The "Lago Maggiore Express", a cruise between lakes and mountains

An unforgettable journey by train and boat to embrace, in a day, the whole area of Lake Maggiore, the Swiss Alps and Ossola mountains. A journey full of contrasts, which lets you admire the most beautiful resorts overlooking the shores of Lake Maggiore, visit the fashionable Locarno, in Switzerland, climb, with the electric drive train, along the wild Centovalli and reach the sweetest Vigezzo Valley. A stop at Santa Maria Maggiore, to visit the land of the chimney sweep, and then to Domodossola, a nice medieval town ready to be discovered. At the end of the day, the return to the departure town with a train of the Italian railways.

You can begin the Lago Maggiore Express from many places, choosing between two types of ticket: with special ticket valid for one day with intermediate stops on Lake Maggiore, Stresa, Isola Bella, Ascona, Locarno, Valle Vigezzo or Centovalli; or with a ticket valid for two days. In this case, the intermediate stops are possible both on Lake Maggiore (Stresa, Isola Bella, Ascona, Locarno), in Valle Vigezzo and in Centovalli. So, you can stay overnight in a town along the route and plan a week-end ad hoc.

We start from Domodossola with the Italian railways, which leads us to Stresa, where, at the pier, the motoboat Verbania, one of the largest boat of the fleet of Navigazione Lago Maggiore, is waiting for us. It’s a bidirectional ferry, built in 1986, 54 meters long which reaches a top speed of 22 km per hour. It can carry 1100 passengers: 600 seats and 500 standing. It has a restaurant with 360 seats at the table, that offers a tourist menu for only 15 €.

We have to sail three-hour across Lake Maggiore: the day is beautiful and warm and the lake is flat as a board. Sitting outside on one of the many chairs, from the deck you can admire the landscape that is very suggestive. The departure, on time, immediately gives a catwalk of the lakeside of Stresa, with its luxurious hotel full of history, where stayed personalities, writers, artists and heads of state as yesterday as today.

The journey goes on and you can admire the Borromeo Islands, Baveno, the Gulf of Feriolo and Verbania Pallanza.

On the boat, is possible sunbathing, chating, taking some pictures. The gait allows you to admire the surrounding countryside in peace.

Then, overcoming Verbania Intra, the cruise continues to Switzerland. Many passengers have lunch and on the deck outside, also because of the noon sun, remain few.

The restaurant, administrated by the group "Styl Restaurant", gives a menu of the territory at 15 €: you can taste the fish of lakes and other delicacies of the area, prepared during the morning in the galley. It would be better to book your place on boarding; in fact the restaurant in high season is always sold out.
If you prefer, however, you can buy a sandwich at the bar, or enjoy a picnic lunch on one of the tables placed along the boat.

Overcoming Ghiffa, we reach Luino, on Varese side of Lake Maggior, where other passengers are boarded, and shortly after noon we reach Cannero to admire its castles, standing in the water.

Cannero is one of the last town of Lago Maggiore in Italy. It enjoys a mild climate and lush Mediterranean vegetation. In fact, on its banks, grow lush lemon trees, cedars, olive trees and mimosas. On hot summer days, the castles are a popular destination for crafts who anchor in the crystalline waters.

Then we reach Cannobio, at the mouth of the Val Cannobina. The ferry makes a stop and other passengers, bound for Switzerland, are taken on. Cannobio, famous for its beaches, is a lovely city whose medieval old center, with a clear imprint medieval, each Sunday attracts tourists from Switzerland for the market. Of great interest also the eighteenth-century Collegiate Church of San Vittore, the Palazzo della Ragione and the Shrine of the Holy Piety, site of a miracle remembered every year on 8th January. Its hallmark is a large stone lions, sculpted by local artist John Branca, who later became a symbol of the battle that inhabitants of Cannobio engaged in 1859 against the Austrians.

Crossing the border, we enter into Swiss waters. The first town we meet is Brissago, famous for its luxuriant islands.

The waters of Brissago are also a paradise for surfers, and witness that the numerous boards and sails hanged on one of the islets.
After Brissago you reach Ascona, a charming town with a beautiful lakeside, many bars and restaurants overlooking the square ..

