Sunday

Welcome to Luxurious Lake Como! Our Artistic Gourmet Adventures airport greeting window is between 3pm and 5pm on the first day of your Adventure. Our driver will meet you in the Lobby of the Sheraton hotel located 50 feet from the airport and will transport you by private van to our lake front Villa, your Lake Como home for the week. We will set the exact time between 3pm -5pm based on your availability as the Adventure approaches. The Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP) is about 50 minutes by van from our Villa.

After a bite to eat and a leisurely afternoon to explore the Villa, you will then enjoy an amazing Gourmet Dinner provided by Le Cordon Bleu Alum Chef Walter and the Artistic Gourmet Adventures staff at the villa.

Monday

Wake rested and refreshed. After a filling breakfast at our Villa we will depart from the dock at our Villa in Moltrasio, and board the elegant venetian-style taxi boat. Bionda with its sliding sunroof for magnificent lake views, for a two hour private tour of Lake Como. During this voyage, we will admire the most beautiful Villas. You will see Villa Fontanelle (famous for being Versace’s house), Villa d’Este and many other magnificent Villas. We will disembark in Varenna for lunch* and a little shopping, then return to the villa via our water taxi.

In the evening, we will serve our famous ‘Cocktails and Canapés’ on the terrace (A canapé, pronounced “can-a-PAY”, is a type of hors d’oeuvre, or small, easy to eat food, made with a base of a small piece of bread or pastry with a variety of toppings, and traditionally served before dinner, usually with cocktails. These finger foods are made to be held with one hand, so that you can hold a drink in your other hand, and eaten in a single bite (or two at the most, to make it less messy). Soon after, you will enjoy a delicious gourmet dinner at the villa again prepared by Chef Walter.

Breakfast and Gourmet Dinner provided by Chef Walter Eagleton and the Artistic Gourmet Adventures staff at our lake front villa.

Tuesday

After a delicious breakfast at our villa, we will again board our venetian-style taxi boat, Bionda, for a cross lake voyage to famous Bellagio, the pearl of Lake Como. The tiny streets of Bellagio are so pretty that a simple walk is worth the visit. The old town center of Bellagio has one main road, Via Giuseppe Garibaldi, which gets to Punta Spartivento (tip of the village) in less than 10 minutes. Via Giuseppe Garibaldi is populated by dozens of shops and boutiques where visitors can find local food, leather goods, clothing, perfumes, and much more.

Wednesday

Today is a day to enjoy the Villa. After our homemade breakfast, you will spend a leisurely morning at the Villa where you may read a book, enjoy the hot tub or the pool or just sit by the lake imagining you are Amal Clooney! A light lunch will be served on the terrace by Chef Walter and the Artistic Gourmet Adventures staff. And, as the day dwindles on, it will be time for ‘Cocktails and Canapés’ and slow dining with our Gourmet Dinner.

Breakfast, lunch and your Gourmet Dinner provided by Chef Walter the and Artistic Gourmet Adventures staff at our villa.

Thursday

Another fun day exploring what Lake Como is known for! After breakfast we will take a short 15 minute drive to the city of Como and we will be dropped off just at the entrance of the outdoor market, open from 8 am to 1 pm, it is located next to Porta Torre, the main entrance of the old town. A five minute walk will take us to the Piazza San Fedele where you can lose yourself in the delightful little streets of the town center, and where you can sip a coffee together with the locals. Originally a wheat market, it is one of the main squares of Como and hosts a beautiful Romanesque church which dates back to 1120: the Basilica of San Fedele.  After entering the town center, you will notice the incredible amount of cafés and shops. Como has plenty of clothing stores for all budgets. We will stop for lunch* and then decide if we need more time to shop or we want to return to the Villa. We will then head back to our villa by van for ‘Cocktails and Canapés’ on the terrace and an evening of delicious food, fine wine, and relaxation while awaiting your Gourmet Dinner.

Breakfast and Gourmet Dinner provided by Chef Walter Eagleton and the Artistic Gourmet Adventures staff at our villa.

Friday

Awake rested and ready to go. We will enjoy breakfast and meet our water taxi at our private dock and be transported to the the town of Menaggio. Piazza Garibaldi, the heart of Menaggio, with its cafés and restaurants, pulsates with life. The splendid lakeside promenade, where in the afternoon a light Breva blows, invites you to take a nice walk while enjoying a gelato. The Lido di Menaggio with its beautiful beach has a spectacular view of the lake. Archaeological findings indicate that the area of Menaggio was already inhabited in prehistoric times.  In Menaggio we find three of the fifty panels that are placed along the shores and on the western mountains of Lake Como that are part of the 4 thematic routes of the itinerary “The End of the War”.
Two panels retrace the events that led to the capture and shooting of the Duce and the hierarchs and one recalls the killing of the partisan Enrico Caronti. Shopping, strolling the water front and lunch* at a nearby restaurant.

