Lake Como
Panoramic view of Lake Como with Grigna Mountains and Bellagio
Location	Lombardy, Italy
Coordinates	46°00′N 9°16′E / 46°N 9.267°E / 46; 9.267Coordinates: 46°00′N 9°16′E / 46°N 9.267°E / 46; 9.267
Primary inflows	Adda River, Mera River
Primary outflows	Adda River
Catchment area	4,509 km2 (1,741 sq mi) [1]
Basin countries	Italy, Switzerland
Max. length	46 km
Max. width	4.5 km
Surface area	146 km²
Average depth	154 m [1]
Max. depth	410 m
Water volume	22.5 km³
Residence time	4.5 years [1]
Surface elevation	198 m [1]
Islands	Isola Comacina
Settlements	Como, Lecco (see article)
References	[1]

Lake Como (Lago di Como in Italian, also known as Lario; Lach de Comm in Insubric; Latin: Larius Lacus) is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of 146 km², making it the third largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over 400 m (1320 ft) deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe, and the bottom of the lake is more than 200 metres (656 ft) below sea-level.

Lake Como has been a popular retreat for aristocrats and wealthy people since Roman times, and a very popular tourist attraction with many artistic and cultural gems. It has many villas and palaces (such as Villa Olmo, Villa Serbelloni, and Villa Carlotta). Many celebrities have or had homes on the shores of Lake Como, such as Matthew Bellamy, Madonna, George Clooney,^[2] Gianni Versace, Ronaldinho, Sylvester Stallone, Richard Branson, and Ben Spies. Lake Como is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful lakes in Italy.^[3]

Etymology[link]

The lake's name in Latin is Larius, Italianized as Lario, but this name is rarely used; it is usually called Lago di Como (literally "Lake of Como"). In guidebooks the lake may be variously described as "Lake Como", "Lake of Como", or "Como Lake." The lake's name comes from the town of Como, known to the Romans as Comum.

While the town of Como is referred to as "Como", the lake itself is never referred to solely by this name. (This is not true of another lake in Italy, Lake Garda, where "Garda" may refer to either a town on its shores, or the lake).

Geography[link]

Aerial photograph of Lake Como, showing its distinctive three-armed shape.

The lake is shaped much like the character "Y". The northern branch begins at the town of Colico, while the towns of Como and Lecco sit at the ends of the southwestern and southeastern branches respectively. The small towns of Bellagio, Menaggio, and Varenna are situated at the intersection of the three branches of the lake: a triangular boat service operates between them.

Lake Como is fed in large part by the Adda River, which enters the lake near Colico and flows out at Lecco. This geological conformation makes the southwestern branch a dead end, and so Como, unlike Lecco, is often flooded.

The mountainous pre-alpine territory between the two southern arms of the lake—between Como, Bellagio, and Lecco—is known as the Larian Triangle, or Triangolo lariano. The source of the river Lambro is here. At the centre of the triangle, the town of Canzo is the seat of the Comunità montana del Triangolo Lariano, an association of the 31 municipalities that represent the 71,000 inhabitants of the area.

Climate[link]

Lake Como weather is generally mild. It is known for its Mediterranean-like climate where tropical and sub-tropical plants can grow year-round. In the winter, the lake helps to maintain a higher temperature in the surrounding region. Average daily temperatures range from about 13 °C (55 °F) in December to 30 °C (86 °F) in July. Water temperatures can reach an average of 24 °C (75 °F) during the month of July. Snowfall is erratic and primarily affects the higher elevations. Rainfall is heaviest in May and lowest during the winter months.

Tourism[link]

As a tourist destination, Lake Como is popular for its landscapes, wildlife, and spas.^[4] It is a venue for sailing, windsurfing, and kitesurfing.^[5] In 1818 Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote to Thomas Love Peacock: "This lake exceeds anything I ever beheld in beauty, with the exception of the arbutus islands of Killarney. It is long and narrow, and has the appearance of a mighty river winding among the mountains and the forests".^[6]

Lakeside villas[link]

Villa Carlotta.

