Lake Como - A Beautiful Place to Visit (Lake Como)

Member Name: yahoo2003

Product:	Lake Como
Date:	02/07/09 (36 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Beautiful, Unique, Something Different to Do

Disadvantages: Can be expensive to get to

Last year around Easter time myself and my boyfriend wanted to go somewhere that was a bit different, rather than doing a standard package holiday so I asked around and was recommended Lake Como by an Italian enthusiast.

We flew into Milan Malapensa, rented a car, and stayed in a hotel called Locanda Saint Anna which is in Aregegno, one of the small villages overlooking the lake.

Lake Como is less well-known than Lake Garda, but absolutely beautiful and because the hotels are all in the mountains, generally I think pretty much wherever you stayed you would have a breath-taking view of the lake. The centre of Como is quite pretty, with quite a lot of traditional buildings but also lots of shops and little cafes where you can have a coffee or lunch. Right next to the lake there are a good few restaurants to choose from, and taking a walk around the lake and stopping for a coffee or lunch is a nice way to spend the afternoon.

As a special treat we took a lightweight aircraft ride around the lake with just the two of us and the pilot. It was quite scary as it goes far out into the lake and then takes off and the plane is so small and a little bit shaky at first but it's really good fun and a great (and fancy!) way to see the whole lake and have a guided tour from the pilot. He showed us a few celebrity houses like where Richard Branson has a holiday home. Admittedly it's not the cheapest way to see the lake, I can't remember how much it cost but I think probably about £120 or something like that, but if you want to do something memorable I would definitely suggest it.

The people were really friendly and try really hard to understand you if you want to practice your Italian. The food was delicious and the hotel we were staying in was a small family-run hotel. We rented the penthouse-type apartment at the top again for a little extra but it was soooooooo worth it. The bedroom was absolutely huge and with traditional features like high ceilings and beams, and there was a balcony and a separate reading room and a massive bathrooom. The view from the balcony was beautiful. The food in the hotel was not great in my opinion, not a lot to choose from, but there is a restaurant next door where the food was delicious.

The weather at Easter time in Italy is fairly unpredictable and not sunbathing weather. We had a day of brilliant sunshine which was warm enough to sit in, a day of rain, and a day of snow which made the mountains look beautiful but meant we couldn't do that much.

When we got our flight home we left early and spent a few hours in Milan, which was really good fun walking around the castle grounds and seeing the cathedral and soaking up the atmosphere, and of course stopping for a coffee in one of their many cafes!

Hints:
Be careful if you rent a car and drive as driving in Italy can be interesting to say the least!
Be prepared that when you do a holiday like this where you book everything separately (hotel, flights, car-hire) it can work out quite expensive

If you get the chance to go, please do it, you will love it!

Summary: If you get a chance to go, please do, you will love it!