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Lake Como – the southest area

Lecco

50km north of Milan lies Lecco, a wonderful town with 50,000 inhabitants. Once Alpine Town of the Year (2013) it boasts an impressive lakefront offering a multitude of watersport activities, set against a backdrop of the mountains. which are said to appear like the teeth of a saw.

There is no better way to give you a flavour of the town than by turning to the words of one its most famous offspring, Alessandro Manzoni, in his world famous novel The Betrothed:
“We voyaged the steamer down the Lago di Lecco, through wild mountain scenery, and by hamlets and villas, and disembarked at the town of Lecco…It was delightful…There were towering cliffs on our left, and the pretty Lago di Lecco on our right.”

It is much the same these days with a real sense of history in all of the side streets. There is an old piazza in the historic centre as well as a more commercial one nearby, Cemenati Square. Like most Italian towns there are plenty of churches to visit and you will absorb all the history just be walking along the streets.

Abbadia Lariana

Abbadia Lariana is approximately 50 km northeast of Milan and about 8 kilometres northwest of Lecco, with just over 3100 inhabitants. It gets its name from the abbey that was founded there in the 9th century, but which is now no longer in existence.

It is a very pleasant village overlooking the lake, which has seen human presence since the Iron Age. It is a town which offers enviable views of the lake and the backdrop of mountains. It is a walker’s paradise with a long beach and lakeside trail. After a long walk you can enjoy yourself in one of the many lakeside bars or restaurants.

Although it is a small town there are plenty of concerts in this magical place. Along with a few other churches in the town, it is worth seeing La Torraccia, a tower that was built to protect in the 1200s.