Just back from stunning Lake Como
I have a deep love for Italy, having visited all the places I ever wanted; Venice, Verona, Rome, Bologna, Milan, Ravenna, Tuscany, Aosta, Lake Garda, Lake Como, Lake Maggiore, and the Amalfi coast.
Why?….Their laid back way of life, the food, the prosecco, the friendly people who love it when you try to speak Italian, the gelato…basically, everything!
This time, as with most times, we drive down through France, having taken the ferry from Portsmouth to Caen to get us a bit further down. We choose this way because 1) I don’t like flying, and 2) we love driving through France, admiring the scenery and stopping over for a night or two.
I can start by totally recommending Varenna as a base in Lake Como. Having travelled in Italy a lot, Varenna is our favourite place, so far!
There are hotels and self-catering villas & apartments (we stayed in the latter). Dining ranges from take-away pizza to high end restaurants. Hubby and I ate in a beautiful little restaurant; The Osteria, last night for our 21st wedding anniversary.
A few tables outside the Osteria
The Osteria menu
There are a couple of little shops for your basics, a bakery, general store, pharmacy, etc…and just 20 minutes away is a supermarket (Actually, on our drive back through, I spotted a smaller supermarket much closer to Varenna)
There are a few excellent little beaches where you can swim from, which is so refreshing from the heat.
Varenna is a beautiful little town centrally located along the lake, and a short ferry ride across to Bellagio and Menaggio; 2 other popular towns worth visiting. From here also, it is just over 2 hours ferry ride (or less on the rapido ferry) to town Como, which is much larger and has some good shops and beautiful buildings, also just 1 hour by train to Milano.
Here are just a few pictures:
Hubby and I with our first gelato on the first day
Varenna from the ferry
Hubby and I lunching in Bellagio
Lake Como
Lake Como from a restaurant
Hubby and I waiting for lunch
View from our balcony
Just one set of steep steps in town
Beautiful lavender shop in Menaggio
The stunning Mont Blanc on our return home
It’s worth noting, that virtually none of the towns along Lake Como are wheelchair friendly, due to mountainous towns and a lot of steep steps running up and down to the lake.
So, on the ferry returning from town Como half way through the week, hubby says; “let’s stick to cruises in future, where I can return after a long day exploring to my air conditioned sanctuary!” Lol I mean, and he loved Lake Como!
Following this, to continue my love of Italy, my next cruise but one (next being the Caribbean with family) will be an ocean cruise along the west coast, into Florence, and the bottom of the boot.
I also would love to river cruise on the Po through Venice and northern Italy.
Why cruise?
*Air conditioned throughout
*No need to shop or top up on food, the ship could feed you for months (although it is nice to sit in a café with a drink and a slice of cake while on shore)
*No clearing the table or washing-up
*You will be spoiled and really feel like you’ve had a holiday
*Swim in the pool, take a fitness class, work off calories in the gym, or treat yourself to a treatment in the spa
*Visit the theatre and watch west-end style shows, at no extra cost!
*Unpack once, while your floating hotel takes you to a few different cities/countries
*Wake up in a new destination every day
* On river cruises & small ocean ships you pay upfront - No penny pinching - no unexpected payments - No massive bill at the end!
*Many different accommodations to choose, from inside cabins to penthouse suites
An ocean cruise takes you around a country, whereas a river cruise takes you through it. Either one offers great exploration with shore excursions (included on a river cruise) either booked through the cruise line or independent.
Explore the world, from north to south, east to west, there is a cruise to everywhere, for everyone, from large ships to small ships, and everything in-between.