Because of its wide loggia and large windows overlooking the lake, Villa Garovaglio is a perfect venue for scientific work spaces and meetings. The villa has rooms for seminars with larger and smaller groups (the Egyptian Room, the Marcolini Room). Villa Garovaglio is also home to the large conference room designed by architect Barbara Jakubeit. It is ideal for workshops, conferences and concerts.
Villa Garovaglio has been renovated several times over the years. In the 18th century it served as a spinning mill and was converted into a country residence in 1872 by the archaeologist Alfonso Garovaglio – who gave the villa its current name. The villa owes its interior design to Lodovico Pogliaghi and his pupils. Alfonso Garovaglio set up a small museum in his villa in which he exhibited his archaeological collection, now housed in the Civico Museo Archeologico di Como (‘Archaeological Museum of the City of Como’).
The Egyptian Room and the adjoining small Pompeian room are among the rooms preserved from Alfonso Garovaglio´s original museum. Valuable archaeological exhibits were displayed in large wood and glass cabinets, which are now part of the collection of the city of Como.
Other buildings
Scuderia (‘Stable’)
The Scuderia is located on the edge of the park and is now used as a conference centre. The architect Giuseppe Balzaretti designed the building in an eclectic style.
Casetta Svizzera (‘Swiss cottage’)
The Casetta Svizzera was built in 1830/40 and, with its magnificent view and special architecture, is one of the most interesting elements of the park: It is a building made partly of stone and partly of wood, which not coincidentally recalls moments from Goethe´s The Elective Affinities and at the same time carries a veiled political reference to Switzerland. Switzerland was seen as a model of freedom in the 19th century, especially in Lombardy, a region that was then still part of the Habsburg Empire.
Ca’ Bianca
Ca` Bianca is a chalet, which is located on the edge of the forest and offers a breathtaking view of Bellagio. The house has a ‘typically alpine’ feel with building elements that represent the region around the lake – from the stonework to the decorations, from the door and window frames to the wrought iron.
Darsena
The building was constructed at the end of the 19th century and is located at the entrance to Menaggio, where it still calls to mind the structure of the traditional boathouses on the northern Italian lakes. It was originally used as a mooring place for boats and a holiday home.