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Suites & Atelier Lake Como is born in one of Italy’s most picturesque villages, just a few meters from the shore of one of the most beautiful, beloved, and visited lakes in the world.

Nestling in one of the most charming historical city in Italy, adjacent to Lake Como, Suites & Atelier Lake Como is surrounded by nature, history, culture, amusement and sport.

For a unique and sensational experience, download and take a look at the complete list of links and info about the best things to do at Lake Como

Villas and Museums

Villa d’Este (Cernobbio)

https://www.villadeste.com/

Villa d’Este, originally Villa del Garovo, is a Renaissance patrician residence in Cernobbio on the shores of Lake Como, northern Italy. Both the villa and the 25-acre (100,000 m2) park which surrounds it have undergone significant changes since their sixteenth-century origins as a summer residence for the bishop of Como. Nowadays Villa d’Este is one of the main attractions on lake Como with its magnificent garden and breathtaking view of the lake.

Find out more about Villa d’Este by downloading our guide

Villa Carlotta (Tremezzo)

https://www.villacarlotta.it
https://www.villacarlotta.it/it/museo/

Villa Carlotta is a 18th century villa and botanical garden in Tremezzo on Lake Como in Northern Italy. The villa is today a museum, whose art collection includes works by Canova, Thorvaldsen, Migliara and Hayez in addition to pieces of furniture from the time of the various owners. The villa is located at the top of a terraced garden, from which there are views of Bellagio and also the mountains surrounding the lake.

More about Villa Carlotta in our Lake Como guide.

Villa Monastero (Varenna)

http://www.villamonastero.eu

Villa Monastero di Varenna, eclectic and built in Nordic style, was originally a Cistercian convent, founded at the end of the 12th century. The convent became important and rich, acquiring properties around Lierna before its decline, then becoming closed by a papal bull in 1567. Paolo Mornico then bought the whole property in 1569. In the seventeenth century Mornico decorated it by gradually rebuilding it with an eclectic style. Between 1897 and 1909 it underwent changes from Kees of Leipzig who bought it in 1890, becoming the current eclectic villa.

Villa Olmo (Como)

http://www.villaolmocomo.it/

Villa Olmo, a neoclassical villa, was commissioned by Marquess Innocenzo Odescalchi in 1797. The initial project envisioned it as a summer retreat for the aristocracy, along Lake Como. The villa’s name derives from the elm tree in the midst of the decorated gardens. The complex was later acquired in 1924 by the municipality of Como, which turned it into a public space to be visited during the day.

Villa Balbianello (Lenno)

https://www.fondoambiente.it/luoghi/villa-del-balbianello

The Villa del Balbianello is a villa in Lenno (province of Como), a province in the north of the Lombardy region of Italy, overlooking Lake Como. It is located on the tip of the small wooded peninsula of Dosso d’Avedo on the western shore of the south-west branch of Lake Como, not far from the Isola Comacina and is famous for its elaborate terraced gardens.

More about Villa Balbianello in our Lake Como guide.

Villa Melzi d’ Eril (Bellagio)

http://www.giardinidivillamelzi.it

The villa was designed by the Swiss architect Giocondo Albertolli. The facade of the villa, simple and regular, is enriched by a double ramp staircase and four Egyptian-style lions. On the sides of the terrace and of the lake parterre there are two 16th century marble statues. The English gardens, enriched with sculptures, were designed by the architect Luigi Canonica and the agronomist Luigi Villoresi, both responsible for the arrangement of the park of the Villa Reale in Monza.

More about Villa Melzi in our Lake Como guide.

Villa Serbelloni (Bellagio)

https://www.villaserbelloni.com

The Sfondrati in the 16th century obtained possession of the property, during a period of continuous passage of political power in Lonbardia. It was purchased by the transfer of power into the hands of Charles V, who granted the fief of the eastern Riviera of Lario to Francesco Sfondrati who bought the property of the Bellagio heritage from the Stanga daughters, where he decided to rebuild on the ruins of the villa of Marchesino. The property of Bellagio in 1788 was then left to Alessandro Serbelloni, the last of Sfondrati’s heirs. Belonging to one of the most prestigious Lombard families. Alessandro in 1802 actively engaged building almost 13 km of paths and a tunnel under the castle, to enjoy the double perspective of the branches of the lake. The village thus gained a reputation at European level following that of the visit of the emperor Austria Francis I, who was tasked by the magnificence of the place. In 1973 most of the paths were destroyed following a landslide in the north of the property which has since been closed to the public for systematic geological analyzes.

More about Villa Serbelloni in our Lake Como guide.

