Next summer my husband and I are going to celebrate our 20th anniversay in Europe. He has never been, but I have been to Paris, Rome and Florence. I truly loved Italy and especially Florence- so we will return there but I would also like to travel to the northern lake country, but there are so many choices!!(Lake Orta, Lake Maggiore, Lake Como...) <BR>What are your favorite spots to stay and why? <BR>Zan Barr- California <BR>p.s. is this a good vacation choice?

I'm sure there are several people who frequent the Fodor's boards which will be able to help you better than I can -- people who have been to all the lakes and can compare them. I haven't had the opportunity yet to visit that area extensively. But I can tell you that last year I went to Lake Como for the first time and stayed in the town of Bellagio. We enjoyed the town very much...it is picturesque, small, and we found our stay there very relaxing. Bellagio has great views of the lake -- it is at the tip of the penninsula which divides the lake. If you'd like to see photos of Bellagio, visit our travelogue at www.lunadesigns.com/travels/. As I said, I haven't been anywhere else in the lake region, but I have heard good things about Stresa on Lake Maggiore. In last year's May/June 1997 issue of National Geographic's "Traveler" magazine, there was a great section devoted to Italy's lake region. I know my local library keeps back issues of this mag., so it might be worth checking if your library does.

Hello Zan, The Lakes are the best !! It all depends <BR>on your tastes, but for a romantic anniversary I <BR>would suggest staying at Orta---the least touristy. <BR>And, Maggiore[Stresa] is only :20 away. It is not far to also day trip to Lugano from there. Why not <BR>pick 2 locations to stay---start at Orta, and then <BR>move over to Como for 2 days. I know some really cute small hotels at both locations. I would prefer <BR>going in late May or after Sep. 15, given a choice. <BR>Hlooer if I can help.

All of my husbands relatives in Italy LOVE Lake Como. I have never been there, but plan to go there the next time I get to Italy.

I highly recommend Lago di Como and the beautiful town of Bellagio. You should try to go off season as much as possible because it will be less crowded though the ferries reduce their hours and the hotels usually close by mid- to late-October. <BR> <BR>You can go over to the other side of the lake very easily and visit Villa Carlotta and Villa d'Este. <BR> <BR>If you like you can combine other lakes on this trip as I did with friends. We rented a car in Zurich (where it is cheaper), stayed overnight in Bellinzona (Swiss part of Italy), and stayed for a few days in Stresa on Lago di Maggiore. It is a central place for visiting the Borromeo Islands, which are just fabulous. We then drove over to Lago di Como and stayed for a few days in Bellagio. After that it was on to Lake Garda, which is the biggest lake of the northern lakes. <BR> <BR>If you have time for one lake, make it lago di Como!!!

<BR>We just came home from trip thru Swizerland that took us thru the Italian Alps. We stayed in Baveno on Lake Maggiore at the Hotel Dino. <BR>It was really nice, very tropical, humid and warm. We went thru Stresa and did some other local sightseeing, didn't have alot of time to spend there, and we would go again.