Villa Melzi d'Eril.

Villa del Balbianello.

The lake is well known for the attractive villas that have been built there since Roman times, when Pliny the Younger built the Comedia and the Tragedia resorts. Many villas on the lake shores have admirable gardens that benefit from the mild climate induced by the stabilising presence of 22.5 km³ of lake water and are fit to host tropical plants.

Villa Carlotta was built for the Milanese Marquis Giorgio Clerici in 1690 and occupies a site of over 70,000 m² (753,474 sq ft) at Tremezzo, facing the Bellagio peninsula. An Italian garden, with steps, fountains, and sculptures, was laid out at the same time. The villa was later sold to powerful banker and Napoleonic politician Giovanni Battista Sommariva. Stendhal was his guest in 1818, and his visit is recalled at the start of La Chartreuse de Parme. In 1843 it was purchased by Princess Marianne of Nassau as a wedding present for her daughter Carlotta, after whom the villa is now named. The latter, together with her husband Georg II of Saxen-Meiningen, laid out the woodland landscape park in Romantic style. The villa today includes a museum of agricultural implements as well as important works of sculpture by Sommariva’s friend Antonio Canova and by Luigi Acquisti.^[7]

Villa d'Este, in Cernobbio, was built in 1568 by Cardinal Tolomeo Gallio, a native of the town. In 1816–17 the villa was home to Caroline of Brunswick, estranged wife of the Prince of Wales and shortly to become Queen Consort of King George IV of the United Kingdom. The landscaped gardens in the English style are a product of this period. Later in the century it was turned into a luxury hotel. Today the Villa d’Este is known for attracting celebrity guests.

Villa del Balbianello, famous for its elaborate terraced gardens, lies on a promontory of the western shore of the lake near Isola Comacina. Built in 1787 on the site of a Franciscan monastery, it was the final home of the explorer Guido Monzino and today houses a museum devoted to his work.

Villa Melzi d'Eril in Bellagio was built in neo-classical style by architect Giocondo Albertolli in 1808–10 as the summer residence of Duke Francesco Melzi d'Eril, who was vice-president of the Napoleonic Italian Republic. The park includes an orangery, a private chapel, fine statues, and a Japanese garden, and is planted, as often on lake Como, with huge rhododendrons. 19th-century guests at the Villa included Stendhal and Franz Liszt.^[8]

Villa Serbelloni, also in Bellagio, hosts the Rockfeller Foundation Bellagio Center, a 50-acre (200,000 m2) international conference center set up and managed by the Rockefeller Foundation since 1959, which also operates a 'scholar-in-residence' program for scholars from around the world. This is believed to have been the site of Pliny the Younger’s villa ‘Tragedia’. Its well-known park was created at the end of the 18th century by Alessandro Serbelloni.

Ferries[link]

The steamship "Concordia" and the car ferry "Plinio".

The Lake Como ferry service is a highly developed public transport system linking the dozens of small towns and villages dotted around the perimeter of the Lake. A motorized service began in 1826 when a steamship with sails, the “Lario”, was launched by the newly established Società privilegiata per l'impresa dei battelli a vapore nel Regno Lombardo Veneto. Since 1952 the system has been run under the auspices of a government organization called first the Gestione Commissariale Governativa and subsequently the Gestione Governativa Navigazione Laghi, which is also responsible for services on Lake Maggiore and Lake Garda.^[9][10]

Today there are three main services: -‘Motorship’ services up and down the western branch and northern end of the Lake (between Colico or Piona and Como town), with additional shuttles to the mid-lake area. -‘Fast services’ that follow broadly the same route but use quicker hydrofoils, stop less frequently, and cost extra. -‘Ferries’ that run only between the hugely popular mid-lake villages of Menaggio, Bellagio, and Varenna, plus Cadenabbia. Some of these boats carry vehicles as well as passengers.^[11]

