Northern Italy is arguably greater than the sum of its parts.
If you ask some Como residents or business owners why interest in it has grown in recent years, however, two words often come up: George Clooney. His lovingly renovated mansion is regularly pointed out on boat tours, and it is rumored that most hotel rooms are outfitted with Nespresso machines, which he has famously endorsed for decades. Some local business owners and restaurateurs will credit Clooney for his role in reinvigorating interest in the entire swath of land that flows over into other communities around Lake Como, Lake Garda, and Lake Maggiore along the Swiss border.
To put things into perspective, Italy’s “Lake District” was a second-home destination for rich and influential people long before George Clooney famously put down stakes here. The Italian states Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol have towns and villages touching the shores of Lake Como, Lake Garda, and Lake Maggiore, ensuring each one maintains its own distinct identity. Factor in Milan—the cultural and aspirational gateway to the region, as well as photogenic landscapes and the hike and bike paths cutting through them.
Where it all begins
When you wake up at the Hilton Lake Como, you can plan your day simply by looking out your window or heading up to the open-air roof areas that overlook the lake, towns, and mountains. Paths leading from the hotel to Como’s center benefit not only from the lake’s expanse, but also the manicured gardens and trees lining the walkable stretches that almost feel like an extension of the property. Silk-themed restaurants and bars, including Terrazza 241, a glass-enclosed rooftop bar-restaurant, Satin, and Taffeta, exceed expectations with high-quality food and cocktail menus that bring extra flourish to on-site meetings and events.
The former silk factory transcends being a stylish lodging and meeting/conference destination. Under the direction of Monica Limonta, the architect and owner of the hotel, and fellow architect/cousin Dario Cazzaniga and firm Nessi & Majocchi, it epitomizes modern luxury while paying tribute to Lombardy’s historic associations with the fashion and textile industries. There are 170 large, airy rooms, including 19 suites with a canvas-like quality, with floor-to-ceiling windows and clean-lined furnishings. Dark-wood flooring and a color palette of pearly gray velvets, lilacs, green, teal blue, goldenrod, and other silk-inspired shades provide continuity throughout the public and private areas of the building. Premium suites sitting on the top floor of the old factory feature glass ceilings and floor-to-ceiling doors providing a 360-degree immersion into Como.
The heart of Como is 15 to 20 minutes from the front door on foot, and the trails leading up to the main dock are gorgeously flanked with landmark buildings and homes such as Villa Olmo (built around 1780), peeking out on one side and the expanse of the lake on the other. Other walking distance attractions include the Volta Museum, the Como Football Team’s Sinigaglia Stadium, the marina, which serves as a departure point for numerous boat tours, and The Aero Club Como (below), a century-old seaplane flight school. Como Old Town abounds with top-tier shopping and the Duomo di Como, which has nine 16th-century tapestries and paintings by Gaudenzio Ferrari and Bernardino Luini (a contemporary of Leonardo da Vinci) on display.
Walking around the Como city center to explore its historic landmarks and architecture helps build an appetite for Bottega Comacini. It is hard not to fill up on chef Danilo Vella’s addictive botteghino, fresh-baked milk bread rolls stuffed with different sauces or fillings such as Alla Norma, Polpo (octopus) and Olive, Al Ragu, Bologna and Pistachio, Pepperoni, and Canadian lobster with cheese, chives, and grapefruit. However, do save room for one of the kitchen’s pastas or entrees.
Crotto dei Platani in Brienno and Salice Blu, just outside Bellaggio, meanwhile, go beyond inspired cuisine to be full-on Como lifestyle experiences. In addition to lunch and dinner menus, date night packages, and large business gatherings, they offer cooking classes, food tours, farm-to-table sessions, and special themed evenings. You may spot well-to-do Lake Como residents sailing over in their personal boats for a bite.
When owner Francesco Cavadini took over Crotto dei Platani from his parents, he was determined to honor the location’s 200-year legacy and a culinary foundation built on locally-sourced lake fish, vegetables, and organic foodstuffs. Cavadini, also an assessor for the Como tourism board, says operating a restaurant in an 18th-century building helps him promote the region’s culture and history through its storied past. It was a wine shop in its early years, converted into a guest house during the 19th century, and has a wine cave and garden that was first extensively renovated in 1918.
It is easy to make a meal out of the kitchen’s appetizers, between classics like house-made salumi with giardiniera di fatte and foie gras platters and stellar originals like whitefish tartare with black truffle, Mondeghini di Cavedano (lake fish meatballs) with fried veggies and tartar sauce, a lake fish antipasti platter, and grilled octopus with chickpea cream and Sicilian-style pesto. However, there’s plenty to love beyond the appetizers forged from ingredients harvested from the lake and nearby farms, including ravioli with bottarga (a cured fish roe delicacy made from tuna) and sturgeon with a coating of licorice.
