lake como
 

Is it worth renting a car if travelling from Milan to Como -spending 3 nights @ villa d'este

Have a driver from Villa d'Este pick you up and drive you there. Much easier than driving yourself.

We took the train from Milano Centrale to Varenna (on the Sondrio line). There are several trains per day and it's very cheap - less than $10 I believe. Then, you arrive in Varenna and hop on the ferry to any other town, Bellagio, Menaggio, etc. Or, if you want to end up in Como, you can take the train from Milan to Como instead and then ferry up the lake to see other towns during your free time. Enjoy - it's so beautiful there.

The roads around the Villa d'Este are very narrow, and often traffic choked, which rather negates the benefits of having a car for three days.<BR>Train from Milan Central to Como takes less than an hour, from where moderately priced taxi ride to Cernobbio (Villa d'Este).<BR>You will find there is a lot of pleasant activity at your hotel, including pianist by the lake, fine dining,staid nightlife and water sports etc., many of which are included in the hotel tariff.<BR>For sightseeing the lake ferries are definitely the way to go, be it to Bellagio etc., or back to Como.<BR>We had a rental car when we were there for 3 nights some time ago, and it never left the car park.

Just back from Villa D'Este. We had them pick us up and it was great. We had a car delivered to the hotel for the drive to Spain, but we never wanted a car in Cernobio. Their sightseeing arrangements are very expensive, but we just walked from the hotel to the ferry (a very short walk) and rode the ferry up and down the lake. It was great. FYI, the food was excellent at both restaurants there, but we acually enjoyed the Grill restaurant more than the Veranda. Have a great trip. Kay

The best way to go from Milano to Como is not through Trenitalia trains. Instead take the FNM train that leaves from Cadorna station in Milano. It arrives right in front of the lake (and the ride is just as long but costs somewhat less than Trenitalia's) in a small art nouveau station that is lovely. Pretty scenic!<BR>Once in Como you can visit most villages o the lake by ferry, as someone already suggested.<BR>Should you happen to find any, go to a Davide Van De Sfroos Band concert. Their songs are sung in the local dialect and are about facts and people of the area, and the music is compelling.<BR>http://www.ferrovienord.it/index.shtml<BR>http://www.davidevandesfroos.com/

We just pent three nights at Villa d"este and found it very overrated. The restaurants were nothing special. It was the least favorite of all the hotels we stayed in Italy. We also had a driver and were so glad we did. You can also enjoy the scenery that way. I hope you enjoy Villa d'este more than we did