Sacro Monte di Ossuccio[link]

Chapel 5 of Sacro Monte di Ossuccio. Disputation with the Doctors

The Sacro Monte di Ossuccio ("Holy Mount of Ossuccio") is a sanctuary located on a hillside slope between olive groves and woods along the western edge of Lake Como facing Isola Comacina. Fifteen Baroque inspired chapels, built between 1635 and 1710, and dedicated to the Mysteries of the Rosary are dotted along the way that leads to the Monastery. This building is the last in the chain and is dedicated to the Coronation of the Virgin. In 2003, the Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy, including that of Ossuccio, were added by UNESCO to the World Heritage List.

Villages, resorts and other remarkable localities near the lake[link]

The Parco Meier, a public garden at Tremezzo

References in literature[link]

• Ernst Stavro Blofeld retreats to a 'metropolitan hotel' in Lake Como after his plans are foiled by James Bond in the novel On Her Majesty's Secret Service by Ian Fleming.
• Gaius Catullus asks his friend Caecilius to depart from Lake Como to Rome in poem 35.
• Paul the Deacon, a Lombard grammarian and poet of the 8th century, wrote one of his better known poems in praise of Lake Como (Versus in Laude Larii Laci).^[12]
• Alessandro Manzoni chose to start his The Betrothed with a great description of Como Lake.
• Fabrice del Dongo, the protagonist of The Charterhouse of Parma by Stendhal, is born and raised near Lake Como.
• Mark Twain visited Lake Como in the summer of 1867. He describes the lake and its environs at length in The Innocents Abroad, which recounts a lengthy pleasure excursion to Jerusalem.
• The character of Victor Frankenstein marries Elizabeth in the vicinity of Lake Como in the novel by Mary Shelley.
• The lake is referenced by Jean in August Strindberg's magnum opus play Miss Julie.
• Ernest Hemingway's character Lieutenant Henry in A Farewell to Arms talks about taking a vacation to Lake Como.
• Nassim Nicholas Taleb references the Las Vegas version of the lake (at the casino Bellagio) in his book The Black Swan, regarding a meeting he was to have for a brainstorming session for the United States Department of Defense. He properly refers to it as "fake Como".
• Fyodor Dostoevsky mentions Lake Como in his novel Notes from Underground.
• Nagg and Nell recollect rowing out onto Lake Como the day after their engagement in Samuel Beckett's play Endgame.
• Cadenabbia on Lake Como is the principal setting for Gladys Theodora Parrish Huntingdon's novel Madame Solario.
• Maria Ruskin, a character in Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities, escapes from New York to Lake Como, in order to spend time with Artist Filipo Chirazzi.

Depictions in popular culture[link]

• The 1995 movie A Month by the Lake was filmed in various locations around Lake Como.
• Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002 film): Some of the scenes that take place on planet Naboo were shot at Villa del Balbianello, including the clandestine marriage of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé.
• In the film Ocean's Twelve, the infamous thief Francois Toulour, a.k.a. The Night Fox, resides in the Villa Erba estate in Lake Como, where he has several encounters with Daniel Ocean, his rival thief.
• Locations around Lake Como appear several times in the James Bond movie Casino Royale: Villa del Balbianello plays the hospital where James Bond recuperates, and in the final scene, Bond hunts down Mr. White at his Lake Como estate, Villa La Gaeta.
• Gwen Stefani's music video "Cool" was filmed around Lake Como.
• In the episode "Chuck Versus the Honeymooners" of the television series Chuck, Morgan Grimes casually chats with Interpol agents about Lake Como, which he studied extensively on his flight to Europe, and realizes they are not from Interpol when one of the agents makes a mistake by identifying an annual boating festival as "palaces" instead.

