Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A Few B&B Options
€€
There's only one B&B in the heart of Stresa—but it's a doozy, right across
the street from the lake. At her
Il Viaggiatore
(Corso Italia, 38;
%
0323-934674;
www.bb-ilviaggiatore.it),
Rosanna rents two large, homey rooms with killer lake
views for
€
70 to
€
80. They share a kitchen, and Rosanna is an avid outdoors-
woman and rock climber who helps run a guide service for hiking and climbing in
nearby Piemonte parkland.
€€€
For a truly unique lake experience, stay on the Isola Superiore itself. From
March to October, the
Verbano
5
(see “Dining in Stresa,” above)
rents some
beautiful lake-view rooms in the villa upstairs for
€
148 per double.
€€
Cheaper—but only open in summer (Apr-Sept)—are the
€
60-to-
€
70 dou-
bles at
Chez Manuel
(Via Di Mezzo, 41;
%
0323-31165; www.bedandbreakfast
stresa.com; closed Oct-Mar),
with wood floors, blond furnishings, a shared
kitchen, and rooftop views.
%
0323-30254; www.hotelfiorentino.com; closed Nov-Feb),
especially at these
prices—the
14
menu turistico
is a steal. Everything that comes out of the family-
run kitchen is made fresh daily, including cannelloni (
€
6) and other pastas. You
can dine in a big cozy room or on a patio out back in good weather. As you might
have guessed from the name, they also rent rooms—quite nice, if boring, ones at
just
€
€
74 to
€
80 per double.
€
-
€€
Most of Stresa seems to congregate in the
Taverna del Pappagallo
(Via
Principessa Margherita, 46;
%
0323-30411; www.tavernapappagallo.com; no
credit cards; closed Tues-Wed except in summer)
for the most popular pizza in
town (
10). But just about all the fare that comes out of the family-run
kitchen is delicious, including delectable homemade gnocchi (
€
6.20) and such
dishes as grilled sausage with beans (
€
4.20-
€
€
8). Weather permitting, try to dine at one
of the tables in the pleasant garden.
(Isola Superiore;
%
0323-32534; www.hotelverbano.
it; closed Jan and sometimes Wed in winter)
has a fairy-tale location on the point
of the “Fisherman's Isle,” taking up the jasmine-fringed gravelly terrace next to the
hotel. The waters lap right up to the wall and the views are over the back of Isola
Bella and the lake around you on three sides. The cooking needn't be anything
special given its location in a prime tourist spot, but surprisingly it's almost as
lovely as the setting. First courses cost just
55
€€
-
€€€
Verbano
10, and include such delec-
tables as a
zuppa di verdure
(vegetable soup), hearty with barley and grains; and a
paglia e fieno
(“hay and straw”) mix of regular (yellow) and spinach (green) tagli-
atelle noodles in a
ragù
made of scorpion fish, carrots, and zucchini. Definitely
leave room for a grilled lake trout accompanied by rice stained black with squid
ink. March to October, they also rent some beautiful rooms in the villa upstairs
for
€
5 to
€
€
148 per double.
