Holiday apartment in Cernobbio: lakeside, villas and gardens

A holiday apartment in Cernobbio takes you to Lake Como, to a place whose character is shaped by lakeside life, historic villas, gardens and an unusual connection with the underwater world. At La Riva, tourist popularity and local life come together: Cernobbio’s lakeside area is particularly popular with tourists and also serves as a meeting place for local residents. This gives you focal points for planning your day, ranging from the lakeside and architecture to garden art and higher elevations. When choosing your holiday apartment, you can focus on the experiences you would like to make the centre of your stay.

Holiday apartment in Cernobbio between the lakeside and higher elevations

The Imbarcadero di Cernobbio is a structure built at the end of the 19th century in the Liberty style. Cast-iron columns and pointed-arch vaults in the neo-Gothic eclectic style define its appearance. The Via dei Monti Lariani provides a different focus: it begins in Cernobbio and runs at a higher elevation along the western shore of Lake Como as far as Sorico. These two aspects of the area appeal to different interests, without Cernobbio being limited to just one type of trip.

Villa Erba and Villa Pizzo: architecture surrounded by greenery

The new Villa Erba was built in 1903 in the centuries-old park. It has a neoclassical façade and large windows overlooking the lake. Today, the Villa Erba park is home to a modern exhibition centre hosting trade fairs, conferences and corporate events. Here, historic architecture meets a venue that is still actively used today.

Villa Pizzo is surrounded by an Italian garden with terraces, stairways and 17th-century statues. Its park contains native and exotic plants. It also features a small temple that served as a burial place for the Volpi-Bassani family, as well as a votive column commemorating the plague of 1630. Garden art, botany and remembrance come together here through specific, tangible elements.

Gardens, religious buildings and a motif beneath the water

Il Giardino della Valle is a public botanical park created on the site of a former illegal landfill. The place thus combines a botanical present with an unusual history.

The religious buildings also provide distinctive historical highlights. The Oratorio della Beata Vergine delle Grazie has a Baroque façade and a 1671 fresco of the Immaculate Conception. The Chiesa di San Vincenzo has a colourful façade, as well as frescoes, statues and numerous decorations in wood and gold.

A special feature on the lake is the Madonna del Lago in the Baia del Pizzo. The bronze statue was placed at a depth of six metres in June 2019, is two metres high, weighs approximately 500 kilograms and is marked at the surface by a red buoy. You can reach the Madonna del Lago by renting a boat or contacting Invincible Diving Asd on +39 333 210 9178. A diving training area is also being established in the Bay of Pizzo, intended for people with disabilities as well.

More destinations to compare for your trip: Colonno, Civenna, Carate Urio, Anzano Del Parco, Osteno, Valbrona, Merone, Albonico.

To the higher-level travel overview: Como.