Gallery[link]

Lake Como seen from Villa Carlotta in Tremezzo, near the centre of the lake.

Lake Como seen from the city of Como.

View of Lecco and the Lake of Como, branch of Lecco, from "Ciresa plain" on Mt. Barro.

Shoreline of Como from inside Lake Como

Notes[link]

References[link]

	Italy portal
	Geography portal

• Macadam, Alta (1997). Blue Guide. Northern Italy: from the Alps to Bologna. London: A & C Black. ISBN 0-7136-4294-7.
• Villacarlotta.it, Villa Carlotta
• Srdjan Valjarevic, Komo, 2008, Samizdat B92

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lake Como

External links[link]

• Ferry Services on Italian Lakes - Lake Como, official site of the Gestione Governativa Navigazione Laghi
• Lake Como at the Open Directory Project

v t e Lake Como (Lago di Como, Lario) Italy   Lombardy (Province of Como · Province of Lecco) Settlements Abbadia Lariana · Argegno · Bellagio · Bellano · Blevio · Brienno · Carate Urio · Cernobbio · Colico · Colonno · Como · Consiglio di Rumo · Cremia · Dervio · Domaso · Dongo · Dorio · Faggeto Lario · Gera Lario · Giulino · Gravedona · Griante · Laglio · Lecco · Lenno · Lezzeno · Lierna · Malgrate · Mandello del Lario · Menaggio · Mezzegra · Moltrasio · Musso · Nesso · Oliveto Lario · Ossuccio · Perledo · Pianello del Lario · Pognana Lario · Sala Comacina · San Siro · Sant'Abbondio · Santa Maria Rezzonico · Sorico · Torno · Tremezzo · Valbrona · Valmadrera · Varenna · Vercana Islands Isola Comacina Rivers Adda · Albano · Breggia · Cosia · Fiumelatte · Gera · Liro · Livo · Mera · Meria · Pioverna · Telo · Varrone Valleys Valsassina Mountains Monte Generoso · Grigna · Monte Resegone Landmarks Villa del Balbianello · Villa Carlotta · Villa d'Este · Priorato di Piona · Castello di Vezio · Sacro Monte di Ossuccio Films Piccolo mondo antico People Adeliza de Borgomanero

Como
—  Comune  —
Città di Como
View from Lake Como. The tower which tops the hill on the right is the Castello Baradello.
Como Location of Como in Italy
Coordinates: 45°48′43.2″N 9°5′2.4″E / 45.812°N 9.084°E / 45.812; 9.084
Country	Italy
Region	Lombardy
Province	Como (CO)
Roman foundation	196 BC
Frazioni	Albate, Breccia, Camerlata, Camnago Volta, Civiglio, Garzola, Lora, Monte Olimpino, Muggiò, Ponte Chiasso, Prestino, Rebbio, Sagnino, Tavernola
Government
• Mayor	Mario Lucini (PD)
Area
• Total	37.34 km2 (14.42 sq mi)
Elevation	201 m (659 ft)
Population (28 February 2010)[1]
• Total	84,876
• Density	2,300/km2 (5,900/sq mi)
Demonym	Comaschi
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	22100
Dialing code	031
Patron saint	Saint Abbondio
Saint day	31 August
Website	Official website

Como  listen (help·info) (Lombard: Còmm; Latin: Comum) is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como.

Its proximity to Lake Como and to the Alps has made Como a popular tourist destination and the city contains numerous works of art, churches, gardens, museums, theatres, parks and palaces: the Duomo (seat of Diocese of Como), the Basilica of Sant'Abbondio, the Villa Olmo, the public gardens with the Tempio Voltiano, the Teatro Sociale, the Broletto (the city’s medieval town hall) and the 20th century Casa del Fascio.

