The sanctuary dedicated to St Francis of Assisi and set on a hilltop overlooking Orta San Giulio is a renowned place of pilgrimage. It consists of twenty Baroque chapels, decorated with frescoes that serve as a background to groups of lifelike terracotta statues depicting the saint's life.

Dominating Stresa and Lake Maggiore from a height of 1,491m, the Mottarone which is reached up a panoramic toll path, the " strada borromea", has a superb panoramic view over the lake, the Alps and the massif of Mont Rose.