Staying In Lugano and Visiting the Lakes

I'm not sure of the answer to your question, but since there have been no answers so far, perhaps this will help: I'm guessing that whether you can comfortably do both lakes in 2 days depends partly on how much of each lake you want to see, partly on the bus schedules to each lake from Lugano, and partly on the ferry schedules at each lake. I've noticed that some Italian bus schedules are difficult to research on the web. I've only had personal experience getting from Lugano to Menaggio (the first town on Lake Como as you go east by bus from Lugano) and don't remember the frequency of the bus, maybe every hour or so during the day. And I believe (but don't know for sure) that the east side of Lake Maggiore (the side closest to Lugano) is not directly connected to Lugano by rail (for example, Stresa is on the other side of the lake).

Thank you Kent for your information.

Its only 30 to 50 minutes by train (depending on the train)to the town of Como (largest city on the Lake). I would take the train to Como then a ferry back towards Mennagio and then a bus from Mennagio to Lugano (runs from every 30 minutes to about 1 an hour depending on the time of day. Last bus leaves
Mennagio about 5:30 P.M.

Hello, the lakes district is very beautiful with great, food. The food was delicious and the most affordable we found in Italy. The small towns are enchanting and you will want to walk the streets and enjoy the views with your new favorite glass of Italian wine. Don't hesitate to spend too much time here, it is worth it.

Never been to Como, but we spent two nights in Stresa on Lago di Maggiore last summer, and enjoyed it very much. Small, past its prime, really, but relaxing and charming and oh-so comfortable. The cable car to the top of Mount Mattarone is very nice, and the boat to Isola Bella is fast and cheap and easy. While I don't think it's necessary to see both Como and Maggiorre--and again, I haven't been to Como--my understanding is that Stresa is much less crowded in the summer, cheaper, and even more laid back than the towns on Como. Hope this helps...buon viaggio!

Hello to all of you for your suggestions. Thank you VERY much. We had planned numerous days in Switzerland so we could see such places as: at least two days just visting Lucerne, Pilatus, Berne, Zurich, Jungfraujoch, doing the Bernina Express, the William Tell Express, etc. It gets really complicated trying to do the Bernina Express with the timing and the stops. We have read positive opinions about doing that route trip though. We also are going to use Lugano to visit Lake Como and Lake Magiorre (four nights). We originally land in Zurich. Then we are going directly to Lucerne. Then we are going to do the William Tell, stay in Lugano. But some how we have to get back to Paris for our visit there and to fly out of. I have been trying to see if we could visit the Sienna area after Lugano. The problem is that - get this - it costs $977 EACH for my husband and I to fly from either Milan or Florence to Paris. We can't even use our frequent flier miles, as American Air doesn't have a companion airline which flys to those cities and onto Paris. We have time constraints, so taking the train back from say Florence, Pisa or Milan would take too long. Obviously we can't afford $2,000 just to fly from Italy to France. Unbelievable. One traveler said they took a day trip to Sienna from Milan (or Florence). IF WE ENDED UP WITH MORE DAYS, would it be better to stay in Sienna or is is just as acceptable to stay in Florence and get a side trip to the Sienna area. Would we still be able to see the Tuscany region in a day trip? Is it worth it? We would have to take the train or bus down from Lugano to Milan and onto Florence. Then we would have to take a bus to Sienna. It kind of wears me out just thinking about the possibilities.

Thank you Harry. We were flabergasted when I checked with Luftstasa, Air France and Alitalia.