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Lake Como, The Garden Of The Gods

View of Varenna, Lake Como

Mark Twain once said that God made Italy from designs by Michaelangelo. If this is true, then I bet when He got to the Alps and he sprinkled them with twinkleing lakes he did it all by Himself, as this is no man's work.

It was the third day of our trip to Italy. We left Milan early in the morning and took the train to Como, the town that gave its name to the lake. For one precious hour the train rushed through a scenery that became more dramatic by the minute. I just knew we were in for a very nice surprise.

Villa La Cassinella, Lenno, Lake Como

Lake Como is of glacial origins. The surrounding mountains have been sculpted by nature itself for eons. Then, during Roman times, the man came and made his additions to the area, changing with a single touch the seductive kaleidoscope that presents in front of our eyes today.

Maybe many of you have heard about the jewels Lake Como hides due to George Clooney and other Hollywood celebrities that like to spend their holidays here, but the truth is, its spectacular shoreline has been a populat tourist destination for the rich and well bred since almost ever.

Villa in Cadenabbia, Lake Como

It is true that its luxurious villas and palaces contributed to Lake Como's fame, but its generally mild mediterranean-like climate where tropical and sub-tropical plants can grow year-round helped a lot.

The spectacular Villa Balbianello and its park are sheer above the lake. Many films have been made here, including Casino Royale (James Bond) and Star Wars. Also this villa is famous for the weddings organised here.

Villa Balbianello, Lenno

Lake Como is shaped much like the character "Y". The northern branch begins at the town of Colico, while the towns of Como and Lecco sit at the ends of the southwestern and southeastern branches respectively. The small towns of Bellagio, Menaggio and Varenna are situated at the intersection of the three branches of the lake and are pretty much the most famous ones too, besides Cernobbio, where the now luxurious hotel Villa d'Este is situated.

Menaggio

The Lake Como ferry service is a highly developed public transport system linking the dozens of small towns and villages dotted around the perimeter of the lake. Basically there is one boat service that connects Como with Bellagio, one that connects Lecco with Bellagio and one that connects Bellagio with Colico, taking roughly 2 hours each. A triangular boat service operates between Menaggio, Bellagio and Varenna, plus Cadenabbia; some of these boats carry vehicles as well as passengers. You can buy a ticket from point A to point B or a round day ticket. The schedule and fares are a bit more complicated to understand even with the timetable in front of you, but if you have a few days to spend on Lake Como, you should relax and go with the flow.

Villa on Lake Como

Lake Como is a paradise of fancy cars and crazy drivers. So beware of the last ones in particular as there are no signs. From Lenno to Cadenabbia, passing by Villa Carlotta and Tremezzo there is a very pretty winding promenade with stunning views across the Gulf of Venus. The street goes just next to the promenade and there is where the cars, drivers and tourists meet often enough for the road to be considered a dangerous one.

Boats on Lake Como

Lake Como is famous with sailers, windsurfers and kitesurfers too. As in 2007 it was reported too polluted to swim in, with colony-forming units of bacteria at 68 times the safe limit for bathing, it is safe to assume its popularity amoung swimmers dropped lately. However, lots of the hotels have safe floating swimming pools, with astonishing lake views and the surrounding area, like the one of Grand Hotel Tremezzo, the hotel where the Lucasfilm Cast and Crew stayed during the shoot. With rates starting somewhere near one thousand euro a night, we were driven by curiosity and went inside to see what the fuss is all about. However nice and classy furnished this one hundred years hotel might have looked, the staff wasn't at all what one might expect from a 5* hotel. But then I guess my lack of a Louis Vuitton handbag was an indicator that we weren't potential clients, and that explains the their lack of warmth.

Grand Hotel Tremezzo

Lake Como has some very luxurious famous old hotels with superb lake views. The price range also goes accordingly, from pricy to overpriced. Old goes hand in hand with squeaky floors and smelly pipes, so beware that not everything is perfect in paradise. But I guess that can be overlooked for the sake of spending a few nights in a room nicely decorated with stylish furniture like from another century.

However we rented an apartment, with American kitchen and bathroom, all clean and new with a balcony with a partial lake view, just behind Grand Hotel Tremezzo. We had to climb a great deal of steep stairs but it only cost 59euro for the night we stayed on the lake which is super cheap comparing with the rates the hotels in the region have.

The apartment we rented in Tremezzo (I loved the quilt)

We spent two days on Lake Como. The first one was cloudy, the second one rainy, and that's why my photos all look a bit wet. Thought it was June, I guess we just had bad luck. However the scenery of the mountains bathing their colorful villages, forests, olive trees and vineyars into the waters of the lake were amazing. The air was soaked in flower scents all the time. I'm just affraid the clouds and the rain spoiled a bit the magic of the place and I didn't get to see and feel it at its fullest potential.

Lake Como has no night scene. Everybody is there with somebody, couples of all ages and families, but for singles I guess this is hell. Lots of restaurants, piano bars and terraces by the lake but no discoes and drink till you drop pubs are to be found here. The only night we had on Lake Como we spent it in Tremezzo and we found it to be a quiet little place with romantic couples walking the shores of the lake admiring the views and the spectacle of lights Bellagio and the surrounding area had to offer. I was not impressed with Bellagio by night as it doesn't look at all like in the postcards. From the lake side Bellagio looks more like two dotted lines of light, nothing out of this world, so I guess one has to book a rooms at the last floor in one of the lake side hotels to get a postcard picture of Bellagio by night.

Bellagio

Bellagio is considered the jewel in the crown of Lake Como. It surely got famous somehow, but I think it was chance and a certain priviledged location at the tip of the peninsula that separates the two branches of the lake that made it famous. Except from more shops, restaurants and bars, and two main roads instead of one I sincerely don't think Bellagio has anything extra compared to Menaggio or Varenna or other cities by the lake. The views are breathtaking anywhere, every slice of pizza or cup of coffe is overpriced anyways, though we found decent priced, decent looking restaurants too, so making an overstatement like Bellagio is the most and the best, wouldn't be fair. However, once you've seen one of Lake Como's towns, in a certain manner you've seen them all.

Bellagio

All the towns and villages surrounding Lake Como are pretty small and all dressed up in red, yellow and white. We took the boat from Como to Tremezzo the first day then the second day from Bellagio to Lecco after having seen the mid-lake towns of Menaggio and Varenna. The most astonishing view from the boat was the one of Varenna, little colorful jewel on the east side of the lake. However when we headed Lecco we suddenly understood why this other branch of the lake was off the beaten path. The mountains here are pretty steep and rocky and it was more difficult for people to build settlements and develope the infrastructure. So whilst the views are more dramatic, the villages are smaller and most houses have their shutters down, like the entire region is asleeps. The boat stops less and there are no people getting on not off, just a calm peace that reigns the valleys and the whispering waters of the lake.

Villa on Lake Como

The best itinerary on Lake Como would be in my opinion starting from Como, stopping at Cernobbio where Villa d'Este, one of the three most famous villas on Lake Como is, then visit Bellagio, Menaggio, Varenna, Tremezzo and Lenno at the middle of the lake. At Bellagio don't forget to walk the famous gardens of Villa Melzi, nor forget to visit Villa Carlotta and its botanical garden across the lake in Tremezzo. If you have extra time, there are other villas and gardens to be discovered, like the gardens of Villa Serbelloni in Bellagio from where you can admire a gorgeous 360º panorama of Lake Como. But you don't have to listen to me, go, explore, discover, live bounded by no schedules and itineraries.

Villa on Lake Como

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