Local Area

Lake Como

Lake Como is truly one of the most romantic and beautiful destinations in the world. A combination of the snow capped Alps, blue waters and rich greenery make Lake Como one of the most magical and tranquil places we have been too. We fell in love with it on our first visit and we are sure you will too! Just to give you a little overview, Como is in Lobrardy, 45km North of Milan and the Province of Como. It is 46 km long and has a shape of an inverted “Y”, which was caused by glaciers moving through the valley. The two sides of the inverter Y are the Lecco side and the Como side with each of the cities sitting at their south end respectively. On the Lecco arm, the River Adda drains the lake.

On the Como side there is no outflow. The west of Menaggio is where the lake splits in two. On the opposite side from Menaggio, sits Bellagio, often referred to as the ‘jewel of the lake’ and also as one of the most romantic of all the towns of Italy. They say that to come to lake Como and not to visit Bellagio would be a sin! We have to admit that we only ever observed Bellagio from the terrace of the Grand Hotel Tremezzo so this is a sin we are definitely guilty of.

Speaking of Tremezzo, a few words must be said about this lovely lakeside town. It is a commune of some 1300 people and is located on the western shore of Lake Como, about 20 km from Como. Tremezzo, which has an area of area of 8.4 km², also borders the territory of the following communes: Lenno (south and west of Mezzegra), Menaggio (north of Griante), Grandola ed Uniti (inland from Menaggio) and, on the facing shore of the lake, Bellagio and Lezzeno. This is where Grand Hotel Tremezzo and some of the other hotels we recommended are located. It’s from here you can take a car ferry over to Bellaggio and Varenna, on the opposite shore.

Lake Como is famous for its many beautiful historic villas which sit on the lake's banks. One of the most famous villas, Villa Carlotta  is located in Tremezzo. This villa is over 300 years old and is now a museum and a home to the most spectacular botanical gardens with over 500 species of plants, trees and shrubs from all over the world. Definitely worth a visit! It was originally built for the Milanese marchese Giorgio Clerici in 1690 and occupies a site of over 70,000 m² facing the Bellagio peninsula. Many works of sculpture by Antonio Canova and Luigi Acquisti can be found there now.

Places on the lake

There are enough lakeside towns and villages to explore for many weeks. All of them can be reached by car, but we always recommend doing it by water; it’s less costly, more stylish and the views are breathtaking. There are regular ferry services leaving from Tremezzo, the details of which can be found on our ‘things to do page’.
Amongst the towns we recommend to visit are Cernobbio, which is a home to a mega-famous Villa D’Este, Varenna and Mennagio. If going by car, you can visit Toriggia, and Villa Passalacqua, a late 18th-century home where Bellini(famous Italian dude) once stayed.

Travelling North up the lake is Como’s only island, Isola Comacina. The island is very interesting and rich in history, art and tradition. The Locanda is a local restaurant on the island, which has been recommended to us by many for its traditional cuisine and a dream atmosphere.