The reason why we decided to go to Lenno is because we REALLY REALLY wanted to visit the Villa del Ballbianello, the villa featured in Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones (2002) and Casino Royale (2006). I got to know it from Alex that the villa is in the Lake Como area but had no idea where the exact location is. Asking my friend Patrick didn't give us any help either because the two times he went to Lake Como he only stayed in Bellagio. Well, after a thorough online research, I found out that it is actually located in Lenno and fortunately, we can go there by ferry.
Since we planned to visit both Lenno and Bellagio in one day, we purchased the one-day ferry pass (15 euro per person). It allowed us to take the ferry as many times as wanted in a day in the Lake Como area. Totally worth the price 'cos with the pass, we were able to visit more places than our original plan.
The villa only opens from mid-March to mid-November (10 am - 6 pm) and doesn't open on Mondays and Wednesdays. If you want to go there, be sure to check the linked website for more information. We planned our visit on a Tuesday. Luckily, there was also a local fair that day in Lenno so we got to experience more local culture. Unluckily, it's another rainy day. You will see Alex wore ponchos and I carried an umbrellas in our pics.
It's about 40 minutes ferry journey from Varenna to Lenno. On our way, we passed several Lake Como towns (Ballegio, Tremezzo, and Mezzegra). I wouldn't complain too much about the rain - the towns were covered in clouds and looked really beautiful.
The local fair in Lenno was set up on the street close to the ferry pier and was on our way to the villa. There were a lot of booths that sells all kinds of stuff, including fruits, seafood, raw and processed meats, flowers, clothes... you name it. Everything was reasonably priced, but we couldn't buy any because we still had a long day with plans. :(
The Villa del Balbianello is located on the tip of a small peninsula on the western shore of Lake Como, and is about 2 miles away from the Leno ferry pier. You can either get there by taking the electronic boat, which costs 7 euro per person; or, if you like hiking you can get onto a dirt road (for a while and then paved road) that inclines slightly and curves through a forest. At the end of the road, it's the villa sitting there quietly waiting to be explored.
There are different kinds of entrance tickets: you can either choose to only visit the garden - what the villa is famous for; or you can choose to pay a few euros more to have a guided tour as well inside the villa. Alex and I chose the later.
The collections by the original owner are quite impressive. What we really liked about this villa was its elaborate terraced gardens. Full of green trees and purple flowers. Truly beautiful. The view from the villa was also quite impressive. If it was a beautiful sunny day, I am sure the view would be even better.
Walking to the villa wasn't a problem, walking all the way back to Lenno was a bit tiring, though, because we were both hungry at that point. Luckily, the local fair wasn't end yet and we were able to purchase a half roasted chicken from one booth with only 3 euros. Very tender chicken meat and was seasoned really well. :) Tasty! Or, maybe it's because we were hungry.
Waiting for the ferry to come, we were ready to head to the next town: Tremezzo, where the Villa Carlotta is located.
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