Province NO
Orta San Giulio, NO
A small village on a promontory on the east shore of Lake Orta, the smallest of the major northern lakes, facing an island 400 metres offshore. It is compact enough to see in a morning and is listed among the Borghi piu belli d'Italia. Two things bring people: the island and the UNESCO sacred mountain above the village.
Sights
- Isola San Giulio, with the Romanesque Basilica di San Giulio and the enclosed Benedictine abbey, reached by public ferry or boatman
- Sacro Monte di Orta, UNESCO listed since 2003, with twenty chapels of the 16th and 17th centuries on the life of Saint Francis, in a wooded park above the village
- Piazza Motta, the lakefront square, open on one side to the water
- The Palazzo della Comunita of 1582, the small arcaded town hall on the square
- Villa Crespi, a 19th-century Moorish-revival house with a minaret tower, now a hotel and restaurant
Things to do
- Walk the Via del Silenzio and Via della Meditazione, the single ring lane around the island
- Climb the Sacro Monte path from the village
- Go to the Wednesday morning market in Piazza Motta
Annual events
July
Orta Festival
Chamber and classical music in churches and venues around Lake Orta.
When to visit
April to October. Very quiet from November to March, with limited ferry service and many restaurants closed.
