Omegna

Omegna sits at the northern tip of Lake Orta, in the Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, where the Nigoglia leaves the lake and runs north toward the Toce, one of the few Italian rivers that flows uphill on a map. The town first appears in records in 1221, when it swore allegiance to the commune of Novara. The Sant'Ambrogio collegiate church goes back to the tenth century, with a Romanesque nave and a Porta Romana that survives from the medieval walls.

The real shift came after 1900, when Alessi (founded 1921), Bialetti, Lagostina and Girmi turned the Strona valley into the production hub for Italian pots, moka pots and pressure cookers. Gianni Rodari was born here in 1920; the lakefront still carries the Parco della Fantasia named after him. The Forum, a steel works converted into a museum, holds the permanent collection of the local household-goods district. The lake stays close on three sides.

From Milan (BGY), about 1h 47m by car.

Turin (TRN) is about 1h 47m away.

By car from the centre of Brescia 2h 10m.

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? Omegna is about 1h 20m away by road.

Every town within reach of Milan airport.