It is spring, the trees are in bloom, it’s a beautiful sunny day, we are are friends, we want to spend time outdoor and go for a leisurely walk. We also would not mind a playground and a bench to sit on and chat. Guess what rabbit I pulled out of my hat…?
The last time I was in Parco San Grato in Carona must have been a long time ago, when dinosaurs still roamed the Earth. I was therefore eager to return and see it with my children.
We reach the quaint village of Carona (10 km from Lugano) by car. We park by the municipal swimming pool (free), and then we walk along the paved path that leads directly to the botanic gardens. The bright colors of the trees in bloom are absolutely charming: all shades of pink and red.
The thematic trails of Parco San Grato
We discover that there are four thematic trails to choose: the botanic trail, the panoramic trail, the relax trail and the legends trail.
I would have like to choose the relax trail but of course the children wanted to walk legends trail. I obliged.
This trail is 250 meters long and uses pink panels shaped as butterfly panels to narrate the legend of the azalea. We read the story carefully and we take in the scents of the flowers and the breathtaking views over the lake. The story is not exactly exciting but we get to see peculiar plants and colorful flowers; we also find a beautiful playground with a much sought-after bench famous bench (for mothers).
Works of art, sculptures and a maze
A thing you could do is to challenge your little ones to look for the various sculptures and works of art on display throughout the park (art in the park). Another idea would be to play the name game, and have your kids give a name each statue or sculpture they find.
Thanks to a friend from Turin that I met at the entrance of the park (by chance), I learned that down by the entrance, there is a “green” maze. It is not very large but the kids had a lot of fun running through it, trying to find the exit. To burn off some energy, they ended the afternoon doing somersaults down the hill.
If interested, in the park you will find a restaurant (Tel. +41 (0) 91 649 70 21).
I must admit that the San Grato Park was really a pleasant surprise, and I feel ashamed (I am a true “Ticinese”, after all) that I had not thought about going there for a long time. But as the proverb says: “Better late than never …
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