Lezzeno
The longest shoreline on this side of the branch, made of many small hamlets rather than one village, with the western shore in the sun opposite and the mountain behind taking the winter light.
Eastern shore Como branch Province of Como
Lezzeno is the piece of the lake that trades sunlight for water. Its shoreline runs for an unusual distance along the eastern side of the branch, and instead of concentrating into a village it strings out into hamlets: a chapel, a slipway, a row of houses, a gap, then the next one. There is no square where the comune gathers, and no single address that stands for the whole.
Behind that shoreline the mountain rises hard and close, and in winter it is directly between Lezzeno and a sun that never gets very high. Across the water the western shore around Isola Comacina sits in the light. Anyone selling here who does not mention that is not being straight with you, and anyone buying here who has not seen it in January has not seen the place.
In exchange, this is where waterfront still exists in quantity. More shoreline, more small houses actually on the water, more slipways and moorings, and a market that has not been compressed by the villages either side of it. For a certain buyer, one with a boat and no illusions about February, that is the strongest proposition on the branch.
At a glance
- Province
- Como
- Position
- Eastern side of the Como branch, immediately south of Bellagio
- Settlement pattern
- No single centre, but an unusually long shoreline made up of many small hamlets
- Winter sun
- Markedly reduced. The steep mountains behind block the low winter sun, so this shore receives less direct sunlight in winter than the western shore opposite
- Opposite shore
- Isola Comacina and the western shore, directly across
01The character of the place
The hamlets have distinct characters and residents treat them as separate places. Some sit down at the water with a slipway and a few boats; others are up on the slope with terracing behind them. Asking about Lezzeno in general is not a useful question. The useful question is always about a particular hamlet.
The lake is unusually present here because the road runs close to it for much of the way and the shoreline is broken by small inlets, rock and the openings of watercourses. Along the water there are caves at lake level, known locally as the Bulberi caves, reachable only by boat and part of the standard circuit for anyone who keeps one here.
The view is the compensation for the aspect. From this shore you look straight across at the western bank, at Isola Comacina and at the mouths of the western valleys, which means the sunsets land in front of you rather than behind you, and the light on the far shore is the thing you watch.
Bellagio is immediately north, which shapes daily life more than the comune's own facilities do. Shops, restaurants, the ferries and the services of a proper village are all a short run away, and most households here treat Bellagio as their town.
Buyers whose first requirement is a mooring
There is more waterfront and more slipway here, in more hands, than in the villages on either side.
Summer households
From spring to autumn the aspect is an advantage: long light on the water and afternoon shade behind you.
People who want Bellagio without Bellagio's market
The same stretch of lake, the same services within reach, at a level the promontory has not offered for years.
Buyers who will actually check the winter
This shore rewards due diligence more than most. Come in January, stand on the terrace, and decide with the facts.
02The property market
Buying in Lezzeno
Lezzeno's market is shaped by two unusual features: a very long shoreline and no centre. The first means genuine waterfront supply, with more houses actually on the water, more frontage and more existing slipways and boathouses, in a part of the lake where those things are otherwise close to unobtainable. The second means there is no single price for the comune, because a hamlet with a harbour behaves nothing like a hamlet on the slope further along the road.
Winter aspect is the discount, and it is a real one. Because the mountains behind block the low sun for a substantial part of the year, comparable houses here trade below the western shore opposite and below Bellagio to the north. That gap is the market pricing something factual, not a mispricing waiting to be corrected. It does mean, though, that a buyer who genuinely uses a house from April to October is being paid, in effect, for months they were never going to spend here.
The other honest point is that the long shoreline is served by a single road, and in high season that road carries everything heading to and from Bellagio. Houses on the water below it are largely insulated; houses that face it are not. As elsewhere on this shore, the specific house matters far more than the name of the comune, and averages published against 'Lezzeno' should be treated as close to meaningless.
House on the water with a slipway
The reason to buy here. Frontage, somewhere to put a boat, and an aspect that works from spring to autumn.
Hamlet house set back from the shore
Older, stone, in one of the strung-out settlements. Modest, attainable, and usually a short walk from someone's jetty.
Villa in its own grounds
A handful along the shoreline, generally with frontage and mature planting, and usually transacted quietly.
House on the upper slope
Higher up, with parking and more winter light than the shore below it. Worth considering precisely for that reason.
03Getting there, and getting about
By road
The eastern lakeside road runs the length of the comune and continues north to Bellagio. It is the only through-route, it is narrow in places, and it carries the traffic for the whole of the promontory beyond, which is worth knowing before choosing a house that fronts it.
Because the hamlets are spread out, a car is more necessary here than in a village with a centre. Parking is generally easier than in the compact villages to the south, and a good number of houses have it, which is one of the underrated practical advantages of this shore.
By water
This is the strongest reason to be here. The shoreline is long, the water in front of it is open, and the crossing to the western shore and Isola Comacina is direct. Slipways, small jetties and boathouses exist in numbers that the surrounding villages cannot match.
