The hotel was established by the Omarini brothers in the years following the unification of Italy.

[1] Following the opening of the Simplon Tunnel in 1906, the number of visitors increased considerably.

Thus, the hotel was enlarged: in 1908, the veranda was expanded, while three floors were added to the original building between 1911 and 1912.

[1] After staying in Stresa in 1918, American writer Ernest Hemingway set part of the 1929 novel A Farewell to Arms in the hotel.

[1] Media related to Grand Hotel des Îles Borromées at Wikimedia Commons