The man who had this villa built had been vice-president of Napoleon's Italian Republic, that is the second man in the state: Francesco Melzi d'Eril, duke of Lodi. In 1808 he commissioned Giocondo Albertolli, and by 1813 the interiors were ready. The villa still belongs to the family, and for that reason you visit the garden and not the house: it is private property, not a public museum.
What to see
The garden runs down to the lake and is in the English manner, that is designed to look natural: open lawns, groups of trees, calculated glimpses of the water and the mountains. In spring the azaleas and rhododendrons flower, which here is the main reason to come, while the plane trees along the lakeside give shade all summer.
Along the way you meet the Japanese pond, the Moorish kiosk, the antique and Egyptian sculptures set as points to pause at, the family chapel and the orangery, which houses a small collection. There is also a carved group of Dante and Beatrice, and the story goes that Franz Liszt, a guest at Bellagio, was struck by it enough to set it to music.
Visiting
The garden is at Bellagio, ten minutes on foot from the landing stage towards Loppia; visited with a ticket, open seasonally, usually from late March to late October, and closed in winter. An hour.
Our editors' tip
Go in April or early May, when the azaleas are out: that is the moment this garden was designed for, and in those two weeks it is worth more than many famous villas. Then walk right to the end, towards Loppia, where the lawn reaches the lake and there is nobody about.