Villa del Balbianello – Como Lake
Day trip from Milan back and forth
Villa del Balbianello is located on a wooded promontory on the western branch of Como Lake. This elegant, romantic 18th century mansion and its magnificent garden have hosted writers, scholars and travellers. 
This is one of the most beautiful corners of Lario. The view from the loggia and from the terrace drives your eyes to Bellagio and Comacina Island.
Originally it was a 13th century Franciscan monastery. In 1785 the Cardinal Angelo Durini purchased the estate and converted it into a villa adding a panoramic loggia. The Villa passed to his nephew Luigi Porro Lambertenghi who later sold it to his friend Count Giuseppe Arconati Visconti.
The American businessman Butler Ames from New England was irrevocable struck by the beaty of the premises during a boat cruise and after various attempts he managed to buy the villa from the Marquise Arconati Visconti Peyrat after World War I. Butler and his wife Fifi spent the rest of their summers there. When he died in 1954 he stipulated in his will that his heirs could not sell the property until at least twenty years had passed. It was perhaps his hope that the family could continue his Balbaniello dream in the years to come. However, the villa was acquired by Guido Monzino in 1974.
The Milanese entrepreneur Count Guido Monzino was the last owner of the Villa and when he died in 1988 he left if to the FAI, the Italian National Trust.
Guido Monzino’s study where he spent a great deal of time at the desk of his Lake Como office. This is a partners’ desk, a double desk designed for two users working facing each other featuring a deep top ad two sets of drawers, one at each end of the pedestal.
The large holm oak pruned into an umbrella form
Since then a number of feature films have used the villa for location shooting, including A Month by the Lake, His Demise starring Paul Zukowski, Casino Royale. The villa was also used for the lake retreat scenes in Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, with computer-generated imagery used in place of the building’s true exterior.
For further information to book the private tour, please contact me.
