On weekends and fine summer evenings, the locals enjoy dressing up and promenading along lakeside walks. There is no distinction between the ages and you’ll find a real microcosm of Italian society amiably strolling up and down, deep in conversation but always with an eye on comings and goings.

For the elderly, the experience has clearly been built on layer upon layer of happy memories. Most lakeside towns are equipped with suitable, impeccably maintained promenades where you too can engage in a spot of people- watching while clutching an ice cream cone (the only food Italians will consumer on the streets).

If you’d like to make a day of it, you’ll usually find an array of beaches and lidos at one end of the promenade – perfect forparking your towel on and admiring the views over the lake. The highlight, however, has to be evenings when the lakefront and car-free streets really come alive. After another round of carefree strolling and people-watching, it’s time to choose somewhere for your aperitivo or evening meal.

Outstanding restaurants abound in the larger towns, though with its excellent culinary scene, patronised primarily by Italians, Arona, down south, is hard to beat.