Traveling with a car has its advantages, but parking the car in Stresa can't be said to be one of them. Stresa is a small city of about 5,000 inhabitants, but the population in summer swells to more than 20,000. Stresa is bordered on one side by a lake, on the other by mountains, and in between it is composed of ancient, narrow, often one-way stone streets. Empty, flat land for parking is scarce, and especially enough parking for heavy summer or weekend traffic. Nevertheless, Stresa has managed to create several parking areas dispersed around the town. Following is some parking information that may be helpful.
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1. Where can I park? In general, you will see parking spaces marked on many streets in Stresa; wherever it is possible. You will also see official parking lots. The rule is this: White painted parking spaces are free of charge; blue painted spaces require a parking fee and a receipt left visible on the dashboard of your car. In the municipal parking lots almost all spaces are blue and require a fee. In municipal parking lots there are also allocated handicapped parking spaces.
2. Where are the Municipal Parking Lots located? Stresa city maps indicate parking areas with the well-recognized blue and white P signs. Driving around Stresa you will see the same signs.
Here are a few of the main parking areas:
Piazza Marconi (where the main Stresa boat dock is located). This is the largest parking lot in Stresa, running along the lakefront at the boat dock, across from the church.
Piazza Marconi parking
Piazza Capucci: Located just beyond the central Piazza Cadorna, Piazza Capucci parking has both white spaces and blue spaces. It tends to be popular for locals doing errands in town as it is near to the post office, supermarket, pharmacy and banks, and therefore the spaces have a fairly quick turnover. The important thing to remember about Piazza Capucci is that each Friday this becomes the location of the Stresa Friday Market, and so from Thursday night until Friday afternoon all cars must be removed.
These signs around Piazza Capucci indicate that from 6am until 2pm on Friday there is no parking in the lot, due to the market. This is strictly enforced, and any parked cars will be towed.
Piazza Capucci parking
Palazzo dei Congressi: Across from the entrance to the business and cultural center, Palazzo dei Congressi, there is a two-level municipal parking lot.
Palazzo dei Congressi parking
Carciano: At the other end of Stresa, at the Carciano boat dock, there is another good-size parking lot, as well as spaces along the adjacent streets. This is a good location for not only the Carciano boats, but the cableway, the new swimming pool, and restaurants at that end of town.
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Parking at Carciano
Train Station: There is a large parking area at the train station, as well as parking along the roads around the station. Many of these are free spaces.
3. How do I pay for a parking space? If you are in a blue-lined parking space you must pay for it when you park and then leave the receipt visible on your dashboard. Look around the parking lot for the machine; watch where others are going to pay. The machines do not all look the same. Put coins into the slot, adding coins until the amount of time displayed matches the amount of time you plan to park. When it does, push print to receive your receipt.
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Parking machine at Carciano
4. How much does it cost to park? I cannot vouch that all the parking areas have the same fee and times, but generally it seems to be 1.50 per hour, and 10 euro for the entire part of the day that payment is required (as of this writing).
5. Can I leave my car overnight? Always obey the signs in whatever parking area you are in. Wherever you are, look around you for parking signs; they will generally tell you how long you can stay in that space. For example, white spaces might say something like: 30 minutes between 8 am and 6 pm. This would mean that after 6 pm you may park for all the evening until 8 am the next day. Likewise, you may park overnight in blue parking spaces, but payment is always required for the hours indicated on the signs. Remember again, you cannot leave a car overnight Thursday night in the Piazza Capucci parking lot, due to the Friday market.
So, the bottom line is, obey the signs and the colors. Failure to obey them could mean finding a ticket on your car with a fine to pay, or, receiving a fine in the mail some time after your vacation. Neither is a souvenir that you want.
Information about renting a car in Stresa
Directions for driving to Stresa from Malpensa Airport