Como was the birthplace of many historically notable figures, including the (somewhat obscure) poet Caecilius who is mentioned by Catullus in the 1st century BCE,^[2] the far more substantial literary figures of Pliny the Elder and the Younger, Pope Innocent XI, the scientist Alessandro Volta,^[3] and Cosima Liszt, second wife of Richard Wagner and long-term director of the Bayreuth Festival.

History[link]

City and Lake Como, painted by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, 1834.

The hills surrounding the current location of Como have been inhabited, since at least the Bronze Age, by a Celtic tribe known as the Orobii. Remains of settlements are still present on the wood covered hills to the South West of town.

Around the 1st century BC, the territory became subject to the Romans. The town center was situated on the nearby hills, but it was then moved to its current location by order of Julius Caesar, who had the swamp near the southern tip of the lake drained and laid the plan of the walled city in the typical Roman grid of perpendicular streets. The newly founded town was named Novum Comum and had the status of municipium.

In 774, the town surrendered to invading Franks led by Charlemagne, and became a center of commercial exchange.

In 1127, Como lost a decade-long war with the nearby town of Milan. A few decades later, with the help of Frederick Barbarossa, the Comaschi could avenge their defeat when Milan was destroyed in 1162. Frederick promoted the construction of several defensive towers around the city limits, of which only one, the Baradello, remains.

Subsequently, the history of Como followed that of the Ducato di Milano, through the French invasion and the Spanish domination, until 1714, when the territory was taken by the Austrians. Napoleon descended into Lombardy in 1796 and ruled it until 1815, when the Austrian rule was resumed after the Congress of Vienna. Finally in 1859, with the arrival of Giuseppe Garibaldi, the town was freed from the Austrians and it became part of the newly formed Kingdom of Italy under the House of Savoy.

At the end of World War II, after passing through Como on his escape towards Switzerland, Benito Mussolini was taken prisoner and then shot by partisans in Giulino di Mezzegra, a small town on the north shores of Como Lake.

In 2010, a motion by members of the nationalist Swiss People's Party (SVP) has been submitted to the Swiss parliament requesting the admission of adjacent territories to the Swiss Confederation; Como (and its province) is one of these.^[4][5][6]

As a curiosity, the Rockefeller fountain that today stands in the Bronx Zoo in New York City was once in the main square (Piazza Cavour) by the lakeside. It was bought by William Rockefeller in 1902 for 3,500 lira (the estimated equivalent then of $637).^[7]

Geography[link]

Situated at the southern tip of the south-west arm of Lake Como, is located 40 kilometres (25 mi) north of Milan; the city proper borders Switzerland and the comunes of Blevio, Brunate, Capiago Intimiano, Casnate con Bernate, Cavallasca, Cernobbio, Grandate, Lipomo, Maslianico, Montano Lucino, San Fermo della Battaglia, Senna Comasco, Tavernerio, Torno and the Swiss towns of Chiasso and Vacallo. Nearby major cities are Varese, Lecco and Lugano.

The lakefront.

View from Punta Geno.

Neighbouring towns, villages and places

	Mendrisio	Lugano	Bellagio
	Varese		Lecco
		Como    East
	Busto Arsizio	Milan	Monza

Administrative Subdivision[link]

Administrative subdivision

Como is divided into the following frazioni (roughly equivalent to the anglocentric ward):

• 1 - Albate - Muggio' - Acquanera
• 2 - Lora
• 3 - Prestino - Camerlata - Breccia - Rebbio
• 4 - Camnago Volta
• 5 - City Center - West Como
• 6 - Borghi
• 7 - North Como - East Como
• 8 - Monte Olimpino - Ponte Chiasso - Sagnino - Tavernola
• 9 - Garzola - Civiglio

Climate[link]

According to the Köppen climate classification, Como has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa); winters are not long, but foggy, damp and chilly with occasional periods of frost from the siberian anticyclone; spring and autumn are well marked and pleasant, while summer can be quite oppressive, hot and humid. Wind is quite rare; only sudden bursts of foehn or thunderstorms manage to sweep the air clean. Pollution levels rise significantly in winter when cold air clings to the soil. Rain is more frequent during spring; summer is subject to thunderstorms and, occasionally, violent hailstorms.