When we are ready, we will take a short 6 min drive to Tremezza where we will enjoy a visit to Villa Carlotta. Built at the end of the seventeenth century by the marquises Clerici of Milan, the villa tells the story of over three centuries of great collections, and each year also opens the gates of a fascinating botanical garden that draw thousands of visitors from all over the world. The botanical garden of Villa Carlotta is a kaleidoscope of colors in every season. In these weeks, large patches of hydrangeas in bloom and all shades of green are vivid, from the intense and exotic green of the Fern Valley to the brilliant green of the pre-Alpine meadows: summer has arrived in all its splendor. Masterpieces by Canova, Hayez and Thorvaldsen await visitors in a setting of great elegance, which also makes the most of the private apartments and furniture of Princess Charlotte of Sachsen-Meiningen.

We will then head back to our villa by van (a 30 minute drive) for ‘Cocktails and Canapés’ on the terrace and we will finish the evening with a special farewell dinner.

Breakfast and Gourmet Dinner provided by Chef Walter Eagleton and the Artistic Gourmet Adventures staff at our villa.

Saturday

Today, at 08:00, we say goodbye, Brown Bag Breakfast and coffee in hand, and our private driver will transport you to the Milan Malpensa (MXP) airport (a 50 minute drive) and send you on your way home or on to your next adventure!

Itinerary subject to minor changes.

*Lunches not included in Adventure cost.

We have reserved an amazing lake front Villa built in the early 1900s with a private hot tub, a private pool and a private boat dock. The Villa has four bedrooms on the 2nd floor all with a queen bed and dedicated bathroom, along with a gorgeous view of the lake  The villa is just down the lake from George and Amal’s Villa-who knows we might see some ‘stars’!

The wonderful villa that has been chosen for your Adventure is rare and magnificent. Here are some details.

The Villa is a wonderful home built at the beginning of the century and completely restored in 2008 (updated 2021), The villa faces directly on the lake immersed in a wonderful garden.

It still belongs to the noble Swiss family that came here on holiday, fell in love with the area and decided to build their own dream Lake Como luxury villa. The owners tastefully furnished and embellished their home, retaining many of its original characteristics and balancing them harmoniously with modern comforts. Fine tapestries and fabrics, floors made from fine wood with geometric inlays, beautiful paintings on the walls, and family period furnishings.

The villa has a private swimming pool 32 x 13 feet depth 5 feet with roman steps. There is also a Jacuzzi for 6 people. Both face a wonderful lake view! From this area, there is also direct access to the lake from the villa’s private dock.

The garden has also an equipped area with tables and chairs, as well as lounge chairs, to enjoy al fresco meals with an amazing lake view.

This part of the Lake is a sophisticated area. Here you come for the scenery, for shopping, breathing the luxury and enjoying the views from the lakefront. The ancient villages and enchanting gardens are the setting for the historical villas of the Lombardy aristocracy and offer pleasant stay at any time of the year.

The Villa consists of three floors and a basement and is about 6450 square feet.

Ground floor: On the ground floor is the elegant, marble entrance leading to a spacious dining room with a fireplace and French doors opening out to the panoramic terrace. The double living room offers comfortable sofas, period furniture, a plasma TV with Satellite, and French doors opening onto the terrace, offering a beautiful lake view.

European First floor: there are four double bedrooms all with a wonderful lake view and four private bathrooms. One marble bathroom with Jacuzzi tub; One marble bathroom with tub; One large bathroom with double sinks, Jacuzzi claw-foot tub and separate stall shower with steam and water massage; One bathroom with hydro massage shower. One of the beds can be separated.

There is a laundry room with a small long cycle (1-3 hours) washing machine and small long cycle dryer.

This amazing location is on many Bucket Lists. And if you have been in the past, you have not been the Artistic Gourmet Adventures way – Private Villa Accommodations-NO Hotels; Private Transportation-NO Big Buses; Gourmet Meals with Wine Pairings by Le Cordon Bleu-Paris educated Chef Walter Eagleton while dining at Villa-NO Set Dinners in pre-Chosen Tourist Restaurants; ‘slow travel’-NO Rushing to Catch the Bus; Special Surprise Excursions-A Comprehensive Itinerary-Personal Relationships with Locals-Personal Relationships with YOU! Just to name a few!

Price and What’s Included:

• Round Trip Transfers from and to Villa from the Milan Airport

• Luxury Villa Accommodations with En-suite Private Bathroom

• All Private Tours, Transportation and Entry Fees During Tours

• Daily Ground Transportation by Private Van

• All Homemade Breakfasts, Lunches and Dinners, with Wine and beverages, when dining at Villa or as mentioned as ‘included’ in the itinerary.

Proof of Travel Insurance is required and can be bought on line from Squaremouth Travel Insurance.

Not Included:

Airfare or rail to or from Adventure. Meals marked with the symbol *.  Any excursions not mentioned as Included in the Itinerary.

$5200 per person double occupancy Sunday, June 16 – Saturday, June 2024 (Double Occupancy Only)

$5950 per person single occupancy

Only four bedrooms available

A Non-refundable deposit of $750 pp is due upon booking.

Your balance is due 90 days prior to the first day of your Adventure. (We will send out a reminder letter)