Monte Generoso: a hike from Italy into Switzerland

A border summit with four lakes at your feet

Monte Generoso is the mountain that divides and connects at once: we start in Italy, we arrive in Switzerland, and from the top at 1,704 metres the view takes in the lakes of Lugano, Como, Varese and Maggiore, with Milan and the Po plain behind them on clear days.

We set off from Alpe Grande, above Centro Valle Intelvi, where we leave the cars in a large car park. The first stretch is a trail through cool woodland up to Orimento; from there an easy mule track leads towards Alpe Squadrina, the summit already in sight ahead of us. The last part climbs across open pastures to the border ridge, where the Fiore di pietra appears, the building designed by Mario Botta that marks the Swiss summit.

Fifteen kilometres and 800 metres of ascent: a full day on well-marked trails with no technical difficulty. On the way down we stop at Baita di Orimento for lunch, before closing the loop at Alpe Grande.

Why come

• four pre-Alpine lakes seen from a single summit
• the Italy-Switzerland border reached on foot
• Mario Botta's Fiore di pietra on the top
• the stop at Baita di Orimento, among the pastures and woods of Valle Intelvi

Who it suits

This is an intermediate hike: 800 metres of ascent and five hours of walking call for a bit of training, but there are no exposed or equipped sections. Bring your ID card: the summit is on Swiss soil.

Come with the Guidders: book your place and let's climb the Generoso together.