I'm planning a trip for June 2027 to Northern Italy and Switzerland. Since my main question pertains to the time in Italy, I'll post it here. Firstly, is doing more than one of the lakes too much given a two week itinerary (flying into Milan and out of Zurich)? I had considered spending a night or two on Lake Como, but given it's prime tourist season and crowded, just wondering if it might be best to just do a day trip to Bellagio/Varenna from Milan? I had also planned a couple of nights in Stresa, and then from there on to Switzerland.
Posted by
Maryland
1198 posts
It depends on what you like doing, but Stresa is on the west side off Lake Maggiore and Varenna is on the east side of Lake Como. Both famous but not near each other. Have you considered Como/Varenna for two nights then Lugano just across the border into Switzerland on Lake Lugano? Then catch the Gotthard Pass scenic train over the old Gotthard Pass route (compared to the quick Lugano to Lucene under the mountain train). Or go to Stresa and then the train to Locarno and you will have the same choices for getting to Lucerne/Zurich.
Posted by
OP
Toronto
242 posts
Thanks for responding. I guess my main concern was whether or not two lakes on the same trip was overkill. But given Lugano is on my planned itinerary anyway, your suggestion of combining Lake Como with Lugano makes sense. Or either that or just skip Lake Como and the crowds and do Maggiore instead.
Posted by
Idaho, USA
9871 posts
Hi Greg,
I would pick one or the other for just a 2-week trip. I prefer Stresa, but that’s just personal preference. There’s a lot of other options an hour from Milan going a different direction to give you more variety in your trip. Just one example - Cremona is the city of Stradivari, and there’s a very nice violin museum with concerts on weekends at the venue during the day. The interior of the main church is gorgeous, filled with frescoes. Also, the clock tower is iconic with a clock museum inside it as you climb up.