Ronco sopra Ascona - Porto Ronco - Lake Maggiore & Lake Orta Travel Guide

Between Ascona and Brissago, the village of Ronco sopra Ascona sits picturesquely on a rocky terrace above the lake.


Ronco can be reached on foot in about 1.5 hours from either Ascona or Brissago, the route passing luxury residences owned mainly by Germans and Swiss.


From the church square there is "the" finest view of the lake, the Brissago Islands just offshore, Gambarogno opposite, and the alluvial delta of the Maggia on which Ascona spreads out.

The well-preserved old centre of Ronco is full of charm, with its tall 17th-century houses and narrow, car-free lanes with plenty of steps.

The parish church of San Martino has very ancient origins but today appears in Baroque style, with a classicist façade added in front. In the choir there are still some late Gothic frescoes by Antonio de Tradate from 1492. The altarpiece, showing Saint Martin as a bishop, was created by the local artist Antonio Ciseri (1821-1891), who also painted the Entombment of Christ in the pilgrimage church of Madonna del Sasso in Locarno.

Ciseri's birthplace, a patrician house opposite the parish church, is now a seminar and exhibition centre and displays mementos and a few paintings by the artist. Near the parish church stands the Chapel of Madonna delle Grazie, a simple 18th-century Baroque chapel with a very fine Tuscan porch and dome frescoes by Giuseppe Antonio Felice Orelli.

Up to the 1960s, the original farming village developed into an artists' village, and it also gave many victims of Nazi persecution a home and the chance to work. The writer Erich Maria Remarque (1898-1970), whose novel "All Quiet on the Western Front" sold millions of copies, and the painter, graphic artist and writer Richard Seewald (1889-1976) both lived in Ronco and are buried in its cemetery. Today the village is dominated more by upmarket tourism, with holiday homes and hotels.

Above Ronco rises the Corona dei Pinci (1,293 m), an extremely rewarding climb for its fascinating views of the lake, passing the "Monti di Ronco". Below Ronco, about 800 steps down on foot, lies Porto Ronco on the lakeside road, from where the shortest and fastest boat connections run to the Brissago Islands.

Video: magic moments @ ronco sopra ascona - lake maggiore (switzerland)
with kind permission of TICINUS MEDIA (https://www.youtube.com/user/ticinus)

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