Milano
Hotels
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What's On
Eating
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Out of town
Chiaravalle
Morimondo
Certosa di Pavia
Vigevano
Sabbioneta
Como
Lake Como Route
1. The Lake
2. Cernobbio
3. Villa Erba
4. San Vincenzo
5. Villa dʼEste
6. Moltrasio
7. Villa Passalacqua
8. SantʼAgata
9. Laglio
10. Isola Comacina
11. Ossuccio
12. Lenno
13. Santo Stefano
14. Battistero
15. Balbianello
16. Mezzegra
17. Tremezzo
18. Villa Carlotta
19. Menaggio
20. Santo Stefano
21. Bellagio
22. San Giacomo
23. Villa Serbelloni
24. Villa Melzi
25. Varenna
26. Villa Monastero
27. Vezio
28. Piona
Stresa
Crespi d'Adda
Gardaland
What's on out of town
Chiaravalle
Morimondo
Certosa di Pavia
Vigevano
Sabbioneta
Como
Lake Como Route1. The Lake
2. Cernobbio
3. Villa Erba
4. San Vincenzo
5. Villa dʼEste
6. Moltrasio
7. Villa Passalacqua
8. SantʼAgata
9. Laglio
10. Isola Comacina
11. Ossuccio
12. Lenno
13. Santo Stefano
14. Battistero
15. Balbianello
16. Mezzegra
17. Tremezzo
18. Villa Carlotta
19. Menaggio
20. Santo Stefano
21. Bellagio
22. San Giacomo
23. Villa Serbelloni
24. Villa Melzi
25. Varenna
26. Villa Monastero
27. Vezio
28. Piona
Stresa
Crespi d'Adda
Gardaland
What's on out of town
Villa Serbelloni is the destination No. 23in our visiting tour on Lake Como. A list of destinations is available, each with an audioguide. We travel northbound, from Como to Piona.
Bellagio Via Giuseppe Garibaldi
mapThe entrance to the park and gardens of Villa Serbelloni is not far distant from the church of San Giacomo.
Villa Serbelloni stands on the promontory where, according to tradition, the Latin writer Pliny the Younger had a villa in the first century AD. Here, in medieval times, there was a castle, later demolished by Galeazzo Visconti, powerful lord of Milan in the 14th century.
The villa was constructed at the end of the 15th century for Marchesino Stanga, heir of a noble Lombard family. In 1788 it was inherited by the wealthy Serbelloni family who embellished its rooms with ornate vaulted ceilings and 17th- and 18th-century artworks.
The Serbellonis also did much to enhance the vast park and gardens, planting sequoia trees and rhododendrons and installing statuary while retaining earlier ornamental features such as the grottos and waterfalls. Still clearly visible from the top of the promontory are the remains of a tiny Romanesque church: together with the medieval ruins dotted about the park, it adds an air of mystery and romance to this magical corner of Lake Como.
The villa was abandoned during the 19th century, but eventually converted into a hotel. In 1959 it became the property of the New York-based Rockefeller Foundation and has been turned into a study and conference centre.
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Da Vinci = No Problem
The Last Supper, otherwise difficult to book?
You can reserve a specialized visit through our partner Musement.
The Last Supper, otherwise difficult to book?
You can reserve a specialized visit through our partner Musement.
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