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Lakes and towns in northern Italy
Have you already exhausted the city and feel like going out for a bit, but don’t want the drive to be too long?
I have collected for you the list of the most recommended towns and lakes for one-day trips within a short drive from the city of Milan with or without a car.
Como, the town of Bellagio and the village of Verna
In the region of towns and lakes in northern Italy, Lake Como is the closest to Milan. The town of Como is at the southern end of Lake Como. Como is about 50 km from Milan, and can be easily reached by private car or by train.
Direct trains to the town depart from Milan’s train station, CADORNA (to which the red and green metro lines, M1 and M2 arrive) and also from the central train station (Centrale). The main station in Como is called San Giovanni and from there you can reach the lake with a nice walk of about 1 km to the north. Some trains stop right near the shore of the lake at the Lago Nord station.
Como itself is a nice town, you can take a nice walk there on the promenade around the lake. On the eastern side of the boardwalk is the harbor from which ferries leave for a variety of towns along the shores of the lake. One of the famous towns that lies exactly between the 2 arms of Lake Como is called Bellagio, known as the “Pearl of Lake Como”, where the kit homes of many famous people in the world reside. In Bellagio, as well as in other surrounding towns, you can visit wonderful villas that have been turned into museums. Some of them have spectacular gardens that are worth a visit on their own. In Bellagio, Melzi Villa is famous, in the town of Tremezzo Carlotta Villa, and more. You can spontaneously arrive at the port and find out about the upcoming cruises, as well as buy the tickets. You can also prepare in advance and find out when and where the cruises depart. In the winter season, the cruises are more limited in terms of times and destinations. You can be updated on the sailing times and other information here.
A little further east from the ferry port (proceed towards villa Geno) is a cable car that goes up to the village of Brunate. The cable car stops at a beautiful and recommended observation point on the lake. You can combine a cable car ride with a ferry ride. You can find more details about times and prices on the cable car’s official website here.
Lake Como has its charm, but the village of Varena is special in itself and you should go there. The village is located on the eastern side of the famous Lake Como, and a little over 700 residents live there. The village is located about an hour’s drive from Milan by train, and about 20 minutes by boat from Bellagio. Varena village in the distant past started as a small fishing village that became one of the richest and flourishing villages in the entire region. We will recommend you to walk the streets of the village, and reach the Church of San Giorgio, which is an ancient Roman temple, and the Church of San Giovanni Battista, where you can see ancient wall paintings and fragments of original paintings. You can walk in the historic center of Varna and walk in the botanical gardens of Villa Monastero and Villa Cipressi from the Renaissance period from which you can enjoy a spectacular view of the lake. The most romantic place in the village is Passeggiata degli Innamorati (Lovers’ Path) and Castello di Vezio (Vezio Castle).
For trains from the central station in Milan to the village of Varna for 6.80 euros Click here.
Sailing from Bellagio costs 2-4 euros Click here.
Lake Maggiore and the town of Stresa
The second largest lake in Italy. The lake can be reached in just an hour’s drive from Milan city center, half an hour from Malpensa airport.
To reach the eastern shore of Lago Maggiore by train, Ternitalia currently offers three direct trains a day from Porta Garibaldi station, with stops at Laveno, Calde and Porto Valtravaglia on the lakeside. From Luino you can switch to regional trains that continue north, stopping in the towns along the eastern shore of the lake and continuing to Switzerland.
The lake is so big and there are so many possibilities for activities around it, that you can stay around it even for a whole week. Half of the lake is within Italy and its northern half already flows into Switzerland. We will focus on a beautiful day trip that can be done to the town of Stresa.
The picturesque town of Kit is very pleasant for a trip. Where you can find, among other things, Vila Pallavicino, which currently houses a zoological park with a variety of animals that roam freely in the wonderful gardens of the villa. A spectacular place for recreation for adults and children alike. From the villa you can continue to the city center of Stresa. There, from Piazza Marconi, you can take a cruise to one of the three Burmao islands. The visit to the islands is possible between the months of March and October.
The most visited island is called the “beautiful island”, Isola Bella. The island was actually a palace built by one of the Burmao sons for his wife Isabella. On the island you can visit the magnificent Bormau Palace with its spectacular gardens.
Another island, which does not belong to the Bormau family, is the fishermen’s island, Isola dei Pescatori, which used to house fishermen. Today the inhabitants of the island make a living mainly from tourism. You will find mostly fish restaurants here.