While the Crotto dei Platani fuses modern architecture with the original structure, Salice Blu is a rustic home-y cottage surrounded by garden plots and adorned with antique cooking and gardening implements, awards, and food-related paraphernalia. Chef Luigi Gandola’s mother, Flora, who co-founded the restaurant in 1973 with his father, enhances the environment with her continued presence. Perhaps not surprisingly, Gandola explains that growing up in this setting not only dominates his passionate approach to cooking, but also penning best-selling cookbooks, presenting dishes to the guests with a side of storytelling, and his roles in various regional environmental projects.
Gandola, who took over as chef from his father in 2005, explains that dishes are always being reinvented based on the availability of ingredients from the lake and their gardens and his ongoing mission to “create memories for the guests.” Menu highlights include a savory risotto topped with lake perch and a roast with fresh asparagus presented in a glass dome, allowing the dish to absorb aromatic and flavorful smoke from the wood where the meat was grilled.
While one can never go wrong with a Lake Como boat tour with views of historic and celebrity-owned homes, Villa del Balbianello (only accessible by boat), is worth a few hours. Inside the home of Italian explorer Guido Monzino, the walls do talk in terms of what this brilliant and colorful man achieved in his short but adventurous life between extensive expeditions and gracious entertaining.
On Your ‘Garda’
Lake Garda is as down-to-earth as Lake Como is sophisticated, evidenced by the high concentration of racing yachts in the marinas, challenging hike and bike paths, and hotels such as Garda Bike Hotel in Peschiera del Garda, a ten-minute walk from the unpretentious but stylish village center running along a canal. Along the roads leading to and from Peschiera del Garda, one can be inspired by the Ciclocollection and the Madonna del Ghisallo Church (below), devoted to cycling history and rare bicycles.
Some roads cut through a small corner of Trentino-Alto Adige, where Azienda Agricola Madonna delle Vittorie offers up a full-on farm-to-fork experience as well as spectacular views. It contains the Marzadro Distillery—the cornerstone of the farm established in 1949— and a winery, vineyards, olive oil production facility, and the church it gets its name from. Sparkling white wine served with the restaurant’s involtino di almerino con le sue ova (char fish roll topped with char caviar, broccoli, and tomato confit) is made from Nosiola, a varietal native to Trentino that gets its unique flavor from the vineyards’ higher latitude, specific temperature fluctuations, and soils. The best main courses include risotto simmered with Trento DOC MDV, Trentino luganega sausage, artichokes, and Trentingrana cheese; a house rigatoni with a tomato and fish-based sauce; and house tagliatelle with white beef sauce incorporating MDV Nosola white wine and extra virgin olive oil.
Food culture shifts again when one crosses over into Veneto (most famous for Venice), where heartier pastas, risottos, and wines with great depth are found. Cantina F.lli Zeni is a nice spot to sample sparkling wine, reds, and whites at sunset, while La Casa degli Spiriti is known for lake views and fanciful decor that make it a constantly booked destination for business meetings and groups from Italy and abroad.
Valeggio sul Mincio, once a small financial and commercial hub, is known for Alla Borsa, often buzzing with local customers even on a rainy weekday. Second-generation owner Nadia Pasquali acknowledges that its biggest draw is tortellini pasta with different fillings, which it has been producing since 1959. She describes it as an art form crafted by hand since the 15th century. Here, dough is rendered into an almost-translucent skin covering the filling and closure with delicate folds. The menu continues this story with a section of a dozen tortellini varieties with different fillings, sauces, and finishes.
Verona’s architecture and waterways are reminiscent of Venice, but there are significantly fewer tourists around (with the exception of “Juliet’s Balcony”), making it easier to navigate the streets and the Piazza delle Erbe market square and uncover the best restaurants off the tourist track. Trattoria Arco di Gavi, a half block past the arch serving as the boundary of the central business district, offers up a perfect supper for a transitional night going from winter to spring. It begins with a seasonal salad, continues with a filling beef risotto accented with a large slice of parmesan, and a cart of roasted poultry, pork, and beef, diners can mix and match.
Beautiful islands and gentle waves
Relais Villa Porta, hiding in plain sight within a residential Lake Maggiore enclave, overlooks the Gulf of Colmegna and its contrasting vibe to buzzy Lake Como during high season. Throughout its history, however, it’s always been a retreat. In 1820, it was built as a hunting lodge, and by the end of the century, it was transformed into an inn by Leopoldo Casnedi. Over time, the surrounding parkland was further enhanced with rare plants collected by Pietro Porta, its second owner and botanist, and returning guests supporting his efforts. More recently, it incorporated a 10,000 square-meter park surrounding the main villa, a 19th-century Liberty-style greenhouse, and original “Villa Porta” mosaic.
