Galbiate

At the foot of Mount Barro, between past and present

Tucked away at the foot of Mount Barro, Galbiate is home to an extraordinary variety of landscapes and atmospheres. Here you can visit one of the most fascinating archaeological sites in the Lake Como area, at an altitude of around 600 metres. Discover the town’s rural heritage as you explore ancient churches surrounded by greenery and picturesque farming villages. Among chestnut groves, limestone cliffs, and hornbeam and oak woods, Galbiate reveals a remarkable wealth of botanical, historical and cultural treasures. Here, nature and culture are inseparably intertwined, creating a landscape to explore along both urban and nature trails. Every outing becomes a journey back through time, reaching into distant eras when humans and other living beings coexisted in harmony with nature and its cycles.

Museums

One of Galbiate’s main attractions is the Barro Archaeological Museum (MAB), which tells the story of a settlement established by the Goths in the 5th and 6th centuries. They settled within a large fortified site dating from the Late Roman period, strategically positioned to control the surrounding area. Archaeological excavations at Piani di Barra have uncovered what the Lombardy Region describes as the largest Gothic settlement in Italy, with more than 400 artefacts now preserved at the Barro Archaeological Museum. Moving forward through the centuries, you can explore the area’s more recent past at the Upper Brianza Ethnographic Museum in Camporeso, a farming village with medieval origins. Then there is Villa Bertarelli and its gardens, home to the Monte Barro Regional Park headquarters and the Centro Flora Autoctona, a centre dedicated to native flora. This outstanding example of a Lombard country residence features a magnificent panoramic terrace overlooking the Brianza lakes.

Villa Bertarelli and its historic gardens

Places of faith and culture

Galbiate is rich in churches and sacred sites. Some are little more than votive chapels, dotted among woods and along walking trails; others are easier to reach, such as the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista, at the heart of the town centre, whose origins date back at least to the late 13th century. Remodelled to a design by Antonio Quadrio, an architect who worked on Milan Cathedral, the church brings together Romanesque elements, late-Gothic frescoes, 16th-century works, 17th-century paintings, and Baroque and Neoclassical additions. In San Michele, you can visit the extraordinary Church of San Michele, an imposing yet unfinished building surrounded by greenery. Also within Monte Barro Regional Park, the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli is well worth a visit. Declared a monument of significant national importance, it is distinguished by its elegant staircase and was served by the Reformed Franciscan Friars until the early 19th century.

Places to meet and enjoy local life

In Galbiate, you can immerse yourself in the town’s thriving cultural life with a visit to the Giuseppe Panzeri Civic Library or an evening at the Cinema Teatro Cardinal Ferrari. If you enjoy spending time outdoors, don’t miss Campo dei Fiori. Here you can pick your favourite flowers to take home while enjoying the magic of a wonderfully colourful—and wonderfully fragrant!—flower meadow. In autumn, you can even choose the perfect pumpkin to make your Halloween extra special.

Sport

A paradise for trekking and mountain biking enthusiasts, as well as for horse riding and outdoor sports in general, Galbiate is home to one of the best-known climbing crags in the Lecco area, with a long succession of slabs offering routes for different levels of ability. At the heart of the town’s sporting life, however, is the Lo Spot Sports Centre, home to a large skatepark with international appeal. Created through the initiative of an association of young people, it offers a packed programme of events, courses where you can try your hand at new sports, and a wide variety of social activities, including events for families.

Mount Barro

Monte Barro Regional Park is a true haven for biodiversity. Here you can walk through magnificent mature woodlands and discover shrubs, flowers and wild plants, including numerous protected species. Geology enthusiasts will be fascinated by the many erratic boulders scattered across the landscape—evidence of the ancient glaciers that shaped this area. Mount Barro has an extensive network of well-marked walking and cycling trails. For a taste of everything the park has to offer, follow the short route of around 800 metres linking San Michele, Baita Pescate and Prato Bellavista.