Parco naturale lombardo della Valle del Ticino in the context of "Varese"

The river Ticino (/tɪˈtʃiːnoʊ/ tih-CHEE-noh, Italian: [tiˈtʃiːno]; Lombard: Tesin; French and German: Tessin; Latin: Ticīnus) is the most important perennial left-bank tributary of the Po. It has given its name to the Swiss canton through which its upper portion flows.

It is one of the four major rivers taking their source in the Gotthard region, along with the Rhône, Reuss and Rhine.The river rises in the Val Bedretto in Switzerland at the frontier between the cantons of Valais and Ticino right below the Nufenen Pass, is fed by the glaciers of the Alps and later flows through Lake Maggiore, which traverses the border to Italy. The Ticino joins the Po a few kilometres downstream (along the Ticino) from Pavia. It is about 248 kilometres (154 mi) long. The stretch of river between Lake Maggiore and the confluence in the Po is included in the Parco naturale lombardo della Valle del Ticino, a Nature reserve included by UNESCO in the World Network of Biosphere Reserves.

The regional parks of Italy are protected natural areas consisting of terrestrial, river, lake areas and stretches of sea overlooking the coast, of environmental and naturalistic value, which represent, within one or more adjacent regions, a homogeneous system, identified by the naturalistic assets of the locations, with landscape and artistic values and cultural traditions of local populations.

They are officially regulated by Presidential Decree D.P.R. 616/77, which transferred the responsibility for their upkeep to the Italian regions. The fifth edition (2003) of Italy's Official List of Protected Natural Areas (EUAP) comprises 105 officially designated regional parks, covering a total land area of some 12,000 square kilometres. The list which follows also includes a number of parks not mentioned in the EUAP. The Parco naturale lombardo della Valle del Ticino was the first Italian regional park to be established and the first European river park.