At daybreak, house-baked pastries, savory items, and flawless espresso drinks are served in the Tiffany space, which flows outdoors when the weather permits. The bar features a curated wine list focused on Northern Italian wines, a locally distilled gin crafted exclusively for the hotel, and aperitivo cocktails that put it to good use. What’s in place now bodes well for a second food outlet projected to open shortly that will serve fresh-baked pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and other light bites with ingredients from the same neighboring producers whose products fill the hotel’s pantry.
There are 30 rooms with distinctive shapes, a lake-inspired color scheme, and views of the outdoors, including Room 107, which is prized for its fireplace. The “Royal Suite La Rosa,” a private guest house a short distance from the main villa, serves as a bridal suite or a site for an ultra-private appreciation of the property’s greenery and lakeshore. Even as the inn is fully operational, more upgrades were either recently completed or are discreetly in the works. The Limonaia Ballroom, with adjoining “Skyline” outdoor space and regal “Torretta” tower with panoramic views, was inaugurated in 2023 to broaden the property’s capabilities as a banquet, wedding, and business conference destination. Eight new guest rooms, an expansion of existing indoor and outdoor event space, and a full-service spa are projected to open sometime in 2026 or early 2027.
Beyond Villa Porta, there’s a lot to take in as Lake Maggiore touches Varese, Piemonte, and several free-standing islands within the expansive MAB (Man and Biosphere) Reserve “Ticino Val Grande Verbano.” Nature reigns supreme, with destinations such as Piedmontese Ticino Park, Lombard Ticino Park, Val Grande National Park, and Campo dei Fiori Regional Park. It also has much to offer culturally, as the villages of Luino and Stresa are minutes by car or shuttle from Villa Porta. Both towns have a lived-in but delightful ambiance, and Luino’s waterfront is an embarkation point for boat tour companies offering transportation to and private tours of Isola Bella and Isola Pescatori, tiny but culturally rich islands alive with cultural and historic landmarks such as Palazzo Borromeo and the Sanctuary of Santa Caterina del Sasso.
A Milano add-on
If Milan is a “bliesure” trip’s starting or end point, a few extra days are well worth your time. A great place to do it in is the NH Collection Milano Touring. Almost a century after it opened as the “Hotel Touring,” it continues to reflect the city’s intertwined identities as a business capital, art gallery hub, culinary mecca, and cultural destination while being a retreat from the city’s more congested areas, such as the Duomo. One of its biggest selling points is that it is a short trek to Sforzi Castle and its many museums and Indro Montanelli Public Gardens.
The hotel’s historic underpinnings are thoughtfully preserved, from the Art Deco architectural exteriors to a staircase protected by city ordinances that connects the lobby to the rooms on the lower floors. The arrangement of pastel and jewel-toned chairs, sofas, tables, artwork, and accessories gives the lobby a residential feel that is definitively Milanese. The larger space is broken down into intimate enclaves suitable for informal meetings, meetups with friends, or a quiet moment to enjoy the art installations or coffee table art books with a cappuccino or cocktail in hand.
The décor style and garden themes in the public areas are translated into even cozier settings for the hotel’s 279 rooms and suites. Calming pastel pinks, beiges, and bold greens are offset with large windows overlooking Milan’s most significant landmarks or the skyline of the financial district. Better rooms are appointed with parquet flooring, wallpaper with garden-inspired imagery, a minibar fridge, coffee/tea-making facilities, and a generous marble-appointed bathroom. The home-y feeling on VIP floors extends to the area just outside the elevators, which are stocked with chilled bottled water and, starting at 5 p.m., cookies, soft drinks, and other snacks.
Camelia’s Yard/Milano Social Bistrò brilliantly multitasks. In the morning, it beckons with a gorgeous breakfast buffet awash with fresh-baked treats, fresh juices, and hot staples. At lunch and dinner, it is a delightful full-service restaurant. The Milano Social Bistrò’s cocktail bar offers a solid aperitivo hour with classic cocktails and original recipes perfectly in tune with the garden setting.
Whether one is a Milan newbie or a regular visitor, he or she cannot go wrong with Eating Europe’s Navigli food tour. While the stops on the three-hour tour vary with the guide and the season, one can be guaranteed delicious bites, interesting business backstories, non-tourist-trap restaurant recommendations, and inspiration to return to the ever-evolving boho-chic neighborhood for shopping and experiencing Milan as the locals do.