Another, larger and more distant island is the “mother island”, Isola Madre, to which it is more convenient to sail from the town of Baveno Baveno, a little north of Stresa. Here too, a villa belonging to the Bormau family, and magnificent botanical gardens.
Lake Garda and the town of Sirmione
Lake Garda is the largest of the Italian lakes. Here too, similar to Lake Maggiore, you can spend several days in Sibiu. Alternatively, you can of course arrive in a short trip from Milan for a fun day trip.
You can take a train from Milano Centrale station (Milan’s central station) arriving at the town of Brescia and from there you can board a bus arriving at Padenghe – Rocchetta ovest, with a few minutes’ walk, you will see the spectacular lake in front of you.
We will focus on the tour to the town of Sermione, which is located on the southwest side of the lake. It is an ancient and beautiful city, surrounded by a wall, located right on the shore of the lake. It is convenient to reach it mainly by rental car, and to park in one of the parking lots located on the access road to the old city. In particularly touristy seasons, you will have to walk a little from the parking lot to the entrance to the city, along a nice promenade by the lake. You can also get from Lake Garda to Sermione by public transportation using 2 buses: the first from Padenghe Bivio Rocchetta that arrives at Desenzano – Via Anelli Porto (after a 7-minute drive) and from there another bus that arrives at Sermione in about 17 minutes.
Right at the entrance to the city is the fortress, Rocca Scaligera. It is worth entering the magical citadel and watching from the beautiful view from the tower. From the citadel you enter the sweet city, it’s fun to walk around its alleys. With a walk of about 1 km you reach the edge of the old city, and you can see the archaeological remains of Villa Catullo, Grotte di Catullo. The area also stretches along the shore of the lake, pleasant and interesting to visit. If you have time left on such a day, you can also combine it with a trip to Monte Waterfall Baldo or continue to the city of Verona.
Lugano, Switzerland
An hour/hour and a half drive from Milan will bring you to the quiet Swiss city of Lugano. It is very easy to get there by private car or public transport. If you are driving a private car, please note that you must purchase a sticker called a vignette in order to drive on Swiss roads. The cost of the sticker is about 40 euros, and it can be purchased at the border crossing. The policemen standing at the crossing will already guide you. Italian is also spoken in Lugano, but you will immediately feel that you are in Switzerland. The streets are cleaner and more well-kept. The atmosphere is a little different than in Italy.
Lugano is surrounded by several high mountains and lies on the shore of Lake Lugano. The combination of the mountains and the lake create a beautiful landscape. Strolling along the boardwalk along the shores of the blue and magical lake is just like strolling inside a fairy tale postcard. Look for the city park, the well-kept Parco civico, which is part of the promenade. If you want, you can also go sailing on the lake. You can find details about the cruise here
It is also very pleasant to walk the streets of old Lugano with its many elegant cafes and shops. Around Lugano are nice picturesque villages and several mountains, each of which you can climb by cable car for a beautiful view of the city, the lake and the surrounding mountains (in a snowy and cold winter and most cable cars are only open from mid-March to the end of November).
Monte San Salvatore
The undisputed peak around Lugano belongs to Monte San Salvatore. With the help of a trolley that leaves the city center you can qualify for this peak. You can find details on the website of Mount San Salvatore here.
The summit can be descended on foot in several routes, or of course back with the trolley.
You can find more and no less beautiful cable cars from Monte Bre, Monte Tamaro, At the top of which there is also an adventure park for children and adults against the backdrop of the spectacular views. recommended! Monte Generoso. Getting to all the cable cars is very simple and you are guaranteed a wonderful experience in each of them.
If you are traveling with children, and even if not… you can experience a visit to all of Switzerland on your short trip to Lugano. This is thanks to the Swiss Miniature Park (Mini Switzerland) which is also located on the shore of Lake Lugano. This is one of the most invested parks in the world; Very well maintained and flowery, with model trains, snowy mountains and what not. Highly recommended for fans of the genre. for details.
A day trip to St. Moritz in Switzerland, combined with the Bernina Express train
A special and highly recommended experience. The Bernina train is operated by the Swiss railway company, Rhaetian Railway, abbreviated as RHB. The train route is a special way to experience the Alps in a train intended for tourism only with cars with panoramic windows (which do not open) and in some cars with regular windows (which can be opened).
For the perfect experience, it is recommended to sit on the left side of the train (thanks to blogger Adi Wits for the recommendation).
