Discover Lake Orta, one of Italy's best-kept secrets
Lakes District of Italy is not only Lake Como and Lake Maggiore... a smaller but always charming jewel is waiting to be discovered: Lake Orta. Its landscape looks like a painting: the island of San Giulio where time seems to have stopped, the monastery Madonna del Sasso which is perched on the edge of a cliff overlooking the lake and wooded mountains that frame an ethereal scenery.
At just a short ferry ride from the town of Orta San Giulio, the little Island is an enchanting place with rich and ancient history. There are only two residents still living permanently on the island, besides the group of Benedictine nuns living in seclusion in the tall, imposing building of the island abbey.
What can clients do at Lake Orta? There is something for everyone! Active people can hike or have a bike ride along "anello azzurro", the curious can enjoy a cooking class, the laziest can simply relax on one of its beaches.
And what about food lovers? For sure they cannot miss the 2-star Michelin restaurant at Villa Crespi, an extraordinary cuisine experience in a peculiar lovely setting. Dating back to the late 19th Century, this Moorish style, historic residence has been a private home and over the centuries became an exclusive place of hospitality for poets, nobles and rulers. Its name resonated in some of the most illustrious houses in Northern Europe.
