This is very interesting. I'm thinking of visiting Lake Como as a stop on a trip mostly by train going north into Switzerland. I can get from Milan to Como by train and from Como to Bellagio by boat, but can I get back to the north-south train route (say in Lugano) easily? From Bellagio, can I boat to Menaggio and train to Lugano from there for instance?

Thanks.

You can take a bus from Menaggio to Lugano (no train), but there is quite a distance between the bus drop off point in Lugano and the train station. You might need a taxi there.

CWJ,

You might look at the train route on the east side of Lake Como. You change trains to the Swiss System in Tirano, Italy and then go up through the Bernina Pass towards Chur.

Just a thought

Hi,

I used to live on Lake Como, in Cernobbio. You may find it best to stay in one place if you like the hotel provided the town is a car and passenger jump off space.

Personally I would stay in Albergo Milano in Varenna. Small, friendly looks out across the lake and cannot be beaten as a small car free, old cobbled lake front town. Has car and passenger ferry and train station!

I had these two links registered as useful recently.

http://hotels.itwg.com/city413?CODE=VV295

and www.discovercomo.com as recommended on the BBC Holiday site for Lake Como

I think www.varenna.net is the actual Albergo Milano site.

Hope this helps

Como may seem overdeveloped and citylike, but drive around the whole lake and you'll find lakefront villas and old narrow streets.

Hi, I would recommend Varenna, Hotel Milano. Great place to be centered and has a very friendly cat! If you want a map of the place to see where it is, then try this link. Its number 5 on the orange directory. The other hotels in this place are not great I have to say, although the Hotel du Lac I haven't tried as it wa shut in the winter....

http://www.discovervarenna.com/varenna_maps.asp