Featured holiday Italian Lakes garden holiday for individuals Italy

6 nights/7 days
A 6-night holiday for individuals (not groups) in two different locations in the Italian Lakes for visiting the gardens of this area, on Lake Como and Lake Maggiore. You spend 3 nights in Bellagio on Lake Como and 3 nights in Cannero Riviera on Lake Maggiore, with a hire-car to explore each area and in between.
Included in your Expressions holiday
  • Accommodation in a double or twin room on bed and breakfast
  • Three dinners included on Lake Maggiore per person
  • Scheduled flights with British Airways London to Milan return, economy
  • Hire of a Group B car for the duration of your stay
  • Half-day services of local guide to visit Villa Carlotta and Villa Balbianello on Lake Como
  • Full-day services of local guide to visit Isola Bella and Isola Madre on Lake Maggiore
  • Concierge service and Expressions Holidays regional helpful hints

Italian Lakes two centre holiday visiting gardens on Lake Como and Lake Maggiore

Highlights

• Half-day services of local guide to visit Villa Carlotta and Villa Balbianello on Lake Como • Full-day services of local guide to visit Isola Bella and Isola Madre on Lake Maggiore • Lake Como • Bellagio • Villa Carlotta • Villa Monastero • Lake Maggiore • Stresa • Isola Bella • Isola Madre • Villa Taranto

Special offers for this holiday>

I thought I'd take the opportunity to say what an absolutely wonderful honeymoon we had in Bellagio and Santa Margherita di Ligure: the holiday of a lifetime. Both hotels were amazing - the Villa Serbelloni was particularly off the scale - and the food and service in both hotels were perfect. Good choices. Thank you also for dealing with all our pre-departure queries so quickly and, all in all I would certainly recommend the services of Expressions.
Mr M, July 2022

Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room for 6 nights.

From about

£1,845 From 1 April to 6 May and from 3 Oct to 3 Nov

£2,040 From 7 May to 2 October

Holiday Code FHIT30

The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.

Italian Lakes two centre holiday visiting gardens on Lake Como and Lake Maggiore

Special offers for this holiday>

I thought I'd take the opportunity to say what an absolutely wonderful honeymoon we had in Bellagio and Santa Margherita di Ligure: the holiday of a lifetime. Both hotels were amazing - the Villa Serbelloni was particularly off the scale - and the food and service in both hotels were perfect. Good choices. Thank you also for dealing with all our pre-departure queries so quickly and, all in all I would certainly recommend the services of Expressions.
Mr M, July 2022

Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room for 6 nights.

From about

£1,845 From 1 April to 6 May and from 3 Oct to 3 Nov

£2,040 From 7 May to 2 October

Holiday Code FHIT30

The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.

Our prices include ● Scheduled flights with British Airways London to Milan return, economy
● 3 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Park view double room at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, Bellagio
● 3 nights’ dinner, bed and breakfast in a Junior suite with lake view at the Hotel Cannero, Cannero Riviera
● Hire of a Group B car for the duration of holiday
● Services of local guide to a half-day visit on Lake Como and a full-day visit on Lake Maggiore
● Concierge service and Expressions Holidays regional helpful hints

I thought I'd take the opportunity to say what an absolutely wonderful honeymoon we had in Bellagio and Santa Margherita di Ligure: the holiday of a lifetime. Both hotels were amazing - the Villa Serbelloni was particularly off the scale - and the food and service in both hotels were perfect. Good choices. Thank you also for dealing with all our pre-departure queries so quickly and, all in all I would certainly recommend the services of Expressions.
Mr M, July 2022

Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room for 6 nights.

From about

£1,845 From 1 April to 6 May and from 3 Oct to 3 Nov

£2,040 From 7 May to 2 October

Holiday Code FHIT30

The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.

Our prices include • Scheduled flights with British Airways London to Milan return, economy
• 3 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Park view double room at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, Bellagio
• 3 nights’ dinner, bed and breakfast in a Junior suite with lake view at the Hotel Cannero, Cannero Riviera
• Hire of a Group B car for the duration of holiday
• Services of local guide to a half-day visit on Lake Como and a full-day visit on Lake Maggiore
• Concierge service and Expressions Holidays regional helpful hints

The journey and how you get there There are scheduled flights with British Airways from London to Milan Malpensa (and Milan Linate) several times a day. Collect a hire-car at the airport and the drive from Malpensa to Bellagio on Lake Como for the first stay is about 90 minutes. The drive between Bellagio on Lake Como and Cannero Riviera on Lake Maggiore is about 2 and a half hours depending on the route you take. From Cannero Riviera to Milan Malpensa the driving time is about 90 minutes.

Italian Lakes two centre holiday visiting gardens on Lake Como and Lake Maggiore

Hotels included in this tour

Special offers

Call to make your booking and save an extra £50 per adult Call us instead of emailing us when you are thinking of booking a holiday and save an extra £50 per adult (in addition to any special offers that might be available). We want to talk to you to discuss your requirements and a phone call is usually the best way for you to define what you want enabling us to respond more accurately. We want to talk to you and you save an extra £50 per adult.

