Sample Itinerary · Rome & the Italian Lakes
Ten nights of marble and water: the Eternal City, then the slow, green calm of Lake Como.
Two very different sides of Italy, one unhurried journey. We open in Rome, with its ruins, fountains and long golden evenings, then take the high-speed train north to Lake Como, where the pace slows to the rhythm of the water.
Read it for the rhythm rather than as a fixed departure. Every part is ours to reshape: the balance of nights, the hotels, the experiences. Browse more on Italy, or shape this one below.
Guide price from £4,200 per person, based on two sharing and excluding international flights. Every journey is priced to your exact dates, rooms and experiences.
The journey there
Indicative times for the journey. We hold the flights, the rail and the transfers, and book the cabins and timings that suit you.
Times are approximate and vary by carrier and season. The Rome to Como leg runs by high-speed train to Milan, then a private transfer to the lake, around an hour on.
The journey
A gentle arc from the marble of Rome to the gardens of Lake Como. The nights and stays below are a guide; we reshape every part of it around you.
Day 1 · Rome
You land in Rome and settle into Hotel de Russie, moments from the Spanish Steps, with its tiered secret garden. The first evening asks little: a stroll through the lanes, an aperitivo as the light turns gold, and dinner somewhere unhurried.
Days 2 – 3 · Rome
Two days for the great set pieces, taken at a civilised pace. A private guide opens up the Colosseum and the Forum, the Vatican before the crowds, and the Borghese among its gardens. In between, long lunches, quiet churches and the city's finest tables.
Day 4 · Rome
A day to live like a Roman: the lanes of Trastevere, a morning market, a long lunch and an afternoon with nowhere to be. We can add a vintage-car drive out to the hills, or simply leave the day open before the train north tomorrow.
Day 5 · To Lake Como
A high-speed train carries you from Rome to Milan in a few easy hours, then a private transfer to the lake. You arrive at Passalacqua, an eighteenth-century villa above Como, and the gear shifts entirely: gardens, still water and a slower, softer pace.
Days 6 – 7 · Lake Como
Two days to settle into the lake. A private boat to Bellagio and the villa gardens, lunch on the water, a swim from the dock and aperitivo as the hills turn pink. The villas of Balbianello and Carlotta are an easy morning, the pace yours to set.
Days 8 – 9 · The lakes
Time to roam a little: the quiet villages of Varenna and Menaggio, a drive into the foothills, or a day across to Lake Maggiore and its island palaces. Or simply stay put, with the gardens, the pool and the long, slow lunch winning out.
Day 10 · Lake Como
A final slow breakfast above the water, a last turn through the gardens and a gentle transfer to Milan. We arrange your timings so the journey home feels as easy as everything before it, with the option of a night in Milan to round things off.
Make it yours
Adjust the balance of nights and add the experiences that appeal. Nothing is booked here: it simply shapes the brief we will build around you.
The balance of nights
Add the experiences you would love
The stays
Handpicked stays in Rome and on Lake Como. We will match the exact rooms and dates to you.
A Rocco Forte landmark between Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps, with a tiered secret garden, the Stravinskij Bar and calm, design-led elegance.
A grand nineteenth-century palazzo near the Trevi Fountain, restored as a serene marble-and-light hotel with a celebrated spa.
The most celebrated address on Lake Como: an eighteenth-century villa with terraced gardens, a pool above the water and just a handful of rooms.
Good to know
We do not sell fixed packages. We shape the whole journey around you, then handle the moving parts so it feels effortless from the first morning to the last.
Guide price and a tailored proposal follow your enquiry. This page is a starting point, not a fixed departure.
shall we?
Tell us your dates and how you like to travel, and we will reshape this Rome and Italian Lakes journey, or something else entirely, around you.