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Should I avoid weekend stay in Bellagio

This is a rather specific question and likely it will depend on the time of year, but here goes:

Planning for six nights in Bellagio in September. Our choice is to either start on September 22, which is a Tuesday , for six nights, leaving on the following Sunday. Or to arrive on Sunday, September 29, likely early afternoon, because we will have just flown in to Milan that morning and then leave on the following Saturday.

I know the weather can be changeable at that time of year, so this isn’t as much about the weather as about whether we should avoid Bellagio and the lakes in general, on the weekend. I had read that Malan residents tend to gravitate towards the lakes on weekends. I’m sure it’s much worse in the summer, and I know the area in general is very touristed, but I just wonder from anyone who has been there [to Bellagio or the lakes in general] if all things being equal, should we try to avoid (as much one can) the weekend.

Having said all that our next destination is sparrow, which I guess can also get busy on weekends??? But I’m thinking maybe not as much as Bellagio?

Thanks in advance. These small things can sometimes cause crazy stumbling blocks when trip planning.🤦‍♀️

Posted by
33183 posts

sparrow? I think unchecked spellcheck has done something - but I can't guess what would have been changed to sparrow.

Posted by
1585 posts

Joan - Lenno. Located southwest of Tremezzo, Lenno is small and quiet, and is one of the lesser-visited, less touristy villages on Lake Como, inhabited predominantly by locals. It is well known primarily for the beautiful Villa del Balbianello. Perhaps you might consider there. From Lenno, you can visit Bellagio , Varenna and Tremezzo.

Posted by
16032 posts

Nigel, regarding "sparrow", in another post the OP mentions that they are "looking at 4 or 5 nights in Spoleto" so that might be it?

I don't know as a weekend will be any worse than during the week but IMHO, 6 nights is longer than I'd want to stay in Bellagio. We've been there as a day trip (from Bergamo) on a Sat. in May and I don't recall that it was overrun. One day was enough just from an interest standpoint although I assume you intend to do quite a bit of day tripping from there?

Posted by
11367 posts

We spent two weeks in Bellagio on one trip and never ran out of things to do or see. We have spent time there on four trips. We stayed away from the tourist ares except to board ferries.The ferries go to the each end of the lake, many excursions are possible.. I would choose the Sunday arrival.

Posted by
63 posts

🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️Should be Spello. Thx sorry need to proofread better.

Posted by
63 posts

Will check on Lenno. Regarding the length of time. On the arrival half day we’ll plan zero except some strolling and since jet lag always hits me hard, we will not likely plan more than one outing a day. We really are slow travellers. So we’ll probably plan one day (which may not mean leaving our accommodation until 10:00ish) in Varenna; one day taking the slow boat to Como, etc..., one day hiking, one day visiting gardens ... So I’m not concerned about the length of time. Just my little bit of questioning on days of the week.

Posted by
2575 posts

I read that Lake Como was more crowded on the weekends. But that may be true of other spots too. So the question is where will avoiding the weekend make the most difference. For example, after much deliberation, we decided to spend the weekend before we go to Lake Como in Venice not Verona. Verona appears to be much more crowded on weekends than during the week (fewer more expensive hotel options) while Venice is simply crowded all the time. IOW, we thought we would gain more being in Verona during the week than Venice.

Posted by
16032 posts

Ah, SPELLO! Thanks for solving the mystery!
Sounds like you'll be just fine for a nice, leisurely stay in Bellagio. :O)