Vitaliano Borromeo Arese dies, the man who transformed tourism on Lake Maggiore

Vitaliano Borromeo Arese, president of the Italian company Kaleon and heir to the noble family that owns numerous properties on Lake Maggiore, including Isola Bella and Isola Madre in the Borromean Islands archipelago, has died at the age of 66. The news was announced by the company itself.

Borromeo Arese had built up long entrepreneurial experience in the industrial, real estate and financial sectors. Over the past fifteen years he had dedicated himself to developing the historical, artistic and natural heritage of the lake, leading the growth of Terre Borromeo's activities, managed by the holding company Kaleon.

This entrepreneurial path culminated on 1 December 2025 with the company's stock market listing. For a centuries-old family estate, choosing the capital markets instead of relying solely on public or family funds marks a model of private management applied to the conservation of historical and landscape assets. Lake Maggiore also extends to the Swiss shore, in the Locarno region, although the activities managed by Kaleon remain concentrated on the Italian side.

A growing group

Besides the Borromean Islands, Kaleon manages the Parco Pallavicino and the Parco del Mottarone, both in Stresa, as well as the Cannero Castles, in the Verbano-Cusio-Ossola area. In the province of Varese, the company also runs the Rocca di Angera. It recently won the management contract for Vogogna Castle, in the lower Val d'Ossola, whose reopening is expected shortly.

The president's death comes less than a year after the stock market listing and as the portfolio of managed sites continues to expand. It remains to be seen who will take over the group's industrial leadership and whether the model chosen by Borromeo Arese, based on financing through capital markets rather than public subsidies, can ensure the financial sustainability of managing such an extensive historical heritage without his direct contribution as founder and reference shareholder. It also remains to be seen whether the group will be able to maintain its competitiveness against other tourism operators active on Lake Maggiore.