‘The most quietly romantic town we have ever visited’ – the enduring charm of Chiavenna, Italy

2026-02-15 - 07:15

Writers from George Eliot to Goethe put this Lombardy town on the map, then it fell out of fashion. Today it makes a picture-perfect alternative to the Italian lakes The ancient settlement of Chiavenna, in Lombardy, near Italy’s border with Switzerland, was once well known among travellers. “Lovely Chiavenna ... mountain peaks, huge boulders, with rippling miniature torrents and lovely young flowers ... and grassy heights with rich Spanish chestnuts,” wrote George Eliot in 1860. Eliot wasn’t the only writer to rhapsodise about this charming town. Edith Wharton described it as “fantastically picturesque ... an exuberance of rococo”. For Mary Shelley it was “paradise ... glowing in rich and sunny vegetation”, while Goethe described it as “like a dream”. Continue reading...