Navigation on Lake Varese to discover the island of Virginia: an oasis of tranquility, linked to the environmental beauty of the lake, the vegetation and fauna that live here, as well as one of the most famous sites of European Prehistory and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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Starting from Biandronno it is immediately possible to observe the island of Virginia in the distance.
The navigation will lead us to the Virginia island with its characteristic triangular shape of about 9200 square meters of surface. This island is one of the most famous sites of European Prehistory, in fact, it is the oldest prehistoric pile-dwelling settlement in the Alps, which is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List “Prehistoric pile-dwelling sites in the Alps.
Since 1962, following a donation by the Marquis Gianfelice Ponti, it has been owned by the Municipality of Varese.
The peculiarity of the island lies in the fact that although it has a small Prehistoric Museum, which depends on the Archaeological Museum of Villa Mirabello, it is itself a museum, as a restricted archaeological and environmental area.
History and environment create in this site a balance of profound and unrepeatable beauty.
Over time, this island has always been renowned as an oasis of tranquility, closely linked to the environmental beauty of the lake, to the vegetation and fauna that live here.
In fact, Lake Varese was always known for its fish wealth, as it is considered one of the most fishy lakes in Europe.
In the past counted among the most scenic in Lombardy, it has maintained over time the charm of uncontaminated landscapes, not very dissimilar, in some cases, to those of Neolithic times.
The navigation to reach Virginia Island takes about 15 minutes.
The ticket allows you to make the round trip from Biandronno to Isolino during the selected day.
Did you know that …?
There are several curiosities that can be found on the island of Virginia, here are a few:
1) The only island in Lake Varese houses a pile-dwelling site dated to the Neolithic period, 7,000 years ago.
2) the island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the “Prehistoric pile-dwelling sites of the Alps” list.
3) In the 16th century it was known as the island of S. Biagio due to the presence of a small church dedicated to this saint and destination of processions from the Schiranna.