Main sights[link]

Churches[link]

Duomo (Cathedral).

The park of Villa Olmo and the Cathedral.

• Como Cathedral: construction began in 1396 on the site of the previous Romanesque church of Santa Maria Maggiore. The façade was built in 1457, with the characteristic rose window and a portal flanked by two Renaissance statues of the famous comaschi Pliny the Elder and Pliny the Younger. The construction was finished in 1740. The interior is on the Latin cross plan, with Gothic nave and two aisles divided by piers, while the transept wing and the relative apses are from the Renaissance age. It includes a carved 16th century choir and tapestries on cartoons by Giuseppe Arcimboldi. The dome is a rococo structure by Filippo Juvarra. Other artworks include 16th-17th century tapestries and 16th century paintings by Bernardino Luini and Gaudenzio Ferrari.
• San Fedele, a Romanesque church erected around 1120 over a pre-existing central plan edifice. The original bell tower was rebuilt in modern times. The main feature is the famous Door of St. Fedele, carved with medieval decorations.
• Sant'Agostino, built by the Cistercians in the early 14th century, heavily renovated in the 20th. The interior and adjoining cloister have 15th-17th century frescoes, but most of the decoration is Baroque.
• The Romanesque basilica of Sant'Abbondio, consecrated in 1095 by Pope Urban II. The interior, with a nave and four aisles, contains paintings dating to the 11th century and frescoes from the 14th.
• San Carpoforo (11th century, apse and crypt from 12th century). According to tradition, it was founded re-using a former temple of the God Mercury to house the remains of Saint Carpophorus and other local martyrs.

Secular buildings and monuments[link]

• The ancient town hall, known as the Broletto
• Casa del Fascio, possibly Giuseppe Terragni's most famous work. It has been described as an early "landmark of modern European architecture".
• Monumento ai caduti (war memorial) by Giuseppe Terragni
• Teatro Sociale by Giuseppe Cusi
• Villa Olmo, built from 1797 in neoclassicist style by the Odescalchi family. It housed Napoleon, Ugo Foscolo, Prince Metternich, Archduke Franz Ferdinand I, Giuseppe Garibaldi, and other eminent figures. It is now seat of exhibitions.
• Monumental Fountain also known as Volta's Fountain, is a monument to Volta's battery; it was designed by architect Carlo Cattaneo and painter Mario Radice and is a 9 m high cement combination of alternating spheres and rings. It is in the center of Camerlata square.
• Ancient walls (medieval)
• Castello Baradello, a small medieval castle overlooking the town and which is all that remains of the fortress constructed by Barbarossa c. 1158.

The church of San Fedele, apse area

The Neoclassical English landscape gardens of Villa Olmo

The Basilica of Sant'Abbondio

The Casa del Fascio

Economy[link]

The economy of Como, until the end of the 1980s, was traditionally based on industry; in particular, the city was world famous for its silk manufacturers^[11] but in recent years cheap competition from China has significantly reduced profit margins and many small and mid-sized firms have gone out of business. As a consequence manufacturing is no longer the economic driver and the city has been absorbed into Milan's metropolitan area where it mainly provides workers to the service industry sector. A significant number of residents is employed in the nearby industrial areas of the Swiss towns of Lugano and Mendrisio, primarily in the industrial sector, health care services and in the hospitality industry; the 30 km (19 mi) commute is beneficial as wages in Switzerland are notably higher. For these reasons, tourism has become increasingly important for the local economy since the 1990s. The city and the lake have been chosen as the filming location for various recent popular feature films, and this, together with the increasing presence of celebrities who have bought lakeside properties, has heightened the city's international profile and given a further boost to international tourism.

Villa Olmo after a snowfall.

