Pettenasco on Lake Orta: Craftsmanship, Art and Paths by the Water

Pettenasco on Lake Orta combines historic woodworking, sacred art, local festivals and paths by the water. This gives your travel planning a varied local character: you can explore cultural themes, seasonal events, cycling tours and the lakeside setting according to your own interests.

Woodworking with a history of its own

The Museo dell’Arte della Tornitura del Legno is housed in a former woodturning workshop run by the Maulini family from 1886 to 1970. The historic workshop contains the gears and lathes that the Maulini family used for woodworking; they still function thanks to a large wooden wheel powered by the Roggia Molinara. Pettenasco also had a historic woodturning tradition, with its power generated by the Torrente Pescone and the Roggia Molinara.

Church of Saints Audenzio and Caterina

The interior of the Church of Saints Audenzio and Caterina contains paintings depicting the mystical marriage of Saint Caterina, Saint Carlo in a procession with the relic of the Holy Nail, the martyrdom of Saints Quirico and Giulitta, and the Nativity. The church has four side altars dedicated to the Holy Cross, the Madonna del Rosario, Saints Julius and Audenzio, and Saint Anthony the Abbot and Saint Anthony of Padua. Its interior has a single nave.

Festivals throughout the year

Pettenasco’s patron saint festival is celebrated on the last Sunday in November with a procession and the sale of the biscuits “le ruote di Santa Caterina.” The Madonna del Rosario festival takes place on the second Sunday in September and includes processions, a floating fire on the lake and a traditional confectionery fair. Both dates give your travel planning a clear seasonal focus.

Places between land and lake

The Località Paganetto is designated as an equipped picnic area on Via Per Armeno. The installation “Vers l’autre côté,” named “Fionda,” is located at the southern end of the lakeside promenade.

Routes around Lake Orta

The cycling tour “La Riviera di Pettenasco” begins near the parish church of Santa Caterina and shortly afterwards passes the Museo dell’Arte della Tornitura del Legno. The “Grand Tour del Lago d’Orta” route follows the Pescone to Pettenasco and then continues towards Crabbia along a panoramic path with lake views.

The public boat service on Lake Orta operates daily from March to October. At the mouth of the Pescone where it flows into Lake Orta, there is a free, public, unequipped small beach with a sandy surface and shallow water.

More places for your travel planning

Further destinations: Tornaco, Bellinzago Novarese, Suno, Veruno, Vacciago, Casalino, Cavaglio D'agogna and Casaleggio Novara.

To the higher-level travel overview: Novara.