LOCARNO
Above Lake Maggiore is the lovely town of Locarno at the base of the Alps. From here, visitors capture a more panoramic view of the lake, still within walking distance to its shores. Locarno is home to a majority of the cultural and recreational activities of the region: the ‘Locarno Film Festival’, the most important film festival in Switzerland held every August (August 3-9, 2023) to the concerts of ‘Moon & Stars’ with international music stars performing in a unique setting (July 13-23, 2023) to ‘Locarno on Ice', where an ice rink takes over the square in the center of the city (November 23, 2023 – January 7, 2024) to ‘Locarno Camellia’ exhibition of 900 species of camellia in full bloom (March 20-24, 2024) to name a few.
The ideal hotel here in a great location is Belvedere Locarno, welcoming guests for more than 125 years. Today the hotel has 90 contemporary rooms with all the creature comforts. It is perched on the hillside overlooking the city with amazing views of Lake Maggiore below, yet close to all the activities.
Belvedere Locarno is the Official Partner Hotel of the Locarno Film Festival. This makes it celebrity central during the festival for rubbing elbows with the stars. And if that is not enough, guests can reach for the heavens at the nearby 15th century Madonna del Sasso church. This famous pilgrimage sanctuary on the sacred mountain in Orselina is where there once was an apparition of Virgin Mary. It is a destination of the devotional hiking route linking Camino de Santiago and the Via Francigena. Belvedere Hotel even has its own funicular stop “Belvedere” that takes visitors to this special spot.