Demographics[link]

Demographic evolution chart[link]

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Ethnic groups and immigration[link]

The city of Como has seen its population count increase until it peaked at almost 100,000 inhabitants in the 1970s, when manufacturing, especially the silk industry, was in its boom years. As production began to decline, the population decreased by almost 20,000 people until the turn of the century, when the city has seen its population grow again by more than six thousand units mainly because of immigration from countries such as China, Romania and Egypt. As of January 2010, more than nine thousand resident aliens lived in the city (12%); the ethnic composition was as follows:^[12]

Culture and Arts[link]

Museums[link]

In Como there are the following museums and exhibition centers:

• Museo Archeologico "P. Giovio" - Archeological museum
• Museo Storico "Garibaldi" - a museum dedicated to Giuseppe Garibaldi
• Tempio Voltiano - a museum devoted to Alessandro Volta's work.
• Villa Olmo - various exhibitions
• Museo Didattico Della Seta - Educational Silk Museum
• Museo Liceo classico "A. Volta" - Scientific Museum
• Pinacoteca Civica - Paintings

Cuisine[link]

Polenta is a popular dish in Como, and was traditionally eaten for meals in winter time. It is obtained by mixing and cooking corn flour and buckwheat. It is usually served with meat, game, cheese and sometimes fish; in fact, Polenta e Misultin (Alosa agone) is served in the restaurants in the Lake Como area.
A traditional dish is the Risotto con Filetti di Pesce Persico or simply Risotto al Pesce Persico (European Perch filet Risotto), a fish grown in Lake Como, prepared with white wine, onion, butter and wheat.^[13]

A typical plate of polenta (here with rabbit), a very common and traditional dish of the region.

Local Infrastracture[link]

Transportation[link]

Trains[link]

The Servizio Ferroviario Regionale (Regional Railway Service) connects Como by train to other major cities in Lombardy. Services are provided by Trenitalia and LeNORD through two main stations: Como San Giovanni (Trenitalia) and Como Lago (LeNORD). There is another urban station served by Trenitalia (Albate) and three more urban stations served by LeNORD (Como Borghi-Università, Como Camerlata and Grandate Breccia).

Como San Giovanni is also a stop on the main North-South line between Milan Centrale and Zurich and Basel. Intercity and Eurostar trains stop at this station, which makes Como very accessible from the European express train network. Tickets can be purchased online from Rail Europe.

The Como to Brunate funicular connects the center of Como with Brunate, a small village (1,800 inhabitants) on a mountain at 715 m (2,346 ft) above sea level.

An old steamship.

The funicular to Brunate.

Buses and Taxis[link]

The local public transport network counts 11 urban (within city limits) lines and 'extra-urban' (crossing city limits) (C) lines connecting Como with most of its province centers. They are provided by ASF Autolinee.

Ferrovie Nord Milano also provides other bus lines connecting Como to Varese in substitution of the original railway line that was dismissed in the 1960s.

A taxi service is provided by the Municipality of Como.

Ship Transport[link]

The boats and hydrofoils (aliscafi) of Navigazione Lago di Como connect the town with most of the villages sitting on the shores of the lake.

Airports[link]

Nearby airports providing scheduled flights are Milano Malpensa, Milano Linate, Lugano Agno (in Switzerland) and Orio al Serio Airport near Bergamo. Milano Malpensa can be reached in about one hour by car; about two hours by train to Stazione Centrale (Milano Central) and then direct shuttle coach^[14] or about an hour and a half by train (interchange in Saronno);^[15] Milano Linate can be reached by car in about an hour, or by train to Stazione Centrale and then local tram. Bergamo's Orio al Serio Airport can be reached in about an hour and a quarter by car; in two hours by train to Milano Central and then half-hourly shuttle coach. Lugano Agno can be reached by car in less than an hour or by train in an hour and a half (changing once and walking) but it only offers direct flights to Switzerland and Italy^[16] and generally higher-priced business class or private charter. Trains from Como to Zurich Airport take three to five hours.^[17]

Como also has its own aeroplane club with a fleet of sea planes, limited to flight training and local tour flights.^[18]

Education[link]

Como is home to numerous high schools, the academy of music "G. Verdi", a language school, the University of Insubria and a branch campus of the Politecnico di Milano.