I thought I'd take the opportunity to say what an absolutely wonderful honeymoon we had in Bellagio and Santa Margherita di Ligure: the holiday of a lifetime. Both hotels were amazing - the Villa Serbelloni was particularly off the scale - and the food and service in both hotels were perfect. Good choices. Thank you also for dealing with all our pre-departure queries so quickly and, all in all I would certainly recommend the services of Expressions.
Mr M, July 2022

Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a double or twin room for 6 nights.

From about

£1,845 From 1 April to 6 May and from 3 Oct to 3 Nov

£2,040 From 7 May to 2 October

Holiday Code FHIT30

The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.

Our prices include • Scheduled flights with British Airways London to Milan return, economy
• 3 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Park view double room at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, Bellagio
• 3 nights’ dinner, bed and breakfast in a Junior suite with lake view at the Hotel Cannero, Cannero Riviera
• Hire of a Group B car for the duration of holiday
• Services of local guide to a half-day visit on Lake Como and a full-day visit on Lake Maggiore
• Concierge service and Expressions Holidays regional helpful hints

The journey and how you get there There are scheduled flights with British Airways from London to Milan Malpensa (and Milan Linate) several times a day. Collect a hire-car at the airport and the drive from Malpensa to Bellagio on Lake Como for the first stay is about 90 minutes. The drive between Bellagio on Lake Como and Cannero Riviera on Lake Maggiore is about 2 and a half hours depending on the route you take. From Cannero Riviera to Milan Malpensa the driving time is about 90 minutes.

Italian Lakes two centre holiday visiting gardens on Lake Como and Lake Maggiore

Highlights of the Italian Lakes

Historic villas are to be found on every lake from the Grotte di Catullo Roman villa at Sirmione on Lake Garda to Villa Melzi and Villa Olmo on Lake Como and the Palazzo Estense in Varese. Most of these villas also have extraordinarily beautiful gardens (which can be visited as part of an Expressions Garden Tour holiday) such as the Villa Carlotta on Lake Como, the Isola Bella in Lake Maggiore and Villa Taranto at Punta della Castagnola on Lake Maggiore. Monte Mottarone above Stresa on Lake Maggiore and Monte Baldo above Lake Garda can both be reached by cable car and afford spectacular views. At Gargnano on Lake Garda you can see the stone pavilions where lemons were traditionally cultivated. Within the region there are national parks such as the Stelvio National Park north of Orta and the Parco Nazionale della Val Grande above Verbania on Lake Maggiore.

Cultural highlights of the Italian Lakes

Much of the artistic and architectural cultural wealth in the region is concentrated in the great cities such as Milan and Verona but also in the less well-known but culturally-rich centres of Bergamo, Brescia, Pavia, Mantova and Vicenza (not directly on the Lakes but within reach for a day`s excursion). Highlights include the frescoes by Masolino at Castiglione Olona, the Rocca (castle) at Angera, the Flemish tapestries on the Isola Bella Lake Maggiore, the marble cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore at Como and the works of art in the Galleria dell`Accademia Tadini at Lovere on Lake Iseo. Milan has La Scala, the Museo Poldi Pezzoli, the Brera Gallery (containing Raphael`s `Marriage of the Virgin` and the Montefeltro altarpiece by Piero della Francesca) and its Gothic cathedral. Verona has its annual opera festival from June until the end of August, the Romanesque church of San Zeno, the Renaissance Loggia del Consiglio and the Roman Arena.

Festivals in the Italian Lakes

The Verona Opera Festival takes place in the Roman Arena every year with performances running from June until the end of August. Verona also celebrates Carnival every year culminating on the Friday before Shrove Tuesday. Como holds a flea market, the Fiera di Pasqua, over the Easter weekend. Music festivals take place in Bergamo throughout the year. The Mille Miglia veteran car race starts and ends in Brescia (via Ferrara to Rome in May each year).

Gastronomy in the Italian Lakes

The cuisine of northern Italy tends to contain more meat and butter than further south and rice and polenta compete with pasta. Saffron is used extensively as in Risotto alla Milanese. Bresaola is cured raw beef served as an antipasta (now often with rocket and parmesan). Manzo al Barolo (beef in Barolo wine), Costolette alla Milanese (veal cutlets in breadcrumbs) and Ossobucco (veal in wine and tomatoes) are all popular dishes. Panettone cake and Zabaglione are two regional desserts. This region produces some of Italy's most famous cheeses such as Gorgonzola, Bel Paese, Fontina and Taleggio as well as some of Italy's most exportable wines such as Soave, Bardolino and Valpolicella. Less well known but interesting wines are produced in the Valtellina in the north of Lombardy and in Franciacorta near Lake Iseo.

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