Piemonte · Novara
Gozzano
The town at the southern tip of Lake Orta, marked by a basilica and a twelfth-century signaling tower above the water.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Gozzano is on our list
It holds Bandiera Blu.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 3 min from Milan
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 5,499
- J9°
- F11°
- M13°
- A16°
- M20°
- J25°
- J27°
- A28°
- S22°
- O18°
- N12°
- D9°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Going to the sea? How to find the free beaches in Italy.
Why come
Gozzano sits above the southern tip of Lake Orta, the smaller of the Italian subalpine lakes. The Latin name Gaudianum meant 'place of enjoyment,' a Roman villa from the late imperial era. By the fourth century the area had been evangelized by two saints who arrived together, brothers by tradition, and their memory shaped the town's religious geography for centuries after.
Gozzano is the largest town on the southern Orta shore and the main road access to the lake from the Po valley, the point where travelers from the Po valley meet the water. The basilica sits at the center of town while the lookout tower stands above it on higher ground, watching the lake rather than living beside it, one building for worship and pilgrimage, the other for defense and signaling. The lake itself holds a Bandiera Blu for water quality, one of the few inland lakes in Italy to qualify. Together the low church and the high tower mark Gozzano as a place shaped by both the water at its feet and the routes passing over it.
How to get there
From Turin (TRN), about 1 h 29 min by car.
Milan Bergamo (BGY) is about 1 h 31 min away.
By car from the center of Brescia 1 h 53 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Milan, Turin or Genoa?
Coming by train into Milano Centrale? Gozzano is about 1 h 3 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Turin airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Basilica di San Giuliano
The bell tower dates to the eleventh century, older than the reconstruction around it. The building follows the model of the basilica on Isola San Giulio and the old Novara cathedral, a copy of a copy standing at the water's edge.
Torre di Buccione
The tower is the remnant of a vanished castle, standing alone where walls and keep did not survive. Three internal wooden decks remain inside, a climb above the lake rather than a ruin at ground level.
Lago d'Orta lungolago
Southern shore lakefront at 290 meters of water elevation, the gateway to Orta San Giulio and the Isola San Giulio.
Palazzo Vescovile
Former bishop's palace next to the basilica, a reminder of Gozzano's medieval status as a Novara diocesan stronghold.
Living here
Could you live here?
Gozzano meets all 3 of our rules for a small town.
- 5,499 people, inside our sweet spot of 5,000 to 20,000: a real town, still one community.
- Gallarate, a city of 52,902, is 32 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
- A station of its own. Trains are the overlooked way to get around Italy: no parking, straight into the center.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
We measured every town in the region on these rules, by its drive to Turin, the city we moved to: Moving to Turin and Piedmont.
- Population 5,499, down 0.4% since 2015
- Nearest city Gallarate, 32 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest national health service hospital Borgomanero, 7 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €1,050 to €1,500 per m² to buy, €3.30 to €4.60 per m² a month to rent
Weighing a move here? See the moving year.
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- In-between
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 45% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 4, very low hazard
- Milan Malpensa airport (MXP), 44 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Turin, 1 h 28 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
11% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Senegal, Albania and Ukraine, against 9% across Italy. 10 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe. There are 276 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 32% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Novara province ranks 45th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Borgomanero, 7 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Varese, 31 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Varese, 31 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Como, 48 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is European School Varese, 31 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.06% a year in property tax, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. The town adds 0.6% to your income tax, with nothing due on income under €10,000. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Piemonte spends about €2,240 a month, €580 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €467 a year for water, on the Piemonte average. In Novara, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.30, a meal in a pizzeria €11.85 and a man's haircut €22.02.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone E, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from October 15 to April 15, up to 14 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. Under 1% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods, under 1% in a high or medium one. They show no residents in a high landslide zone.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
LAKE ORTA
Southern tip of the smallest Italian subalpine lake, water at 290 meters, with Bandiera Blu certification for water quality.
SAN GIULIANO
Twelfth-century basilica built around a ninth-century shrine for Saint Julian, who evangelized the lake with his brother Julius.
TORRE DI BUCCIONE
Twelfth-century lookout tower 23 meters tall, three internal wooden decks, held by the Bishops of Novara from 1235.
Common questions
- What is Gozzano known for?
- Gozzano is the town at the southern tip of Lake Orta, marked by a basilica and a twelfth-century signaling tower above the water.
- Where is Gozzano?
- Gozzano is a comune in the province of Novara, in Piemonte, at 367 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Gozzano?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Milan Malpensa (MXP), about 44 min by car.
- Can you get to Gozzano without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Brescia to Gozzano?
- About 1 h 53 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Gozzano?
- Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 28 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 19 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Gozzano?
- Baveno, Stresa and Passignano sul Trasimeno.
- How many people live in Gozzano?
- 5,499 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Gozzano a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Gozzano is a small town that meets all 3 of our rules. The nearest city, Gallarate, is 32 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Borgomanero, 7 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 45% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 367 m
- Population: 5,499
- Surface area: 12.58 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
The ranked lists
Lists Gozzano appears in
- The best towns known for their meat within two hours of TurinNear Turinwithin 2 hoursmeat zone7 towns · smallest 126 residents · closest 71 min away
- The best lake towns you can reach by train in PiemontePiemontelakeby train8 towns · smallest 450 residents
- The best lake towns within two hours of TurinNear Turinlakewithin 2 hours10 towns · smallest 1,102 residents · closest 88 min away
Featured on
Gozzano appears on this themed pick from our Collections:
Similar
Towns like Gozzano
What all six share with Gozzano: lake towns · between 3,000 and 10,000 people · hill towns
Baveno
Province: Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
both have a railway station in the comune
Stresa
Province: Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
both have a railway station in the comune
- Written about. No. 61.
Passignano sul Trasimeno
Province: Perugia
both have a railway station in the comune
Cannobio
Province: Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
1 h 14 min apart by road
Castel Gandolfo
Province: Roma
both have a railway station in the comune
Laveno-Mombello
Province: Varese
both have a railway station in the comune
The letter
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