Set on the banks of Lake Maggiore on the tip of a promontory with the lake heading off in three directions, the view from the gardens is everything you'd expect of a grand hotel on these famous lakes. Swimming in the lake from the small beach is a pleasure although the real thrill comes from diving off the hotel's jetty into the wonderful bluey-green cool waters.
The hotel itself is very well appointed with a grand lobby leading with minimum fuss to a terrace looking across the lake towards Stresa. Breakfast is served in a modern dining room with huge windows looking out across the lake and although we didn't eat lunch or dinner at the hotel, those meals seemed to be served on a different terrace in the gardens by the lake. The rooms vary a lot depending on what you pay. The least expensive are still not cheap and offer not the slightest whiff of a lake view. They were however quite large and we were perfectly comfortable. The larger and more elegantly furnished rooms on the lake side of the hotel looked wonderful but come with an eye-watering price tag.
The service was a little disorganised and at times gruff but that's just the Italian way and nobody meant any harm. I suspect that those who have criticised the service most forcefully would prefer the great views and the beautiful building to be infested by American serving staff with their forced smiles and faux bonne homie. I thought it all very Italian and if you were in no rush, you'd get what you wanted soon enough.
We'd recommend the hotel strongly. Maggiore is seen as less beautiful than Como but I think it's closer than the guidebooks say. Verbania is busy and modern near the ferry but the other side (near the hotel) is delightful - not at all dissimilar to Bellaggio. The hotel itself is wonderfully done and the indoor pool and spa are very smart too but the selling point has to be it's sensational views of the lake and the great feeling of diving in from the jetty and feeling like you're on a movie set.
Go there!
- Grand Hotel Verbania
