There is no shortage of places to stay around Varese on Airbnb and Booking. But when you’ve driven 1,000 km and 13 hours and two days of racing are coming, you want one thing above all: a good night’s sleep, darkness and quiet, and no hunting for parking every day. What won us over were excellent reviews and an apartment that has been let for several years: CasaCri in Cittiglio.
Why not central Varese
After a long drive or a day out, the last thing you want is to circle an unfamiliar town looking for a space. Central Varese also has a limited traffic zone (ZTL) in force around the clock: cameras read number plates and only residents and permit holders may enter, so a visitor without a permit gets a fine. We had borrowed a Nissan X-Trail from Auto-Impex, so safe parking came first.
At CasaCri there is free parking 20 metres from the door, in the same place every day, with no searching and no stress.
What matters to us – and what we got
- A good night’s sleep. A large bedroom with a big bed and air conditioning, in quiet, peaceful surroundings: Cittiglio is a village of about 3,500 people. There’s enough stress around racing and travelling; you don’t need it at night.
- Space and your own kitchen. The apartment has 55 m² on the first floor of a terraced villa, with a sloping attic ceiling and parquet floors. In the roomy kitchen you can cook the food you’re used to, which pays off before a race, and there’s a pod coffee machine, because good coffee in the morning is essential. Plus a small private terrace and a desk in the bedroom.
- Reviews. The apartment is exactly as in the photos. You’ll find it on the CasaCri website, on Airbnb and on Booking.com. On Airbnb it is rated 5.0 from 31 reviews and is a “Guest favourite”.
Much of the credit goes to the owner, Cristina: kind, accommodating and always ready to help. She even did our laundry, which you really appreciate after a race. She has a well-made guide to what to see nearby, leaflets, tips on restaurants and attractions, and her own app for guests with everything in one place. We didn’t have to look for anything; it was all ready.
We liked it so much we didn’t want to go home, and in the end we left a day later than planned. A surprise was waiting when we left: a thank-you card from Cristina and traditional Italian brutti ma buoni biscuits for the trip home.
On foot, by train, by plane
- On foot. Shops, restaurants, a café and a bakery are a few steps away in the village.
- Train. Cittiglio station is about 1.5 km from the apartment, under 20 minutes’ walk. Trenord trains run from there via Varese to Milan, and central Milan is about 1 h 40 min away.
- Tickets. Buy them from the machine at the station (you can pay safely with PayPal via a QR code) or in the Trenord app. Good value is the “Io Viaggio Ovunque in Lombardia” day ticket for €18: unlimited regional trains, metro, trams and buses across Lombardy, Milan included. It isn’t valid to or from Malpensa airport, or on the Lago Maggiore boats.
- Flying. The nearest airport is Milano Malpensa, about 45 minutes by car; Lugano-Agno, Milano Linate and Bergamo are alternatives.
- Shopping. The nearest is the Carrefour Market in Cittiglio itself, but we recommend the DPiù discount store in Laveno-Mombello, a little further on. In Gavirate, a few villages away, a new retail park has a Lidl, a large Tigotà drugstore and a McDonald’s.
Leave at least a day or two for Milan and the sights. A day trip to Milan by train will get a post of its own.
Made for cycling
The area around Cittiglio is a cyclist’s paradise. About 500 m from the house a cycle and footpath leads to the shore of Lago Maggiore at Laveno. Varese is about 17 km away by bike, and a largely flat path of about 28 km runs around Lago di Varese. My training ride straight from Cittiglio was 100 km with 1,500 m of climbing; there’s no shortage of hills or flats here.
Varese hosts the pro race Tre Valli Varesine every year, a tradition going back to 1919, and since 2016 the amateur Gran Fondo Tre Valli Varesine too. But we don’t recommend CasaCri only to cyclists: it’s an excellent base for an ordinary holiday and for getting to know Lombardy.
What to see nearby
- Santa Caterina del Sasso (Leggiuno, about 8 km): a hermitage built into the cliff above the lake. 268 steps down, or a lift.
- Laveno-Mombello (about 6 km): the lakefront and the open “bucket” cableway up Sasso del Ferro, nearly 1,000 m up, with a view over the whole lake. Hours change with the season; check their site.
- Villa Della Porta Bozzolo (Casalzuigno, about 6 km): a rococo villa with terraced gardens, run by FAI. Just above it is Arcumeggia, the village of painted façades.
- Sacro Monte di Varese (about 24 km): a UNESCO site. The Via Sacra pilgrims’ path climbs about 2 km past 14 baroque chapels to the sanctuary and a medieval hamlet with views over the lakes. There’s also a funicular up from Vellone.
- Varese (about 20 km): the Giardini Estensi gardens and Villa Panza with its contemporary art collection.
- Lakes: Lago Maggiore; Lago di Varese with Isolino Virginia, a prehistoric pile-dwelling site (UNESCO, by boat from Biandronno); clean Lago di Monate, where you can swim; and Lago di Comabbio.
- For another day: the Renaissance village of Castiglione Olona with Masolino’s frescoes, the Longobard UNESCO sites of Castelseprio and the Torba monastery, or the Rocca di Angera castle above the lake.
A loop by car
The most sensible plan is a loop that never doubles back, about 75 km in all:
- Cittiglio → Santa Caterina del Sasso. Fewest people in the morning.
- → Laveno-Mombello: the lakefront and the cableway up Sasso del Ferro with a view over the whole lake.
- → Villa Della Porta Bozzolo and Arcumeggia.
- → Sacro Monte di Varese through the woods by Brinzio. Late afternoon and sunset are the best time.
- → Varese (optional) and back to Cittiglio via Gavirate.
Opening hours of the sights and cableways change with the season; check their websites before you go.
Photo credits
- Lago di Varese (cover): Phyrexian, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized
- Santa Caterina del Sasso: Tiia Monto, CC BY 4.0, resized
- Laveno: Torsade de Pointes, CC0
- Villa Della Porta Bozzolo: Grahamec, CC BY-SA 3.0, resized
- Sacro Monte di Varese: Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized
