The question comes up in almost every stay. Guests ask it simply, directly, usually on the first morning:

"How do we go to Como?"

So we went and did it ourselves — left Milan, built a realistic itinerary, and came back with something we could actually recommend. Because suggesting a place is one thing. Having been there is another. And guests can always tell the difference.

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First stop: Como old town

From Milan by car, Como city centre takes around 50 minutes. Traffic varies, because Lombardy has decided that every journey should double as a minor character test. But on a normal day, Como is one of the most straightforward day trips you can organise from Milan — no trains to coordinate, no transfers, no logistics.

We started with a walk through the pedestrian streets and Piazza Duomo, probably the most immediately striking point in the city. The cathedral is worth a brief stop: it's a reminder that lake towns in northern Italy often carry far more historical density than their picture-postcard reputation suggests.

From there, coffee at Cova Casabianca inside CasaBianca Como on Lungo Lario Trento. Yes, that Cova — one of Milan's oldest names in pastry and caffè has opened in Como, and we couldn't not go. The project combines art, architecture, café and patisserie in a setting that feels like a small contemporary house museum on the water.

It's the right way to start the day — something genuinely beautiful, without immediately turning the trip into a tourist marathon with coffee drunk standing next to a tour bus.

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The lakeside road to Tremezzo

After Como, we drove north towards Tremezzo along the western shore.

The road itself is already part of the experience: unexpected views, villas behind gates, small villages, water and mountains shifting in and out of frame. It's one of those routes where the drive isn't just a transfer — it's the beginning of something. That said, it requires patience. Lake Como is spectacular, but it has no particular interest in efficiency. Don't plan it like a German motorway.

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Villa Carlotta: gardens, museum and the view towards Bellagio

Villa Carlotta is worth the trip on its own. The gardens are lush and well-maintained, with paths that continuously shift perspective over the lake. The museum inside is compact — pleasantly so. It doesn't exhaust you, doesn't force you to perform enthusiasm through thirty identical rooms, which is a crime more common in cultural tourism than it should be.

The view towards Bellagio from several points in the garden is the unavoidable highlight. Some views on Lake Como are genuinely as good as advertised. Annoying to admit, but true.

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Lunch: Renzo at The Lake Como EDITION

After a full morning, lunch on the terrace at The Lake Como EDITION in Cadenabbia, directly opposite Bellagio — specifically at Renzo, their all-day dining restaurant.

Mediterranean cooking, attentive service, and a terrace that does most of the work: lake view, natural light, unhurried pace. One of those meals where setting carries at least as much weight as the food — and here, the setting carries a lot.

For a day trip from Milan, it's the right closing note: not too formal, but considered; not stiff, but properly good. Exactly the kind of contemporary hospitality worth observing with a professional eye.

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Why we recommend it to HÕMA guests

This itinerary works because it holds three things together that guests often look for when they're staying in Milan:

  • An iconic destination that's genuinely easy to reach
  • A full day that doesn't feel like an endurance test
  • A balanced mix of walking, culture, landscape and a good lunch

Lake Como can be done many ways: by boat, over two days, staying a night, visiting Bellagio or Varenna. But for guests leaving from Milan with one day, this is a solid introduction — Como, Villa Carlotta, the lakeside road, lunch on the water.

Not the definitive guide to Lake Como. Those guides are usually only definitive in their ability to bore. This is a travel note, born from a simple question we hear often in our hotels.

"How do we go to Como?"