Italy

EN: Lake Como is an amazing destination, close to Milan, perfect for a day trip, but you could definitely spend a whole week and not get bored of all its beauty. With those blue waters, eccentric gardens, beautiful villas, delicious food and mountain scenery, everything is amazing.

Around the lake, there are a lot of small towns worth visiting (see the map below). The most popular ones are Bellagio, Varenna and Mennagio, these forming the “golden triangle” of Lake Como. But besides these ones, there are many more, so it can be a tough decision choosing which to visit, especially when you don’t have much time.

Personally, I would suggest spending the night in one of Lake Como’s locations, but it’s definitely doable only as a day trip. 

RO: Lacul Como este o locatie extrordinara in apropiere de Milano, perfecta pentru o excursie de o zi, insa cred ca ai putea sa petreci o saptamana aici si tot nu te-ai satura de frumusetea locului. Cu gradinile exorbitante, vilele superbe si peisajele care iti taie rasuflarea, totul este minunat.

Imprejmuind lacul, sunt mai multe orase mici care merita atentia ta (vezi mai jos harta). Cele mai populare sunt Bellagio, Varenna si Mennagio, care alcatuiesc “triunghiul de aur” al lacului Como. Pe langa acestea, mai sunt si alte locatii, deci poate fi dificil sa alegi ce locatii sa vizitezi, mai ales daca nu ai mult timp la dispozitie.

Personal, ti-as sugera sa petreci o noapte intr-unul dintre orase, dar daca nu ai timp, merita si se poate sa iti organizezi doar un day trip.

How to get to Lake Como

EN:

Take the train from Milano Centrale to Varenna. It’s easy, cheap, and you’ll get there in just 1 hour. Find the schedule here.

If you want to go to Como town, that’s also possible by train. But to me, Como was too far from the towns I wanted to visit, so I skipped it.

Of course you can get to Lake Como by car, but I don’t think it is worth bringing your car since the villages are really small and you will use the ferry for transportation.

RO:

Cu trenul din gara Milano Centrale, destinatia Varenna. Este simplu, ieftin si ajungi intr-o ora. Gasesti aici orarul.

Daca vrei sa mergi in orasul Como, se poate ajunge tot cu trenul. Insa, pentru mine, Como era prea departe de locatiile pe care imi doream sa le vizitez, motiv pentru care am ales Varenna.

Bineinteles ca poti ajunge si cu masina la Lacul Como, insa nu stiu daca are rost sa faci asta, intrucat orasele sunt foarte mici, iar la fata locului vei folosi ferry-ul ca mijloc de transport.

Where to stay

EN:

You could definitely just go on a day trip and return on the same day, but if you want to take it slow and spend a night at Lake Como, that would be even better!

You have to decide where you want to spend the night, because there are many options. I chose Varenna because to me it seemed the most authentic village and also it was easy to leave in the morning from the train station, not having to take the ferry again from other locations.

Accomodation around Lake Como may be pretty expensive, but I think there are offers for any budget. For example, I paid for one night at a B&B in the centre of Varenna 55 euros with breakfast included. The location is called Fio&Gio.

RO:

Asa cum am mai spus, poti merge la Lacul Como doar intr-o excursie de o zi, insa daca decizi sa ramai peste noapte, cu atat mai bine!

In primul rand trebuie sa alegi unde vrei sa te cazezi, intrucat sunt destul de multe optiuni. Eu am ales Varenna deoarece mi s-a parut un orasel autentic, frumos si linistit, si de asemenea conexiunea cu Milano e foarte facila, existand tren direct, fara a mai fi nevoie sa iau ferry-ul.

Cazarea in zona poate fi destul de scumpa, insa cred ca poti gasi optiuni pentru orice buget. De exemplu, eu am platit pentru o noapte la un B&B fix in centrul Varennei 55 euro cu tot cu mic dejun. Locatia se numeste Fio&Gio.

How to get around Lake Como

EN:

With the ferry you can get to any location, and you should definitely explore and not stay in only one place. Also, the views of the lake from the ferry are beautiful.

I would suggest buying a day ticket which costs around 15 Euros because this way you have the freedom to hop on- hop off anytime you want, anywhere you want. If you buy individually tickets not only it may cost you more, but you’ll have to wait in line every time to buy tickets.

RO:

Cu ferry-ul poti sa ajungi in orice locatie, si iti recomand sa explorezi putin si alte orase, sa nu stai intr-un singur loc. Unde mai pui ca peisajul vazut de pe ferry este minunat!

Cea mai buna varianta este sa cumperi bilet pentru o zi, care costa aproximativ 15 Euro, deoarece in felul asta ai libertatea de a lua ferry in orice directie, oricand. In cazul in care cumperi bilet individual pentru fiecare ruta, pe langa faptul ca s-ar putea sa te coste mai mult, va trebui sa stai la coada de fiecare data.

What to visit

EN:

I chose to visit Bellagio, Varenna and Lenno, because of having little time. Maybe if I had more time, I would have also checked Como and Mennagio. Or I would have just spent more time in Varenna, because I loved it.

My itinerary was:

Milano – Varenna – Bellagio – Lenno: Villa del Balbianello – Varenna: Villa Monastero – Milano

I arrived at my accomodation in Varenna to leave my bag at noon and left for the ferry, since it was already late. I first took the ferry to Bellagio.
Bellagio was nice, but somehow it felt too touristic to me, with a lot of shops and restaurants and I was not expecting it to be so crowded on Monday. It was nice for a short walk though, but I was glad I didn’t book the night here. If you want, in Bellagio you can visit Villa Serbelloni, but in my opinion there are way more beautiful villas around Lake Como.

