Taino: Park Art, Chapels and Hiking Trails

Park Art and Views in the Center

Taino reveals its character particularly where designed art, public space and expansive views come together. In the center of Taino lies the Parco di Taino, a public park. Between 1981 and 1991, Giò Pomodoro designed the park. From here, there is a view of Lake Maggiore and Monte Rosa. This combination of park, art and distant views gives you a concrete way to experience Taino without reducing the town to a single attraction.

Light as a Calendar

The Luogo dei quattro punti cardinali offers a special perspective. On June 21, sunlight passes through a slit in the central high pillar and projects light onto the fallen pillar. The interplay of shadows also indicates the winter solstice and the spring and autumn equinoxes.

Church, Museum and Cheglio

The parish church of Santo Stefano Protomartire is known as “il dumin.” At the Museo di Taino, three display cases use documents, photographs and tools to present former occupations such as carpenter, shoemaker, stonemason and tailor.

In Cheglio stands the Oratorio di S. Giovanni Battista, a 17th-century chapel built according to the requirements established by S. Carlo Borromeo. The Oratorio contains a large painting of the beheading of John the Baptist. In 1992, art critic Giovanni Testori attributed it to the painter G.B. Crespi (Il Cerano).

The Cappelletta dei Santi Cosma e Damiano in Cheglio was built in the 9th century and preserves remnants of frescoes from the Syrian school. The area's sacred history therefore reaches significantly further back than the chapel of the Oratorio di S. Giovanni Battista.

Forest Paths and Historical Traces

The paths also offer an independent way to experience the landscape. The Anello delle Castagne is 13 kilometers long, takes 3 hours and 30 minutes, and has a moderate difficulty level. Between Sesto Calende and Taino, it mostly follows paths through forests of oaks, chestnuts, hornbeams and Scots pines in the Parco del Ticino. In Taino, the Sentiero del Verbano leads to old agricultural terraces, vineyards and chestnut forests. If you want to plan your hike around length, duration and difficulty, the Anello delle Castagne provides specific reference points; the Sentiero del Verbano, by contrast, focuses thematically on the cultural landscape. For the Anello delle Castagne, the stated walking time leaves only limited room for additional activities on the same day beyond the loop trail.

On the Anello Sesto Calende – Taino – Lisanza – Sesto Calende loop, the trail passes a former powder magazine. Its explosion claimed the lives of 35 workers, predominantly women, in the 1930s.

More Destinations

Gavirate, Dumenza, Germignaga, Montecatini, Grantola, Gallarate, Colmegna, Besozzo

To the higher-level travel overview: Varese.