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There are uncountable reasons for a stay at the Hotel Ungheria, one of the most sought after 3 star hotels in Varese thanks to its location and excellent service. Varese and its surrounding territory are surprising for their natural beauty, history and art, and for the numerous possibilities to hike, go mountain bike riding, canoeing, play golf, go horseback riding and parasailing, all amidst splendid countryside defined by lakes, hills, villages dotted with castles, villas and enchanting gardens. In the hotel, you can find all of the tourist information necessary for discovering Varese and its outlying areas. Here we would like to present some of its most beautiful and interesting itineraries.
Sacred Mount of Varese
"It seems that Italians cannot gaze on a high place without the desire to place something at the top, and nowhere have they done it more elegantly than at the Sacred Mount of Varese", wrote the English author Samuel Butler in 1881, when he saw the sanctuary dedicated to the Holy Mary at Sacred Mount. Still today, the words of Butler describe one of the most beautiful places of Varese and of Italy, at 8 km to the north of the Hotel Ungheria. One sacred cobblestone path winds around for 2 kilometers on the slopes of Mount Olona, with 14 chapels scattered along the Via Crucis created in different periods from 1400 to 1700, which still today accompanies visitors to the spectacular Sanctuary of Santa Maria of the Mount (designated by Unesco as a Patrimony of Humanity).
Campo dei Fiori
The Sacred Mount is part of the Campo dei Fiori National Park, a splendid piece of uncontaminated nature to explore over the hiking trails or on a mountain bike, and where you can enjoy a truly enchanting panorama. The Grand Hotel Campo dei Fiori is not to be missed (a masterpiece of the architect Sommaruga) and the stations of the Cable Railway are imposing examples in Liberty style, as is the Beer Tavern Poretti, located on the road leading to Valganna. The Park also includes the Citadel of the Natural Sciences , which houses an important astronomic observatory of the Schiapparelli Astronomy Company.
Villas in Varese and the surrounding area
The splendid villas of Varese are of extremely important artistic and historical value, and are surrounded by lovely gardens. They are the expression of the cultural and economic vitality that has always characterized the city.
At 25 km from the Hotel Ungheria, in Leggiuno on Lake Maggiore, another striking place of incomparable beauty and artistic and spiritual inspiration: Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sasso. Created in homage to the vows made to Santa Caterina by a rich merchant after surviving a shipwreck, the hermitage conserves the original floor plan and frescoes from the XII Century, embellished over the centuries with structures and decorations in a monastery complex of rare beauty.
Villa Topelitz, in the village of Sant'Ambrogio is an eclectic structure of the early 1900’s surrounded by an enchanting garden, created by a prestigious landscape design studio of Paris. The beautiful playful fountains have undergone a recent renovation.
The Villa Ponti, which today serves as a prestigious convention center, is a jewel of late 1800’s architecture and of the art of landscaping.
Villa Menafoglio Litta Panza, dominating the countryside atop the hills of Biumo, is an elegant structure from the late 1700’s with a park of 33,000 square meters. The Villa is famous over the world for the 133 invaluable works that make up the collection of contemporary art of Count Giuseppe Panza of Biumo, who in 1996 donated it to FAI (Italian Environmental Fund), which today manages and cares for the Villa and collection.
Villa Recalati from the 1700’s, also has its own lovely surrounding garden, and is the headquarters of the province. It is famous for having hosted celebrated guests, such as Parini and Giuseppe Verdi.
Lakes
"What a magnificent vision! As the sun sets you can see seven lakes. Believe me, you can cross over the whole of Germany and France, but you will never have a similar experience." This is how Stendhal described the view from the hills of Varese, a city that he loved and where he lived for a period of his life.
A stay in Varese at the Hotel Ungheria is also an opportunity for exploring the unique panoramas and the splendid lakes that the surrounding area of Varese has to offer. Small, and only a few kilometers from the Hotel Ungheria and at the foot of the mountain Campo dei Fiori, the boasts the lovely Virginia island in its waters, which was already inhabited during the Neolithic Age and where you can view the important remnants of the era at the museum. The bicycle path, one of the longest in Europe, is 29 kilometers long and follows along the shores of the lake.
The Comabbio Lake, small and charming, can be found on the road to Maggiore Lake, and freezes over during the winter to become an enormous ice skating rink. The Monate Lake is also splendid, a glacier lake that is full of fish, whose origins are narrated in a romantic legend by the local people.
The Maggiore Lake, with its pleasant panoramas and historic village is only 25 kilometers from the Hotel Ungheria. From Laveno, you can take a ferryboat and visit Stresa, Arona and the Borromee islands on an enjoyable cruise.