Villa Erba (Cernobbio)

http://www.villaerba.it/

Villa Erba, in Cernobbio, is one of the 19th century villas located on the shore of Lake Como. It was erected by Luigi Erba to show off his wealth. After his death, the villa was inherited by his daughter Carla and used by family members. A public consortium bought it in 1986 to transform it into a conference center. In 2004 the villa was the location of the film, “Ocean’s Twelve”. In early 2005, Gwen Stefani shot her music video for her single, “Cool”. A part of the Live at the Last Tour of Anastacia was also hosted in the park of the villa during the same period.

Villa Bernasconi (Cernobbio)

https://www.villabernasconi.eu/

The Cavalier Bernasconi industry was founded in 1876, later becoming known as Tessiture Bernasconi. Initially a small weaving with 40 looms. The frames in 1906 then became 560, flanked by high factories. A large area in the center of the town was occupied by the expansion of the Cernobbio factory and the whole configured a sort of industrial citadel. Inside the villa is housed the first speaking museum permanent exhibition dedicated to Liberty and the Bernasconi family, inaugurated with a riot of events, curated since November 2017 by the Mondovisione SCS cooperative.

More about Villa Bernasconi in our Lake Como guide.

Santuario della Madonna del Ghisallo (Magreglio)

https://www.eccolecco.it

The Madonna del Ghisallo is a hill in Megreglio, takes its name from an alleged Marian apparition. The medieval count Ghisallo traveling in the hamlet of Magreglio was attacked by bandits, saw an image of the Virgin Mary in a sanctuary, ran to meet him and was saved by thieves. The apparition later became known as La Madonna del Ghisallo and became the protector of local travelers. Subsequently the hill was inserted within the cycling race of the Giro di Lombardia and often of the Giro d ‘Italia. The church is erected on top of a steep hill on the shores of Lake Como. Now become a natural stopping point for cyclists. Today, in fact, it contains a small cycling museum with photos and artifacts. An eternal flame also burns for cyclists who have lost their lives.

Civico Museo Archeologico Paolo Giovio (Como)

http://www.visitcomo.eu/it/

The archaeological museum Paolo Giovio, historically Palazzo Lucini, includes various sections such as: the collection section, the prehistoric and protohistoric section, the Roman section, the medieval section and a rich library.

Museo Didattico della Seta (Como)

https://www.museosetacomo.com/

The Silk Museum is a museum institution that explains the production of silk from silkworm to colored yarns, from hand printing to fashion design collections. Inside the museum there are parts of the Como tradition such as machines, objects, documents, samples and work tools from the textile processes that characterized the golden age of Como. The passion for silk art has ancient origins and is all concentrated in a technical and artistic space accessible to the public.

Museo degli strumenti per la Navigazione (Bellagio)

http://www.bellagiomuseo.com

Bellagio is embellished by the museum, with elements set up in an old house with more than 200 precious objects that in past centuries have been used and lived in the sea for exploration.

Pinacoteca Civica di Como (Como)

http://www.visitcomo.eu/it/

The palace was built between 1610 and 1630 by the Catholic nuncio and bishop of Novara, Ulpiano Volpi. The art gallery currently houses collections whose main pre-nineteenth-century works derive from repressed ecclesiastical institutions. There are Carolingian sculptures from the church of Sant. Abbondio, Romanesque and Gothic sculptures and frescoes. It also contains an exhibition of portraits of illustrious men by Paolo Giovio, objects from the Como Cathedral, including stained glass windows, sculptures, tapestries and wooden models as well as countless paintings.

Museo Storico Giuseppe Garibaldi (Como)

http://www.visitcomo.eu/it/

The collections housed inside are distributed in four thematic areas, corresponding to other specific sections such as: Risorgimento, contemporary history, ethnography and picture gallery. There are also preserved pre-Risorgimento finds dating back to the Napoleonic period. There is particular attention to the battle of San. Fermo, the famous clash of the Second War of Independence that took place near Como where the Imperial Royal Army was defeated by Giuseppe Garibaldi. Inside the museum there are still stories of the twenty-nine indigenous Garibaldians who participated in the Expedition of the Thousand. The dating of the collections goes up to the Second World War.

Museo della Barca Lariana (Pianello)

http://www.museobarcalariana.it/

The commissioning museum space exhibits in three buildings, which house a unique heritage of boats, sails, motorboats, typical Larian boats and period nautical material. The museum content contains a place straddling the past and the present and why not the future, telling the world of boating, its protagonists, its businesses and the brands that have made its history.

Museo Antiquarioum dell’isola Comacina (Ossuccio)

http://www.isola-comacina.it

Remains of a colonnade from the Roman period preserved below the church of San. Giovanni, early Christian tales, mosaic lavatories and wall frescoes, and also numerous remains of Romanesque churches such as the basilica of S. Eufemiale, the squared stone walls of the complex of SS. Faustino and Giovita, alongside finds recovered during the archaeological campaigns displayed inside the museum.