Recommendations for where to stay in Lake Como area
 

Hi everyone,

My husband, our (almost) 2 year old, and I are going to the Italian Lake District in early June. We're looking for recommendations on where to stay in the area. We are considering Lake Como, but are also open to other Lakes or splitting our time between 2 lakes (we'll be there for a little over a week). We've previously stayed at agroturismos (small family-run wineries) in Italy/France, and really enjoyed those experiences. Ideally, we'd like to be able to walk to some shops/restaurants/cafes, but we also plan to rent a car. Since our son will be with us -- we'd like to have a bit of a bigger space (e.g. with an actual bedroom) so he can get a good night's sleep (vs. a small hotel room). Any suggestions for places you've enjoyed would be appreciated!

-Jenny

We've stayed in both Como and Varenna and like both environments. Como provides a larger town experience and Varenna provided a quieter, small town experience. Of the two, we preferred Varenna.

You can use the lake steamer to travel to Bellagio or other towns along the lake. It is a very peaceful mode of transportation. We found a cafe in Bellagio to the left of the pontillo, steamer dock, which was lakeside and under a pergola. We had expresso and gelato and just sat watching the world go by. Il doce far' niente.

Buon viaggio,

In 2012, we stayed at the Hotel Bellagio on the island, which is a nice ferry ride from the train station at Varenna. This Hotel is moderately priced and has large comfortable rooms and a real antique feel. There are lots of nice walks on Bellagio, but remember it is an island, and if you were to have a car, it would have to come by ferry and parked somewhere, as Bellagio rises very steeply from its harbor.

wbanksh

Bellagio is not on an island. Lake Como is shaped like an upside down Y, and Bellagio is at the point where the three parts of the lake come together. If you have a car, you can drive along the shoreline to Bellagio from the south, or you can drive to Varenna (east shore) or Menaggio (west shore) and take the car ferry.

A map:

http://bellagio.co.nz/lakecomo.html

i am not a big fan of the town of como. i do like to shop on vacation-- but it is just a bit big and dense for me. when i am visiting a lakeside spot, i like a little smaller town. i think bellagio would fit the bill because it has a smaller scale. it's lakeside and there is shopping etc.-- but you can easily take a very short walk and feel like you are in the countryside.

for a place with more room (an maybe a little garden area where your child can be outside easily) maybe look around airbnb.

We stayed in a small village called Argegno on Lake Como last October. We self catered staying in a one bed cottage called Villa the Dreamers. They have larger apartments as well which have amazing views of the lake. There is also a small garden where your little boy could play. The village is very sleepy but you do not need a car there as you can travel in every direction by Lake cruiser. There are lots of restaurants in the village and a small shop and bakery where you can get essentials. There are lots of bigger towns going North from Argegno - we visited Menaggio and Belaggio - and we also went up to Pigra via the cable car. For self catering on Lake Como look at the Owners Direct website - they have several places in all the towns. I think we booked Villa the Dreamers through Booking.com.

With a 2-year-old, I'd look for an apartment in the Varenna area. It's small and quaint, and has good ferry access to other towns. I wasn't thrilled with Como.

One warning: A lot of apartments in the area are on the outskirts of the town, and require a lot of walking or a vehicle to get around. If you search for apartments, pay close attention to their locations. Owners will bill them as "close to" Varenna, but they can be a hike.

Most agriturismo's are obviously not close to town (i.e. within reasonable walking distance). It would probably be better to look for something through airbnb, vrbo or similar.

One of the things to bear in mind is parking which is particularly difficult in Como. I would recommend looking for something in Menaggio. It is well placed for a trip to both Bellagio and Varenna (with or without the car) as well as to Lake Lugano and beyond to Lake Maggiore.

Apartments with a garden, A/C and parking in the center of Bellagio:

http://www.residencelalimonera.com/

More upscale, more amenities, pricier:

http://www.residence-bellagio.com/en/

My kids and I stayed in an self catering apartment in Cadenabbia, Lake Como across Bellagio.

I loved having the public transportation next door, buses go to every town just from front steps of most hotels, we had the ferry to cross just a block away. We were just one block up the main road, wonderful view of the lake.