Bellagio, the hub of the ferry network, is a short run north, so a boat gives you the whole centre of the lake without needing to live on the promontory. Public services along this shore are seasonal rather than continuous, so a household intending to move by water in winter should plan on its own boat.
By rail
Lezzeno has no railway station. The usual approach by train is to Varenna-Esino-Perledo on the far side of the lake and then across by ferry to Bellagio and south by road, or to Como and up the eastern shore.
04Eating
Because there is no centre, eating out here means driving or taking a boat to a specific place rather than walking into a village and choosing. What exists is spread along the shore, much of it on the water and much of it open only in season.
Most owners fall into the same pattern quickly: Bellagio to the north for range and for winter, the western shore across the water for lunch by boat, and the local places on the shore for an ordinary evening in July. It works well, but it does require organisation in a way that living in a village does not.
We hold names, numbers and the right person to ask for on a members' list rather than publishing them. On this shore in particular, the places worth knowing are small and seasonal, and a published list would be out of date within a summer.
05Staying
Accommodation along the shore is limited and largely seasonal, with a few places on the water and very little at any scale. Bellagio, immediately north, is where the range is.
For anyone considering buying, a private house on this shore for a week is far more instructive than a hotel anywhere else, and a week in the shoulder season more instructive still. The question you are testing is not whether the house is pleasant in July, which it will be, but how much winter light the terrace actually gets.
06Worth doing
The Bulberi caves
Openings at lake level along the shore, reachable only from the water. Standard practice for anyone who keeps a boat here.
The crossing to Isola Comacina
The island lies directly opposite. It is one of the shortest and most rewarding crossings on the lake.
Sunset from the shore
The sun sets over the western bank in front of you, which is the compensation this aspect pays back every clear evening.
Walking between the hamlets
The old routes along and above the shore connect settlements the road merely passes. It is the only way to understand how spread out the comune really is.
07Looking after a house here
Boat services are the strength here: yards, moorings, winter storage and people who will move a boat for you are all part of the local economy in a way they are not everywhere on the lake, because so many houses on this shore have water access.
Household and building trades draw on Bellagio and on the eastern shore south of here, and are adequate rather than abundant. The spread-out geography means a gardener or a housekeeper covering several houses is travelling between them, and it is worth arranging cover on a standing basis with someone who is already working nearby rather than assuming availability at short notice.
We hold introductions across the lake rather than in every village. Tell us what needs doing in Lezzeno and we will put you in front of the right two people.
Lezzeno: questions we are asked
Does Lezzeno get sun in winter?
Considerably less than the western shore. The mountains immediately behind block the low winter sun, and some hamlets get very little direct light between late autumn and early spring.
This is the defining honest fact about the comune and the main reason property here is priced below the shore opposite. It matters little from April to October and a great deal in January. How much any individual house is affected depends on its hamlet, its height on the slope and the shape of the ridge behind it, which is why we insist on a winter visit before advising on a purchase.
Why is Lezzeno cheaper than Bellagio?
Aspect and structure. It has less winter sun, and it has no centre, no village square and no concentration of shops and restaurants, where Bellagio has all of it.
What Lezzeno has instead is shoreline. There is far more genuine waterfront available here, and more of it with a slipway or a mooring attached, than on the promontory. For buyers whose priority is water access rather than village life, the trade is a good one and it is well understood locally.
Where are the caves at Lezzeno?
Along the shoreline at lake level. Known locally as the Bulberi caves, they are reachable only by boat.
They are a fixture of the local boating circuit and part of what makes this stretch of shore interesting from the water. Conditions and accessibility vary, so go with someone who knows the shore rather than on your own the first time.
Is Lezzeno a village?
No. It is a comune of many small hamlets spread along an unusually long shoreline, without a single centre.
Practically, that means life here is organised around your own house, your car and your boat, with Bellagio to the north supplying what a village would otherwise supply. Buyers who want to walk to a bar and a bakery should look at Bellagio, Varenna or the western shore; those who want frontage and space should look here.
Can I get a mooring at Lezzeno?
It is more achievable here than almost anywhere else on this part of the lake, though still not straightforward.
The long shoreline means more existing slipways, jetties and boathouses attached to individual houses, and more small-scale local provision. Availability changes, so we would establish the current position with the comune and the local yards before treating a mooring as part of a purchase rather than assuming it can be arranged later.
How close is Lezzeno to Bellagio?
It is the next comune south, and Bellagio functions as the local town for most households on this shore.
We do not publish a journey time because the road along the shore is narrow and slows considerably in high season, when it carries all the traffic heading for the promontory. The practical point is that shops, restaurants and the whole ferry network are close enough to use routinely without living among the day visitors.
Neighbouring villages
This page is editorial information based on our own work on the lake, not a valuation or a survey. Prices and availability move; treat any figure as an indication and take professional advice before committing.
Sources
- Comune di Lezzeno, Hamlet names and boundaries, shoreline provision and mooring administration.
- On-site winter light observation, hamlet by hamlet, Winter sun hours must be recorded on site at the hamlet concerned before any aspect claim is published as verified.
Como Private in Lezzeno
Read before you commit
From the journal