Orselina - Padre House Museum

(Local Name: Museo Casa del Padre) The pilgrimage church of the Madonna del Sasso, with a Capuchin friary on a wooded crag above Locarno (355 m/1,165ft) can be reached by funicular from Via Ramogna, between the station and the Piazza Grande, 825 m/2,707ft in six minutes; on foot, by a path with Stations of the Cross, in 30-45minutes; or by road from Sant'Antonio via Monti or from Muralto via Orselina, 3.5km/2mi. The church, founded in 1480, was rebuilt in 1616 and overloaded with decoration in the 19th C. (restored in 20th C.). To the right of the entrance is a major work by Bramantino, the "Flight into Egypt" (1536), and in the second side chapel an "Entombment" by A. Ciseri (c. 1865). The notable collection of ecclesiastical art in the monastery museum includes valuable manuscripts.

From the terrace there are superb views over Locarno and Lake Maggiore. On the hillside to the west and east of the Madonna del Sasso, commanding extensive views, are the residential suburbs of Monti (Monti della Trinità, 404 m/1,326ft) and Orselina (456 m/1,496ft).