WHAT TO SEE IN LOMBARDY: 8 day trips from Milan

What to see in Lombardy? I suggest you 8 day trips from Milan.

Lombardy is a beautiful region in Northern Italy and Milan is its largest city. Don’t spend all your time visiting Milan because there are many things to see and to do in the surroundings.

If you don’t really like museums but you prefer staying outside, you could visit beautiful towns, walk in the nature and choose among many hiking trails in this region. You can also organize a day trip to the lake, visit a historic village or a natural reserve near Milan.

Monte Isola, an amazing place to visit in Lombardy

WHAT TO SEE IN LOMBARDY: 8 day trips 

I have made a list of 8 different thigs you can see in Lombardy in one single day trip.
These are not the usual things to see in Lombardy. I wanted to select something different and unusual.

CORNELLO DEI TASSO: day trip to a nice village near Bergamo

Cornello dei Tasso is a village in Val Brembana, a valley near Bergamo, and it’s one of the most beautiful Italian villages. It’s small but the architecture is typical of mountain villages.

If you like walking and if the ground is not wet, you can walk the forest path to Oneta, another small village nearby. The trail is called “Via Mercatorum”, because in the past this road was used by the merchants to arrive in Valtellina.

Via Mercatorum in Cornello dei Tasso

TRENO DEI SAPORI ON LAKE ISEO: the flavors of Brescia

“Treno dei Sapori” is a fully organized tour starting from Iseo, a nice village on the shores of the lake in the province of Brescia.

When you board this special train, you could relax in your wagon, admire the landscape outside the window and, of course, taste the flavors of local products (such as polenta, cheese and Franciacorta wine).

During this day trip in Lombardy, you can visit the historic center of Paratico, which is a village north of the lake, and take a ferry to Monte Isola, the biggest lake island in Europe.

Treno dei Sapori: day trip in Lombardy

SACRO MONTE OF VARESE: natural park near Milan

Not far from Varese, there is a beautiful natural park. At the top of the hill you will find Sacro Monte of Varese, a little village with a beautiful church and some religious buildings.

You can also visit the Pogliaghi Museum, which is a charming house of Lodovico Pogliaghi (an Italian artist) where you can see many interesting items.

If you want to reach Sacro Monte, you can follow a road in the woods where you can see many little and precious chapels.

What to see in Lombardy: the pedestrian road to Sacro Monte

ROCK CARVINGS IN VAL CAMONICA (Brescia): what to see in Lombardy

In Val Camonica, a valley in the province of Brescia, history is written on the rocks. The ancient inhabitants of these areas made a lot of rock carvings thousands of years old.
The best place to visit is Parco di Naquane in Capo di Ponte where you will find many beautiful rock carvings.

You can also visit Romanesque churches in this valley, such as St. Siro of Cemmo.

I warmly recommend you this day trip in Lombardy because, in my opinion, this is one of incredibly interesting places in this area.

Rock carving in Valle Camonica (Brescia)

HERMITAGE OF SANTA CATERINA DEL SASSO (Varese): day trip to Lake Maggiore

Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sasso is one of the most evocative churches in Lombardy and it’s located on Lake Maggiore.
Why is it so special? Because this hermitage is overlooking the lake and the view is really beautiful.

During this day trip from Milan, you can also take the cable car “Sasso del Ferro” from Laveno Mombello (Varese) to the top of the mountain.
The view of the lake is amazing!

Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sasso near Varese

CITTÀ ALTA OF BERGAMO: visite the older upper district

What to see in Lombardy? I suggest you Bergamo, my town. It’s very close to Milan and its old town is very beautiful.

The narrow medieval streets, the ancient buildings and the rich churches are protected by the walls built during Venetian domination.

The most traditional way to get to the old city of Bergamo is the funicular which has been connecting the lower with the upper district since the end of the 19th century.

Old town of Bergamo not far from Milan

LIMONE SUL GARDA CYCLE PATH (Brescia): beautiful walk on Lake Garda

You can have a wonderful walk around the Lake Garda on the new pedestrian and cycle track in Limone sul Garda (Brescia).
The promenade becomes a suspended walkway several meters above the lake in several areas.

The path is 2.5 kilometers long, but you could extend the walk starting it from Limone sul Garda (consider 3 km more).

Pedestrian and cycle track in Limone sul Garda

PYRAMIDS OF ZONE (Brescia): a path in a strange place in Lombardy

The last day trip in Lombardy I would like to suggest you is a strange place in the mountains north of Lake Iseo.

Near the village of Zone, there is an easy path that will make you discover particular natural structures.
Pyramids of Zone are pinnacles of limestone with a rock on the top that looks like a hat.

The path in the woods is about 1 kilometer long and it’s not tiring.

Pyramids of Zone: what to see in Lombardy

OTHER DAY TRIPS IN LOMBARDY: what to see

There are many other places to visit in Lombardy. Here are some suggestions if you like guided tours:

• Lake Como and Bellagio tour: explore the amazing landscapes around Lake Como and the nice town of Bellago on an boat cruise
• Free walking tour of Milan: discover the secrets of the city with this English-language tour (each person offers the guide the amount they consider appropriate)
• Food and wine tour in Franciacorta: explore the landscape and the flavors of this region, near Brescia, where exellent sparkling wines are born
• Walking tour of Mantua: discover this historic city with its monuments, medieval palaces and Renaissance buildings.

What to see in Lombardy? In this link I suggest many other day trips not far from Milan (text in Italian).

Via Mercatorum in the small village of Oneta

♥ Thanks to Amra Nadarevic for supporting me with the translation.