Lake Como from CT?

Two train lines serve Como town from Milan or another train line runs along the east side of lake to stops including Varenna; this schedule is at www.trenitalia.com or in Rick's Italy book (Milan and Lake Como chapters). Cernobbio is not served by train, but you can get there from Como town by boat or taxi.

Hi - also from CT!

My daughter and I took a mother/daughter trip through Tuscany and spent three days in Lake Como towards the end of the vacation. This was in July 2013, but two years later, I still think about the wonderful, amazing place we stayed at in the village of Molina, Villa le Ortensie, just about every day. We drove (unforgettable experience navigating those twisty, narrow roads!), so I can't provide any feedback about taking the train. All I can tell you is if it's possible to spend time at this B&B, please do. I would also highly recommend spending time in the Chianti region, if possible, specifically the village of Greve in Chianti.

cam,

Lago di Como is easily accessible from the Cinque Terre by train, but you'll first have to decide which part of the lake you want to visit. The usual favourite with many here is the small town of Varenna in the mid-lake area (close to the posh resort of Bellagio). From Milano Centrale, it's only about a one hour train ride to Varenna, so it's very easy to access. From there you can take Ferry trips to explore other parts of the lake.

With your "2 days somewhere", you could perhaps spend a couple of days in Siena?

Just curious, why have you scheduled 3 days in Vernazza and 3 days in Monterosso? They're only about 10 minutes apart by train, so it's very easy to "base" in one town and explore any of the five C.T. towns. That saves the bother of packing up and changing hotels.

Cam,

Is this your first time in Italy?

I couldn't help but notice that you will be spending 3 days in Vernazza & 3 days in Monterosso?

Is there a reason why you'd be changing accommodations while visiting Cinque Terre?

Lake Como is beautiful but keep in mind that it will take you 3-4 to travel to Milan, then another hour to get to the mid-lake village of Varenna.

If you enjoy hiking, you may consider taking a couple of days from CT & travel to the Dolomites.

EDIT: I just realized that Ken posted his reply while I was writing mine, thus the repetitive content...

Thanks, Priscilla. No, not our first time in Italy. We would have booked all 6 days in one spot in CT, but the place we were determined to stay in only had three nights available, hence the move. I'll look into the Dolomites. Thanks for the suggestion!

Thanks for the feedback, Ken. As I mentioned to Priscilla, we would have booked all 6 days in one spot in CT, but the place we were determined to stay in only had three nights available, hence the move. Good suggestion for two days in Siena, but we have two days there doing our bike tour. I'm still keeping Lake Como as an option.

Thanks for the train information, Laura!