merriam

Hi everyone,

I'm touring N. Italy solo for two weeks in April, and will be staying 2 nights in Milan then spending a few days in Venice/the Veneto (including Padua and Verona day trips), but I'm also excited to see the Lake district for a day in between. The only problem is that I don't have access to a car and will be travelling by train, so that rules out a lot of the best Lake areas-- can anyone suggest a city/town in the area accessible by train, and not tooo sleepy for a solo traveller in her early 20s?

thanks!

bobthenavigator

You have 3 good options---Varenna on the east side of Lake Como, Stresa on the west side of Lake Maggiore, and Lugano on Lake Lugano. The latter is more cosmopollitan and expensive and Varenna has no night life--I would pick Stresa.

enroute

Three excellent choices from Bob, and I would add the town of Como, which is very close to Milan and you can ferry the lake from there if you want.

ncounty

My vote is for Varenna having been there and to Lugano. Varenna is just stunning. I would stay at the Villa Cipressi (? spelling). You can get there by train.

enroute

I'll second Villa Cipressi. We could not reserve a room there, you have to book far in advance, but we did reserve lunch. They opened the dining room especially for us. Lovely.

ncounty

I was amazed at their prices for the rooms. It looks like a five star place at three star prices!

enroute

I think it is, but you need to reserve 8 months in advance...

MissPrism

I'd go for Stresa too.
There's a great trip you can take.
You get the train to Locarno and then you take the boat back.
The scenery is spectacular.