Brunate – Lake Como | Magnificent Balcony on the Alps

 

Brunate is a beautiful, small center located at 715.0 meters above sea level, overlooking the city of Como close to the southern slope of the suggestive Monte Tre Croci dominating the plateau of Piani di Brunate in a territory where the Lombard Pre-Alps in one end of the Larian Triangle embrace the magnificent Lake Como.

Once you are in Como you can reach the funicular that leads to Brunate located near the dock a few steps from the historic center.

This fast means of transport, inaugurated on November 11, 1894, allows you to reach Brunate from the provincial capital of Como from Piazza Alcide De Gasperi in just 7 minutes along a steep mountain ridge with  a maximum gradient of 55% with a difference in height of 500.0 meters, arriving at the station located in Piazza Bonacossa.

On the top through a glass wall you can admire unforgettable views of Como and in the meantime also see the system of engine rooms that allow the operation of the funicular itself, the protagonist of this spectacular ascent.

Immediately outside the station you can admire divine landscapes that alternate as if by magic with rugged rocky spurs, dense wooded areas full of pines, maples, birches, beeches, chestnuts and oaks and a good number of water springs among which the mostfamous is the Fonte Pissarottino located near the magnificent belvedere.

The history of Brunate is also linked to the tourism of the Belle Époque of the late19th and early 20th centuries, becoming since then a favorite destination for many tourists coming from Milan in search of a splendid place to spend pleasant weekends, especially in the summer.

In a very pleasant walk you will find yourself in front of the belvedere called Balcony on the Alps to enjoy unforgettable views as well as the lake and Como on the entire western Alpine arc with extraordinary views of Monte Rosa, Monviso, the peaks that mark the Italian-Swiss border, the Po Valley and included a glimpse of a section of the Northern Apennines.

Continuation towards the Parish Church of St. Andrew the Apostle located a short distance from the funicular station reachable via a beautiful staircase, which although it shows a baroque profile has a fourteenth-century origin, a complex that in medieval times included a monastery that was later demolished.

The structure, with two large façades and statues placed at the topabove a large tympanum, was remodelled and considerably enlarged between 1914 and 1927, thirteen years of work that created the second pediment.

The interior boasts a beautiful high altar of Baroque architectural matrix guarding the relics of the Blessed Maddalena Albrici as well as an excellent pipe organ which, thanks to the excellent acoustics of the church, is often the protagonist of numerous concerts and musical events.

You can continue the visit towards the small, picturesque old town magnificently characterized by alleys, cobblestone alleys and stairways that reach splendid panoramic slopes where Via Monti, the main artery of the village, cuts the heart of Brunate in two parts.

Then you will reach  the Court of the Jews, developed in  the fifteenth century, linked to a Jewish community that lived in this municipality of Como since that time, which opens onto a small square where there is the Chapel dedicated to the Madonna of Pompei, a small church with a sober appearance with a wooden portal developed between two windows and two bells placed on the roof.

Through narrow, romantic streets you will be fascinated by buildings built in different eras adorned with stone portals and various courtyards including the Castle Court which is one of the oldest sitesin Brunate.

Afterwards you can admire the Church of San Maurizio, a building of medieval origin with a long façade with a simple wooden portal and a splendid fresco immortalizing San Maurizio Guerriero executed in the upper section of the façade.

Walking in the charming heart of Brunate in an absolutely inspiring atmosphere you will be delighted by the beauty of the many Belle Époque villas scattered in this Larian municipality among which stand Villa Pirotta Bonacossa, a noble residence with a French profile erected in eclectic - baroque style, Villa Cantaluppi - Giuliani, a splendid aristocratic residence, the result of a sublime Art Nouveau style.

Villa Duca is a further one characterized by an attractive octagonal turret, another Art Nouveau masterpiece embellished with framed windows decorated with floral themes.

Also of great charm  is Villa Pierreard - Marinoni - Schmidlin which was the favorite refuge for the Italian holidays of a Belgian Countess, built by the compatriot architect Horta in a magnificent Art Nouveau.

Of relevant interest are in addition Villa Crespi – Bianchi with bow – windows from 1901, Villa Rebuschini – Ancona – Capis developed in a late sixteenth century style with mannerist forms surrounded by a dense forest and the Chalet Sonzogno, a prefabricated building that won the third prize in an international competition in 1904 for its special architectural features.

At the end of this beautiful visit time for your lunch, I suggest as traditional first courses to choose between Green Ravioli with Cream and Ham or Risotto with Mushrooms Chiodini and Parsley, second courses to choose between Breaded Chicken Breast with Herbs with Mixed Salad or Scallops in White Wine with a side of Spinach with Zincarlin Gratin.

After lunch I recommend taking the Brunate – CAO bus from Piazza Bonacossa which leads to the hamlet of the same name where once you arrive on site you will admire the Sanctuary of Santa Rita, a small church built by the architect Piero Clerici consecrated on May 25, 1942 by Bishop Macchi becoming since then the smallest sanctuary in Italy, title awarded to him on 22 May 1944.

The white plaster building with gabled façade and portico containing a fresco executed above the portal with arched entrance, from its churchyard you will have the opportunity to admire magnificent views of Lake Como.

Afterwards visit of the iconic Volta Lighthouse designed by the engineer Gabriele Giussani, an octagonal tower with a height of 29.0 meters built in 1927, the year in which it was inaugurated with a solemn ceremony that saw the presence of the Minister of Telecommunications of the time Costanzo Ciano.

This building, as the name confirms, was erected in honour of the famous scientist Alessandro Volta, an illustrious son of Como, and boasts a wide-ranging system of white, red and green lights, like the Italian tricolour, which alternate in emission from sunset until the early hours of dawn the following day.

You will notice a bust of the great inventor placed in the central vault, donated to the lighthouse by the postal operators.

Inside, through a spiral staircase of 143 steps, you can reach two panoramic balconies, one located above the entrance door and another near the lantern from where we will admire other breathtaking views such as the silhouette of the majestic Monte Rosa and other Alpine peaks of great charm.

After taking the bus back to the funicular and getting off again in Como you will surely remember for a long time Brunate that with its charm and enchantment bewitches every tourist.

Link : https://www.visitcomo.eu/en/discover/itineraries_excursions/excursions/brunate/

Where to Stay | Recommended Accomodation

Bellavista Boutique Hotel

Hotel Paradiso Como