Best time to visit Northern Lakes & Lombardy

The region’s coldest and quietest month, villas shut their gates but Monte Baldo opens for the ski season. The rotating cable car lifts you from lake level to 1,760m and the Tratto Spino slopes in 20 minutes.

Milan's opera season is in full flow at La Scala. It’s one of the city's great winter rituals, with tickets genuinely easier in January than April.

Bergamo and Brescia turn properly photogenic in the low winter light, and Lombardy's joint cultural hub is best enjoyed without crowds.

Consistently the driest month on the lakes, February is cold but bright with the snow-capped Alps reflected in glass-still water on the best days.

Bardolino's Il Bacanal del Gnoco on Lake Garda brings one of Italy's oldest carnivals – gnocchi, costumed processions and properly rural tradition.

Valtellina's winter food season peaks. Enjoy pizzoccheri, bresaola and sciatt in the Alpine valleys above Lake Como, just a short drive north.

The lakes begin to reawaken and, come late March, so do many of the villa gardens, with camellias and magnolias starting to bloom.

Riva del Garda's bike and running events kick off the northern lakes’ outdoor season as Monte Brione trails clear of snow and those below 1,000m become walkable again.

Bardolino sees the first almond blossom properly painting the hillsides with fewer visitors than May and genuinely peaceful hikes through the groves.

Spring makes its grand entrance at the lakes with long sunny stretches and villa gardens bursting with azaleas, rhododendrons and wisteria.

Trekking the Sentiero del Viandante above Lake Como. The ancient wayfarer's trail from Abbadia Lariana to Colico is at its finest in the spring light.

Lake Garda’s distinctive Riviera dei Limoni is at its most evocative with limonaie (historic lemon houses) filled with the heady scent of blossoms.

Still ahead of the July crowds with warm, picturesque days and overflowing villa gardens, this is one of the finest months to visit the northern lakes.

Monte Baldo's famous wildflowers emerge as the snow recedes. The ‘Garden of Europe’ earns its name with rare orchids and alpine rarities in bloom.

Lake Garda's Bardolino Chiaretto wine festival (early May) celebrates Italy's classic pink wine – vineyards already green and the lake blissfully uncrowded.

Summer is well and truly here, the lakes becoming swimmable, sailing and windsurfing hitting their stride on Lake Garda’s northern shore, and evenings lingering past 9pm.

Lake Garda opera season opens at Verona's Arena – a short drive from the southern lake, enjoy one of opera's great open-air experiences under the stars.

Lake Como Festival kicks off with classical concerts in villa gardens and lakeside amphitheatres through to September, performed against absurdly scenic backdrops.

Expect heat, crowds and ferries running at capacity, alongside incredibly swimmable lakes, especially Lake Garda and Como.

Enjoy outdoor concerts at Gardone Riviera's Vittoriale amphitheatre, where Italian music greats perform in D'Annunzio's theatrical estate.

Milan empties out in late July and remains so through August. It’s an unusual time to visit but genuinely easy, and the museums are blissfully quiet.

The summer heat reaches its peak and, from mid-month, Ferragosto brings thousands of Italians to the lakes – hotels are at their priciest and ferries are full.

Monte Baldo's cable car from Malcesine becomes an essential escape. It’s 10 degrees cooler at the summit with Alpine wildflower meadows in full bloom.

Franciacorta wineries welcome visitors for late-summer tastings. Italy's answer to Champagne, it’s a short drive from Lake Iseo and often overlooked.

The humidity and crowds begin to ease from mid-September, while the lakes are still very swimmable.

Bardolino's Festa dell'Uva e del Vino (late September to early October) is one of Italy's great wine festivals with five days of tastings, music and parades.

The Centomiglia regatta on Lake Garda brings hundreds of sailing boats to the water. Held since 1951, it’s one of Europe's most scenic inland races.

Autumn brings gorgeous, rust-hued foliage and a golden light to the region’s lakes and mountains.

Join in with the Festival Franciacorta for open-cellar weekends in Italy's finest sparkling wine region, a short drive from Lake Iseo.

Olive harvest gets underway across Lake Garda's southern shores. See and sample Garda DOP, Italy's northernmost olive oil, pressed at historic frantoios around Bardolino.

The region experiences heavy rain spells and lake mist, but early November offers a final quiet window to enjoy Lake Como’s villa gardens before they close.

The newly-pressed Garda DOP oil arrives at village frantoios, unfiltered, peppery and absolutely worth the trip.

Lombardy's winter truffle and porcini season hits the restaurant menus of Bergamo and Brescia, producing dense, warming food perfect for the weather.

Monte Baldo ski season typically begins in late December. As Italy's only lakeside ski resort, the icy water is on show from the top slopes.

Milan's Oh Bej! Oh Bej! Christmas market (early December) fills the Castello Sforzesco – a Milanese institution dating back to 1510.

Bellagio and Varenna's winter nativity scenes (presepi) are quietly beautiful. They’re some of just a few villages on Lake Como that stay genuinely alive through the festive season.