Day Trip to Ascona and a Boat Ride on Lago Maggiore

Monday September 29, 2025 -- Today the best weather was in the south again, and our visitors from USA needed another day-trip, so I chose to take them to Ascona on Lago Maggiore near Locarno in Canton Ticino. A trip to the warmer climate of the Italian-influenced southern part of Switzerland is always welcome.

Ascona, which was crowned "Swiss Village of the Year 2025", is a quaint lakeside city with a very Italian small-town flair, many alleys and shops to inspect, and a lovely lakeside promenade with colourful buildings. I also chose this as a destination because we could include a boat trip on Lago Maggiore, and Carrie likes to ride boats on lakes.

We ended our boat trip in Locarno, with another walk around the main part of the pedestrian section of the city, before heading on the two-hour trip back home. It was a fairly relaxed outing and not as full as the day before. But getting down there was horror this time: What should have been a 2¾-hour trip to get there ended up being an hour longer, as there were so many people headed down there this day, that the train we wanted to take via the faster Gotthard Base Tunnel was jam-packed with standing room only, so we had to go the panorama route over the upper Gotthard Tunnel, which takes an hour longer....

The bus to Ascona passes by here at the north gate of the 16th Century Papal College building, and from here we walk through the college grounds heading through the town toward the lake. We had hoped to get here by 10:40, but due to having to take a slower train and overfilled buses, we only got here at noon. 

Within the grounds of the Papal College is the 14th Century St. Mary's church, which we had a look at. 

The interior of St.Mary's had the most beautiful frescoes on most of the walls. There was an older gentlemen tuning a grand piano... it looked like there would be a concert later. (When we were here in December 2024, there was a church service going on here, and we couldn't really admire the artwork at the time). 

Heading down the alleys of Ascona toward the lake. 

There was some very nice artwork on many of the building walls (this is related to a jazz theme celebrating New Orleans). It is so nice to be able to fill our water bottles everywhere!

The colourful row of buildings along the lakeside promenade. (In October 2020 we ended a hike here, and there were hundreds of people here on the promenade at the time!)  

Admiring the lakeside houses on the west side of the lake. 

As it was now 12:30, we decided to sit here on a bench at the lake to eat our picnic lunch before heading back into the alleyways. At 1 p.m., a boat heads out toward the Brissago Islands. This is a boat trip we are planning to take (14:10) in the same direction, after walking around the town a bit more. 

Along the promenade, more paintings on the buildings. 

Up one of the side alleys we can see the bell tower of the parish church of St.Peter and St.Paul, which was closed for renovations when we were here in December 2024, but unfortunately still not available to see the interior (which is a shame, as there are beautiful fresco artwork which we were able to admire on the October 2020 trip). 

This building has some nice stucco artwork. It is across the square from the St.Peter and St.Paul church. 

Through the narrow alleyways we can see the bell tower of the parish church. 

Walking through the alleyways of Ascona. 

Something interesting to look at around every corner. 

These apartments overlook a lovely square with a restaurant and lots of outdoor tables. 

Walking down the alleyways of Ascona. 

Walking back and forth through the alleyways of Ascona. 

A look up the main street. 

Back at the lake we discovered there was one of those red frames from the Grand Tour of Switzerland!

Grand Tour of Switzerland frame. 

Quick photo on a sunny bench. It was a real shame that we lost over an hour on our trip down here. (Normally with the Gotthard Base Tunnel, we can be here in less than 2½ hours). It would have been nice to enjoy this lake-side town longer. 

Many outdoor patios at the various restaurants on the lakeside promenade. 

This very nicely decorated building is the public library! All this artwork is part of an open-air street exhibition called Jazz off the Wall. 

There still is time to get some gelato! A long time studying the different flavours and they both got the same: One scoop of pistacchio and one scoop of tiramisu!

Enjoying real gelato while waiting for the 14:10 boat. 

Here comes our boat! This is the start of a 90-minute boat ride, first to the Brissago Islands, then back to Ascona, and then to Locarno. This is the 14:10 run. 

The boat ride was planned as part of this day's outing for Carrie's sake, because she loves boat rides!

The view behind us to the lakeside town of Ascona as we head south toward the Brissago Islands. 

The Brissago Islands are two islands just off the west side of the lake, one of which is Switzerland's only botanical garden on an island. Here you can find over 2000 species of plants from the Mediterranean and the subtropical regions of five continents. 

This is the dock at the Brissago "Botanical Garden". Many people got on and off here. As this is near the Italian border (which runs through the center of the lake here), the boat turns around and heads back to Ascona. 

Our boat heads back to Ascona. 

Very many people got onto the boat here in Ascona, and the boat was full. (The only baby on the boat ended up behind me....  :(    )

The boat now heads to the villages at the base of Monte Gambarogno on the east side of Lake Maggiore. 

On the north side of the lake you can see the large dam at the entrance of the Verzasca Valley. 

The boat also dock at Vira at the base of Monte Gambarogno. 

Vira Gambarogno

Just a bit further north along the lakeshore is another beautiful church in the community of Magadino. 

The boat now heads westward on the final stretch to Locarno. Even though the boat was full, it was a relatively small boat, and somewhat cozy. 

Looking south down Lago Maggiore

As we approach Locarno, another boat heads out toward Vira and Ascona. 

Arrival in Locarno at 3:30 p.m. 

This is the boat dock (Debarcadero) in Locarno. 

We decided to take the 16:45 train from Locarno, which means we had just over an hour to look around the old part of Locarno. This is the main square (Piazza Grande) where the Locarno Film Festival is held. 

We went up a side street and discovered this church structure tucked in among other buildings. It is called "Chiesa di Santa Maria" or "Chiesa Nuova". This church was consecrated in 1636. 

The nice stucco artwork on the outside of the building was just a small indication of the splendour we discovered inside. 

The interior of the church was indeed spectacular! (These are Carrie's photos). 

I particularly love ornate ceilings. This is the altar side of the church, with the two side chapels. 

This is the entrance side of the building. I wonder where the organ is?

Lots of details of the artwork in this beautiful building. 

In this side chapel (dating to a later period) is a dedication to St.Germanus, whose remains are preserved in a wooden urn.

Near the main entrance of the church, we discovered a very small door which led into a courtyard next to the church. 

This building was a residence by the same architect that built the church next to it. It also dates from the early 17th Century. 

Since phone booths are no longer needed, many have been converted into small book-borrowing booths!

Back at the main square, Piazza Grande, at 4:30 p.m., with just enough time to get back to the train station for the 16:45 train to Bellinzona. (And ultimately a 2-hour trip home). 

Location of Locarno and Ascona within Switzerland. 

What our 90-minute boat excursion looks like on Google Satellite Maps. We boarded the boat in Ascona, traveled to the Brissago Islands, then back to Ascona, with a stop in Vira and ending in Locarno.