Verbania: D4 … Villa Taranto Gardens

Staying local today meant a short drive to the Giardini Botanici Villa Taranto, located between Intra and Pallanza, two districts overlooking Lago Maggiore.

Established by a Scotsman by the name of McEacharn between 1931-1940, the botanic gardens cover 16 hectares. After acquiring an existing villa, which dated back to 1870, and the neighboring lands, he made a number of major changes to the grounds, including the addition of several water features.

The villa — named after an ancestor of McEacharn who was conferred the title of Duke of Taranto by Napoleon — now houses government offices, and is closed to public access. The sprawling gardens, which feature nearly 20,000 plants and more than 4 miles of paths, have been open to the public since 1952.

We found parking in the lot overlooking Lago Maggiore, purchased our admission, and set off to explore the gardens … consisting of colorful flower beds; manicured lawns; terraced gardens; sculptures hidden amongst the plants; a maze of dahlias; a tropical greenhouse filled with Victoria cruziana water lilies; a lotus pond filled with so many plants that it resembled a forest of oversized green platters; rare trees rediscovered after they were thought to be extinct; fountains and streams spanned by bridges made of stone; and a myriad of other features.

Taking our time to slowly stroll along the paths, we enjoyed the grounds … glad to have blue skies and sunshine, and temperatures that were milder than previous days.

As we made our way to the formal terraced gardens at the high point of the grounds, we stopped at the McEacharn Mausoleum Chapel that was built in 1965 … with floral-themed stained glass windows bringing the color from the grounds inside. Various vantage points along the way afforded us views of the villa … with a fountain in the foreground sending a jet of water high into the air … with the not-too-distant Swiss mountains serving as a backdrop.

The formal terraced gardens were a riot of warm colors, the scenery with the mountain-backdrop stunning. We wandered around a bit. We sat in the Petalo Pavilion for a bit. Eventually, our stomachs started complaining that it was long past the noon hour. So, we began the downward trek by way of a set of zig-zagging paths that afforded us views of Lago Maggiore and the neighboring town of Intra.Read more