My next stop was Lenno, in order to visit Villa del Balbianello which was the highlight of the day. I saw a lot of pictures of it and it seemed so beautiful. And I’m telling you: it did not disappoint.

How to get to Villa del Balbianello:
You have to arrive to Lenno by ferry. Then, from Lenno station, you turn left and walk for about 500 meters until you reach a point from where you can walk on a steepy hill or take the speed boat to the villa. If you decide to walk, it will take you 30 minutes, and of course, it’s free. If you choose the speed boat, it will take around 10 minutes and costs around 8 euros both ways. I chose the speed boat not because I am lazy (which I am sometimes) but because I wanted to enjoy the lake more.

Once you are at the Villa del Balbianello, you can choose to visit only the gardens or both the gardens and the interior. I decided to only visit the gardens and I think it was a wise choice since I spent a lot of time strolling through the huge, beautiful gardens that I don’t think I would’ve had time to also visit the interiors and be back in time for dinner :))

Here are some photos from the Villa. I don’t think I have to explain why I found it so beautiful since the pictures speak for themselves.

After, I returned with the speed boat to Lenno and from then took the ferry back to Varenna, and decided to have a nice dinner with a view and discover more of it. Then, I spent the night in Varenna.

In the morning I visited Villa Monastero, which is located in Varenna. I really enjoyed this morning walk through the gardens, and this time I decided to visit also the interior of the villa since it was less expensive than Villa del Balbianello. But as a comparison, I found the gardens at Villa del Balbianello to be more beautiful.

TIP: What you can do if you only have one day at Lake Como, is arrive early,  go to Villa Monastero first and maybe have breakfast in Varenna and then follow my itinerary for the day. Since I had a night booked, I visited Villa Monastero the next morning. Or you can just skip Villa Monastero and just stroll through the beautiful and narrow streets of Varenna.

RO:

Am ales sa vizitez Bellagio, Varenna si Lenno, intrucat nu am avut chiar atat de mult timp. Poate daca as fi stat mai mult, as fi mers in Como si Mennagio. Sau poate as fi petrecut mai mult timp in Varenna, pentru ca mi-a placut mult.

Itinerarul a fost urmatorul:

Milano – Varenna – Bellagio – Lenno: Villa del Balbianello – Varenna: Villa Monastero – Milano

Am ajuns la cazarea din Varenna in jurul pranzului pentru a-mi lasa ghiozdanul si am pornit direct spre ferry, intrucat era deja tarziu, urmand sa vizitez Varenna seara si ziua urmatoare. Am luat ferry-ul spre Bellagio. Mi-a placut Bellagio, insa mi s-a parut prea turistic, cu o multime de magazine si restaurante. M-a surprins cat de aglomerat era pentru o zi de luni. A fost ok pentru o plimbare scurta, insa m-am bucurat ca nu am rezervat cazare aici. In Bellagio se poate vizita Villa Serbelloni, dar eu as spune ca exista vile mult mai frumoase la lacul Como.

Urmatoarea oprire a fost Lenno, pentru a vizita Villa del Balbianello, care pentru mine a fost highlight-ul zilei. Vazusem foarte multe poze cu gradinile si aveam asteptari mari, si pot spune ca nu am fost dezamagita!

Cum ajungi la Villa del Balbianello:
In primul rand, iei ferry-ul catre Lenno. Cand ajungi in Lenno, faci stanga, mergi aproximativ 500 metri pana ajungi la un punct de bifurcatie de unde poti alege sa mergi pe jos sau cu barca. Daca alegi sa mergi pe jos, vei urca un deal pentru aproximativ 30 minute, si bineinteles, e gratis. Daca optezi pentru barca (asa cum am facut eu), dureaza maximum 10 minute si costa 8 euro dus-intors.

Odata ce ai ajuns la vila, poti alege sa vizitezi doar gradinile, sau gradinile si interiorul.
Eu am vizitat doar gradinile, care sunt minunate si se intind pe o suprafata foarte mare, motiv pentru care m-am bucurat ca nu am ales sa vizitez si interiorul, pentru ca probabil as fi luat cina foaaarte tarziu:))Atasez poze de la vila. Cred ca nu e cazul sa spun mai multe, si ca pozele vorbesc de la sine despre frumusetea locului.

M-am intors apoi in Lenno de unde am luat ferry-ul inapoi spre Varenna.
M-am plimbat putin pe strazile inguste si abrupte, dar fermecatoare din Varenna si apoi am luat cina intr-un loc cu o priveliste foarte frumoasa. Dimineata am decis sa vizitez Villa Monastero, care se afla in Varenna. Mi-a placut mult sa imi fac plimbarea de dimineata in gradina vilei, iar de data asta am luat bilet si pentru a vizita interiorul, fiind un pret mai accesibil decat la Villa del Balbianello. Dar comparandu-le, gradinile Villei del Balbianello mi-au placut mai mult.

TIP: Ce poti face, daca ai doar o zi la Lacul Como, este sa ajungi mai devreme decat mine si sa mergi la Villa Monastero dimineata, iar apoi sa urmezi traseul meu.

EN: Lake Como is an amazing destination you should visit at least once in your lifetime! I loved it and want to return already!

RO: Trebuie neaparat sa vizitezi Lacul Como! Pe mine m-a impresionat foarte mult si imi doresc sa revin.

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