Bellagio

Marci, Mount Airy - that's the same as Mayberry isn't it? One of the activities you could consider in Bellagio would be to tour some of the neighboring communities by boat. I'd definitely recommend a stop in Varenna and while there you could tour the elegant gardens of Villa Cipressi and Villa Monastero. There are similar gardens at other Mansions along the lake. You may get some other ideas by browsing their website: www.bellagiolakecomo.com/ Have you researched the route to get to Bellagio? Happy travels!

We haven't researched the route from Barga, Lucca to Bellagio yet. I heard it is a beautiful drive. Are there places we should stop to see on our way to Bellagio?

From Barga to Bellagio you can take several routes. The fastest is probably via La Spezia-Parma-Milano. The shortest (but more time consuming) is probably through San Pellegrino to Modena and up to Milano on the autostrada. This latter choice is through some very curvy and narrow mountain roads on the Apennines. It's a spectacular alpine type of landscape, but you need the driving skills and, above all, the stomach. If you get car sick easily, maybe you should take the first route.