or head there in May next year with four nights from £819pp. See tui.co.uk
OUT & ABOUT: Lake Maggiore experiences booked via Tui Musement. Cooking with Cesarina, £73pp. Al Buscion wine-tasting, £17.20pp. Lake Maggiore Express train ride including return ferry to Stresa, £44pp. Half- day tour to Lake Orta, £47pp. See tuimuseument.com