Northern Italy's Lakes

While the Clooney's and Instagram have made Lake Como the place to be over the last few years, on my recent trip to Italy, I opted for a lake that is a little less traveled, Lake Iseo.

In truth the inspiration for this visit was my sister (thanks Alex!) and her love for a little known sparkling wine and region called Franciacorta. She had told me about how delicious the wine was and after I tried it, I was hooked!

Franciacorta is made in the same way that you make champagne, but obviously not in Champagne, so they can't call it that. They started making Franciacorta in this very small region outside of Milan in the 1960s and today only about 120 producers make Franciacorta! It is not too easy to find in the US, so when my sister turned me on to it, I did a little research.

After having booked a trip to Milan this summer, and seeing how close the Franciacorta region is to Milan, I knew I'd have to get over there to see it!

Lake Iseo is a little over 60 miles South East of Lake Como. While smaller and less touristy (which was the appeal for me), it is no less beautiful, and happens to be right in the middle of the Franciacorta region!

We did not have a car, which I would recommend in hindsight, but we were easily able to get around with TrenNord and the excellent ferry system that took us all over the lake.

We stayed at the excellent Hotel Rivalago in Sulzano, which I highly recommend (Chekammendation!). The hotel was beautiful and right on the lake with easy access via a 3-4 minute walk to ferries and the train. Not to mention their staff was fantastic and we had a fabulous dinner overlooking the lake one night as well.

If you find yourself in Northern Italy, or want to make a trip there, don't count out this beautiful destination. I'm certainly trying to figure out ways to get back there!

Ciao, 
Cheka