LR220

Thank you both!
We finally started to revisit our plans for this portion of the trip and we decided on this:
- Train from Milano to Como (book @ station)
- (buy day ferry ticket at Como) and visit villa del Balbianello, Bellagio, villa Carlotta and Varenna. It's a lot, but we will modify based on how we are feeling that day.
- Train from Varenna to Milano.

So now the problem is booking the tickets for the train from Varenna to Milano. We will have difficulty doing it online because we aren't carrying our laptops and will be in Switzerland and then Milan for the week these tickets are available. Since there's no place to buy a ticket at the station in Varenna, we aren't sure what to do. Will it be possible to buy these from Como when we are buying the ferry tickets?

Or should we reverse the plans and go down to Como and take the train from there?

Jean

You can buy your Varenna-Milan tickets when you get to Milan, even on the day of your excursion to the lake. It's also possible to buy them at a couple of places in Varenna, but you don't want to risk them being closed when you finally get to the town.

Make sure you know the Bellagio-Varenna ferry times.

I don't think it matters much which direction you do this, but I suspect you have later transportatioin options ending in Varenna. But check for yourself. It also depends on your interests. If you were pressed for time, would you rather skip Varenna or Villa Balbianello?

LR220

Thank you so much for your help, Jean! We would rather skip Varenna. Originally our priorities were just Bellagio and Varenna, but after researching we really want to go to Villa Balbianello. How long do people typically spend exploring the gardens?