Il Limonaia

This elegant 18th-century house has been beautifully restored and is now divided into three separate spaces – though if you want to come as a group of 14 you can take the whole place. A family party of several generations will love it – enjoying being altogether but escaping to separate living areas when siesta time beckons…

Il Limonaia is a little love nest for two, with an open-plan living area and kitchen with a breakfast bar. Open the chilled bottle of prosecco and tuck into the cake and biscuits that have been left for you. The large bedroom leads out to your own suntrap terrace and cooling plunge pool with mountain views. You can wander in the communal garden – an oasis of olive trees and roses – and help yourself to produce from the vegetable patch: salad, tomatoes, courgettes and herbs.

Mezzegra is a five-minute drive down the hill, for bakery, supermarket, restaurants – and boats to Como, Bellagio and Varenna.