My husband and I are planning on visiting Lugano in mid-late March 2005. What hotels do you recommend that are no more than $250.00 USD per night? Also, I visited weather.com and it claims the average high in Lugano in March is 64 degrees. Is this true??

Thanks for your help and advice.

Saluki93

Stay in Bellagio...much nicer.

I loved Lugano. I don't remember the name of the hotel but it was pretty nice, and affordable in the Paradiso area. It's walking distance to everything, and great thing about Lugano you are pretty much in the center of everything...you can hike to Gandria, Monte Bre, etc, or go to Lake Como, Milan or up north to any of the small villages.

We haven't been yet but we have booked the Park Hotel Villa Nizza based on recommendations from this site and tripadvisor.com. It is in Lugano-Paradiso. Our double room with lake view costs 230 CHF (about $185). Lots of photos on their website:
http://www.villanizza.com/

I'll post a review in October after we return.

Lugano is just as nice as Bellagio, but in a different way. Lugano is a small city and more will be open in March than in Bellagio, which is essentially a village.
That weather info sounds about right, but it doesn't really tell you what March 2005 will be like. It could be wet and cold or sunny and warm. I have been there in January when it was much colder than normal, June when it was much hotter than normal, and a few other times whne the weather was more or less what would be expected.
You should enjoy Lugano...the city itself is pleasant and has good shopping and there are many nearby villages to explore.

I love Lugano and I'm sure you will too. How can anyone not love this fun town with the Italian ambiance and the Swiss German order and neatness.

Many hotels are closed for the winter in Lugano. The weather may not be the greatest in March but since it is definitely better than in other parts of Switzerland you will find lots of Swiss who have winter apartments there.

I don't know Bellagio so I can't comment on it but I do recommend a visit to Ascona, about an hour away by bus.

The small hotel we usually stay at is closed in the winter but in March prices will be down so even a 5 * hotel might fall in the price category you are looking for. We stayed once at the Grand Hotel Eden with a room directly on the water. It was as though we were on a ship during a storm. The weather was cool and rainy (and this was June). Lake Lugano looked like a stormy sea.

I too love Lugano--a most civilized place. The Villa Nizza is a good choice as is the Carlton-Villa Moritz in the suburb of Castagnola. Menaggio on Lago Como is an hour away by bus or car--worth a day trip even in March.

Two words:

Vico Morcote.

We loved the Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola Au Lac. Beautiful property...good price when we went there. It is part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World which has it's own website (which excapes me now), but we did not pay over $200 for a quad in the summer.

I also enjoyed the Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola Au Lac, although properties of this sort can seem a bit stiff sometimes. When I travel to Lugano I stay at the Lugano-Dante. It's a 4 star hotel on one of the interior plazas of the city, so there is no lake view. I choose it for a few reasons: in the event that you are arriving by train or by the express bus connecting from Malpensa (which I recommend if flying into Milan) there is a funicular down from the train station in Lugano which brings you to the door of the Lugano-Dante. I really like that convenience. The Lugano-Dante is a small, very professional business-class hotel with quite attentive staff, modern yet very tasteful accommodations. As is common in European hotels, the room sizes tend to seem small by American standards but they are very quiet, comfortable and tastefuly appointed. Wonderful breakfast in the morning, internet access in the lobby, nice little bar area, great restaurants nearby (have him go to Tranni, just up the walkway above the hotel). The room will run SF200-250, depending on your room choice.

Another vote for the Hotel Dante although for many reasons it reminded me of a Hilton. Its conference center is often used for business meetings. The staff is very businesslike and efficient.

Chicagobluesman describes the hotel's location and amenities well. The breakfast buffet is really amazing.

Our double room was close to US$200 in October 2003.

The Romantik hotel Ticino is wonderful and so is their restaurant!
They are located in the old town where no cars can drive ..so it is not onlt charming but quiet!

The Romantik Hotel Ticino is next door to the Dante. It looks charming, but I wouldn't be surprised if the rate is above $250 a night.

Good evening, my vote is for the LUGANO DANTE, it is a 4 star with 55 rooms located at the bottom of the funicular, up to the bahnhof and a pretty good ristorante, Sayanora across the street. Richard of LaGrange Park, Il.