Medical facilities[link]

In Como there are three major hospitals: Ospedale Sant'Anna, Ospedale Valduce and Clinica Villa Aprica

Sports[link]

Notable sports clubs are a basketball team, two time winner of the FIBA EuroLeague Women, and Calcio Como, a football team. There are also numerous recreational activities available for tourists such as pedal-boating, fishing, walking and seaplane rentals.

Notable people[link]

Born in Como[link]

Famous people born or raised in Como include:

• Caecilius c. 59 BCE A poet, the subject of Catullus's Carmina 35, who had a girlfriend more learned than the Sapphic Muse.^[2]
• Pliny the Elder (Gaius Plinius Secundus; 23–79 CE), author, natural philosopher and naval and military commander known for the Naturalis Historia.
• Pliny the Younger (Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus; 63–c.113 CE), a lawyer, an author and a natural philosopher of Ancient Rome.
• Paolo Giovio (1483–1552), a physician, historian and biographer and particularly remembered as a chronicler of the Italian Wars.
• Benedetto Odescalchi (1611–1689) was Pope Innocent XI from 1676 until his death.
• Alessandro Volta (1745–1827), a physicist known especially for the development of the battery in 1800.
• Luigi Borgomainerio (1836–1876), caricaturist
• Cosima Liszt (1837–1930), Franz Liszt's daughter and Richard Wagner's wife.
• Mario Radice (1898–1987), abstract painter
• Manlio Rho (1901–1957), abstract painter
• Giuseppe Terragni (1904–1943), an architect and pioneer of the Italian modern movement and rationalism who designed Como’s Casa del Fascio, a significant example of Fascist architecture in northern Italy.
• Giorgio Perlasca (1910–1992), posed as the Spanish consul-general to Hungary in the winter of 1944, and saved thousands of Jews from Nazi Germany and the Holocaust
• Gabriele Oriali (born 1952), 1982 Italian national team footballer World Champion.
• Corrado Passera (born 1954), manager and banker, CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, Minister of Economic Development of the Monti Cabinet
• Max Papis (born 1969), Formula One, Champ Car, and NASCAR racing driver
• Fabio Casartelli (1970–1995) Cyclist and olympic gold medalist
• Diego De Ascentis (born 1976), football midfielder
• Paola Tagliabue (born 1976), world champion free diver in 2006.
• Gianluca Zambrotta (born 1977), an Italian international footballer and World Champion in Germany 2006.
• Floraleda Sacchi (born 1978), harpist and musicologist

International Celebrities[link]

These celebrities have lived in or owned properties in Como or on its lake :

• George Clooney - American actor
• Madonna - American pop singer
• Gianni Versace - Italian fashion designer
• Matt Bellamy - lead singer and guitar player of English rock band Muse
• Ben Spies - American professional motorcycle racer

International relations[link]

Twin towns — Sister cities[link]

Como is twinned with:

• Fulda, Germany, since 1960
• Tokamachi, Japan, since 1975
• Nablus, Palestine, since 1998
• Netanya, Israel, since 2004
• Trieste, Italy, since 2008

Notes[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Como

• Official website (Italian) (English)
• Official Tourism Portal
• Historical picture gallery and slideshow
• Official Tourist Board website (Italian) (English)
• Teatro Sociale di Como official website (Italian)
• Lake Como Navigation Company
• Como Tourism
• Official Virtual Tour
• Official iPhone and iPad Guide
• La Provincia Newspaper (Italian)
• Sito ufficiale del Lago di Como (Italian)

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