Our trip, lasted three hours, is almost finished and we now see Locarno that, from the lake looks like a metropolis compared to the Italian resorts. Even the architecture of the buildings is different, typically Swiss, and there are also towering buildings overlooking the lake.

At the port of Locarno, we realize the truly impressive number of people who traveled with us: we are in August holiday!

Reached the mainland, there are many possibilities on how to continue the journey: a little train parked in front of the pier invites tourists to make a tour of the city. The loudspeaker announces that in a few minutes the first train for the Centovalli will depart to continue the Lake Maggiore Express. So we walk to the train station in Locarno, located just a few meters from the Casino of Locarno.

The train will take us through the Centovalli and then Vigezzo valley. Centovalli is the name of a valley in canton Ticino: it starts at Intragna and ends by the Swiss-Italian borde of Camedo. From here, in Italian territory, begins Vigezzo Valley, which continues until Domodossola.
The Centovalli is a paradise for walkers: in fact there are many trails, surrounded by a wild and breathtaking nature.

With the railway of Centovalli and Valle Vigezzo, we can cross this wild and romantic territory for an hour and a half. The journey begins and from the windows we admire dizzying bridges, streams of pure water and vineyards, chestnut forests and villages perched on hillsides.

It’s impossible sitting in peace: the temptation to look out the windows and admire the scenery below is too strong.

Suddenly, the valley opens itself, the slopes are gentler, the landscape of a bright green. We arrived in Vigezzo Valley. Lying on a plateau in the Lepontine Alps at an average altitude of 800 meters, the Valley Vigezzo is the only one of seven Ossola valleys that stretches to East. Lush greenery, woods, meadows and alpine lakes offer thousands of opportunities for walks in nature and full relax. Vigezzo Valley, with its seven municipalities, is known as "Valley of Painters" for its long tradition of artists, portraits and landscape painters.

Heart of the valley is Santa Maria Maggiore, delicious country particularly appreciated for the high plateau surrounded by conifers. Here it is situated, in addition to the school of Fine Arts Rossetti Valentini, the Museum of Chimney Sweeps, which tells the story of those who left homes and families to go through the worldm in search of fortune doing a job so difficult. Lot of us decide to go down in Santa Maria Maggiore to visit the village and continue their journey later.

We continue to Domodossola: the route is all downhill, the screech of brakes over the shouting of the passengers. We cross Duogno to get to Trontano, characteristic village famous for the Mushroom Festival held every year in late September. Then we see the vineyards of Masera, where the Prunent grapes are cultivated (typical Ossola wine), and at the end we arrive at Domodossola.

Before leaving the station we admire the exhibition of contemporary art "Sottopasso" set up on an old railway carriage stopped at the first track.
Before taking the train of Italian Railways to come back to Lake Maggiore, many passengers take advantage to visit Domodossola. Domodossola is a city rich in monuments, elegant buildings and landmarks of his past. The Market Square, the heart of the city, is a small jewel of Renaissance architecture with its fifteenth-century arcades that support manor houses of the XV-XVI century, scenically perfect in its asymmetry. Near the square, the district Motta, one of the oldest in the city: "Motta" is a placename that recalls the accumulation of gravel and pebbles poured from the river Bogna during the sixteenth century. Center of the district, Piazza Fontana dominated by a fountain with octagonal obelisk of 1844. Built between 1792 and 1798 by a paint of the design Matteo Zucchi, the Church dedicated to Saints Gervasio and Protasio, has three naves with six chapels and a valuable altar in polychrome marble. Palazzo Silva is one of the most beautiful houses of the nobility of the Renaissance of the sub-alpine region, included among the national monuments.
The Lago Maggiore Express is a very nice experience, suitable for families (facilities for groups and families with children): I suggest to try this trip in less busy periods, so you can relax. In full summer, the vegetation along the Centovalli is too lush and the foliage limits the visibility. It’s a very flexible journey, that you can plan, choosing the intermediate steps for stopping a couple of hours at a resort on the lake or in the Vigezzo Valley.
All information, costs and schedules can be found on the site www.lagomaggioreexpress.com.
Pay attention because the cruise will be active until October 18th and will be repeated in springtime. However, even in winter, you can plan ypur own "Lago Maggiore Express" matching the timetables of Navigazione Lago Maggiore with those of the railway Vigezzina.

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