This particular lane is not passable to cars and can only be traversed by this train. This spectacular trip is recommended all year round, when in winter (on a beautiful day) you can admire vast expanses covered by a thick layer of snow. And in the summer magnificent blossoms, snowy peaks and blue lakes. The most recommended season is spring, where you can see a combination of blossoms and snow.
You can use the services of the Zani Viaggi company that offers a full day trip including departure from Milan and return to it.
The price of a trip for a whole day is 129 euros
for details click here
If you want to make the trip independently:
You have to leave Milan by car to the train station in Tirano (Tirano), Switzerland (journey 4.5 hours). exceed Bernina train to St. Moritz.
St. Moritz you can walk around and even go into one of the cafes in the town.
One of the many recommended is Café Hanselmann
Via Maistra 8, St. Moritz 7500, Switzerland
+41 81 833 38 64 by phone
Another option is by train from Milan to Tirano (2.5 hours drive) and from there go up
Malcesine Monte Baldo
A slightly longer trip from Milan, which involves a two and a half hour drive to the eastern side of Lake Garda. Malcesine is one of the largest and most visited towns on the shores of Lake Garda. It can be reached by rental car or by ferry from one of the other towns on the lake shore (for example, from Sarmione). Information about the ferries can be found here.
In Malcesine it is pleasant to walk around the picturesque streets, cafes and souvenir shops. Here too you will find a citadel called exactly like the one in Sarmione, Scaligero citadel. In the citadel there are several nice museums (a nature museum, a fishing museum and a museum dedicated to the German super-philosopher, Goethe.) In addition, you can go up to observe the lake from the top of the citadel’s tower.
From Malcesine you can take the cable car to Monte Baldo. The mountain is 1750 meters high and you can overlook the lake and the Dolomites. This is one of the recommended cable cars in northern Italy. You can find information about the cable car here.
If you are interested, you can go hiking on the top of the mountain. Information about routes can be found on the cable car website and on the website.
Cinque Terre
The Cinque Terre region was declared a UNESCO conservation area. It is a series of five villages located on the side of a mountain along the coast of the Ligurian Sea. For many years, access to the villages was limited and even the passage between one and the other was difficult. In recent years, a railway was built connecting the villages And this is the preferred way of moving between them.
From Milan you can get by car or train to the area of the villages from the north (Manarola) or south (La Spezia) and start the route between the villages in the direction you want. Below is one possible option.
Departure from Milan to the beach in Manarola. You can walk among the vineyards and along the beach with the cliffs, observe the bathers who jump from the cliffs into the sea, the boats and the fishermen. From here we continue to the largest village of the five, Monterosso al mare. You will find here the most recommended beaches in the area. From Monterosso you can take a walk between all the villages or take a cruise from the port, towards la Spezia. From La spezia you can get back by train to the start of the route in just a few minutes. If you are not a good walker and still want to be impressed by the special landscape of the area, we recommend doing the short and orderly route between the villages of Riomaggiore and Manarola, it is a regulated path that is very comfortable for walking, even for prams that is a little over a kilometer long. The path is called the Via dell’ Amore love path, and is the easiest section to walk between the villages and is most famous for its great beauty between the mountain and the sea.
Cremona
Cermona is a city in northern Italy, located in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Po Valley. The city is particularly known for its musical history and traditions, including some of the earliest and best-known veterans-
In addition to being an unmissable destination for all music lovers, this city offers its visitors the opportunity to admire magnificent medieval architecture. Among these you can find the Torrazzo, the symbol of the city, which is located in the town hall square and is the tallest white bell tower in Europe.
Skiing, games and trips in the snow – Piani di Bobbio
An hour and a quarter of a drive from Milan is an excellent ski resort, with 18 snow-capped peaks and a variety of skiing trails. Ski enthusiasts will have a lot of fun here without bothering to travel to too far away sites. If you are not a skier and just want to see a lot of snow, enjoy a cafe on the top of the mountain, you will find here exactly what you were looking for. The site also operates a snow park at the entrance, fun for both adults and children, where you can rent sleds for a nominal price, and enjoy gliding down a moderate slope. A special conveyor belt will bring you back again and again to the top of the slope to ski more. On the summit you can also walk in the snow, and even rent special equipment for this walk alone without guidance. Ask about the possibility of ciaspole. You go up to the site by cable car, and you can rent ski equipment before going up and also after leaving the cable car up. The site is usually active during the ski season until the beginning of April.
You can easily reach the site by car. In addition, the site operates a bus that leaves on weekends in the morning from Milan to the site and back around 5:00 p.m. For all the details on the website.
