Villa Pallavicino, Neoclassical villa and zoological park in Stresa, Italy

Villa Pallavicino is a 19th-century residence with extensive gardens and animal areas set along Lake Maggiore shores. The grounds span 18 hectares and combine classical architecture with carefully designed planted areas where over 50 animal species now reside.

Ruggero Bonghi, a statesman and writer, bought the land by the Sabbion grossa stream in 1855 and built the villa as a private residence; the following year he absorbed the La Filippina estate. In 1862 the complex passed to the Genoese Pallavicino family, who enlarged it into a neoclassical 19th-century villa. On 7 August 1956 Lodovico Pallavicino opened the garden as a zoological park, and in January 2021 Prince Vitaliano Borromeo bought the property.

The garden became a wildlife museum open to the public on 7 August 1956, when Lodovico Pallavicino inaugurated the zoological park; its first animals were native species, later joined by exotic ones such as seals and penguins. Since 2017 the park has been part of the Borromean Islands tourist circuit, and the Gazzettino di Stresa announced the opening.

The park features a designated farm area where llamas, Tibetan goats, and fallow deer allow direct contact with visitors. The grounds are easy to walk through, with clear paths that move through the gardens and animal zones.

The zoological park opened on 7 August 1956, when Lodovico Pallavicino inaugurated it with native fauna; seals and penguins were later added. In January 2021 Prince Vitaliano Borromeo bought the villa, and since 2017 the park has been part of the Borromean Islands tourist circuit.