Top Lake Maggiore Bus Tours

Visit the fashionable Stresa and the amazing Islands on Lake Maggiore on a day trip from Milan. Set in Italy's beautiful Lake District just 1.5-hour drive from Milan, Lake Maggiore is surrounded by the majestic Alps and home to some of Italy’s most impressive gardens. After some free time for shopping in Stresa, you will take a two-hour panoramic boat cruise on the lake, visiting the Borromean Islands – Isola Madre, Isola dei Pescatori and Isola Bella. On the borders of Piedmont, Lombardy and Switzerland, Lake Maggiore, also known as Verbano is the second largest Italian lake. 

Experience Bellagio, a setting known as the most beautiful of Lake Como’s clutch of shoreline towns, on a day trip from a neighboring lake. With pickups from hotels in Stresa and Baveno on Lake Maggiore or Orta San Giulio on Lake Orta included, the day trip offers ultimate convenience for a lazy day out on the glamorous Italian lake. You’ll have free time to wander the narrow streets of Bellagio, followed by a visit to Como town where shops, cafes, and impressive architecture await.

Built on the track of an ancient Roman way, connecting Oscella (Domodossola) and Leocarnum (Locarno), the Vigezzina railroad was inaugurated in 1923, becoming a strategic connection for several small villages in the valleys close to lake Maggiore. Still today, even after severe damages caused by a flood in 1978, the railroad has a strong commercial and touristic function, connecting Sempione and Gottardo districts. This exclusive guided tour will allow you to enjoy a panoramic ride on this small and fascinating train, travelling from Italy to Switzerland across hidden and enchanting valleys. Thanks to a stop, you will have the chance to discover nice villages, such as Santa Maria Maggiore. A different point of view on Lake Maggiore beautiful outback.

Verbania is the chief town of the district around lake Maggiore; Pallanza, one of its centers, hosts the City hall and some of its most remarkable attractions. Among these, the outstanding Museum of Landscape, located in Palazzo Viani- Dugnani, keeps a vast collection of paintings, sculptures and photographs related to the culture and history of Lombardy and Piedmont. This private tour will lead you to discover these collections and, after a pleasant walk, to experience a visit to Villa Taranto botanical gardens: a unique 18 hectares park created by a Scottish traveller, featuring rare plants, trees and flowers from all over the world. Two different ways to witness the wonders of the landscapes of Lake Maggiore, which you will surely remember for long.

Arona, a beautiful town laying on the South-Western coast of lake Maggiore, gave birth in the 16th century to the future saint and bishop of Milan Carlo Borromeo. After a few decades from his death, a huge bronze statue dedicated to the memory of the revered citizen was built close to Arona and acted as an inspiration and a technical instruction for Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, the designer of the Statue of Liberty in New York. This exclusive tour will lead you from the charming centre of Arona to the hill where you will be able to visit the statue and enjoy a view of the lake, definitely from its "point of view". Later on, you will be guided to a local seasoning cellar, where a full tasting of wine and local, delicious varieties of cheese will be served. A day between amazing art and taste.

Step back in time and explore an old castle in Angera - the Rocca or fortress Borromeo - on lake Maggiore, still beautifully preserved, also housing an interesting antique dolls' museum.  Enjoy a stroll and free time in the pretty lakeside town of Arona and see the colossal statue of Saint Charles Borromeo, one of the highest in the world. A private tour to discover lovely corners of lake Maggiore!

The surroundings of lake Maggiore are the homeland of some of the most prestigious Italian gastronomic specialties: varieties of cheese like the "Bettelmatt" are the natural match for elegant yet full-bodied wines like Nebbiolo, the king of Piemontese vines. This exclusive tour will lead you to discover some of these mouth-watering treasures: starting form Stresa, where you'll have an espresso or a cappuccino, together with a sweet specialty in a historical tea room. The following stage will be a cheese seasoning cellar, where you'll have a tasting matched by some varieties of wine. Finally, you'll reach Gattinara, a charming small town which has given its name to a fine red wine based on Nebbiolo grapes: the Gattinara DOCG. A guided tasting of this nectar will be held in an historical local winery.

The two sides of Lake Maggiore are amazingly different: westwards, the sweet sines of the gulf on which Stresa and Baveno lay, in front of the charming Borromean Islands with their botanical gardens and villas. Eastwards, the deep waters in which high and wooded cliffs tumble down. This private tour will allow you to enjoy this beautiful diversity, taking you to the discovery of two jewels, built sheer up on the water: the Borromean fortress of Angera, now a museum with, amazing Medieval decorations, the massive tower, from which your gaze can abrace a beautiful panorama and its Medieval garden. Then, the Hermitage of Santa Caterina, a religiuos complex perched on the cliff , overlooking Lake Maggiore. You'll realize how beauty has really occupied any possible space in these surroundings.

Lake Orta is a small, quite unknown pearl, lying a few kilometers westwards of lake Maggiore. Its chief town, Orta San Giulio and the close by isle of San Giulio create a unique, charming "lounge" on the lake coastline. This private tour will lead you to discover the atmospheres, the fascinating alleys and the view points of these sites, connected by a short and pleasant boat cruise. Later, you will have the chance to enjoy an astonishing view of the lake from the heights of the Holy Mount of Orta, a magnificent sanctuary reachable through an ascending path dotted of gorgeous baroque chapels. The site is a UNESCO heritage and you will surely understand why.