Listen to “Bergamo – beautiful gateway to the Alps” on Spreaker.
Italy’s Lombardy region is a beautiful area to explore if you love mountains, lakes and pretty towns. A small city in the foothills of the Alps, Bergamo has cobbled Medieval streets, pretty piazzas and magnificent views from its city walls. Our guest, travel writer Di Bortoletto from Travelletto, spent a month in Bergamo as part of her Italian language studies and shares what she loved about the city and surrounding area including a visit to a seriously luxurious day spa.
Show notes
Do you prefer a slower pace and quieter surroundings on your travels? Bergamo is a city in Italy that has culture, views and plenty of activities but is also very close to Milan. Famous for polenta and its city walls, Bergamo is found in the heart of Franciacorta wine country and nestled between two of Italy’s greatest lakes – Como and Garda. But if you like secrets then head to picturesque Lake Iseo and spa town San Pellegrino where you can relax and rejuvenate.
From Bergamo you can do a quick trip to Milan for shopping, or enjoy the lake activities in Como before returning to the city to enjoy aperitivo in the piazza with the locals or a stroll around the city walls.
What you’ll learn in this episode
- Why Bergamo makes a great base for exploring the northern Italian lakes and alps
- What to eat (and what not to eat) in Bergamo
- Where to find an incredible day spa that’s open until midnight and serves aperitivo
- How getting around the area is easy with trains, buses and taxis – no car required!
About our guest – Dianne Bortoletto from Travelletto
Dianne Bortoletto is Perth-based travel expert, PR at her business Pronto PR, writer and blogger. She has been published in numerous lifestyle and travel title titles including Luxury Travel, OUTthere, Alliance Airlines Inflight Magazine, Redbull.com, Driven Women, Italianicious and Il Globo. Diane has written Ministerial speeches and been commissioned to write for Tourism Australia, Tourism WA, Margaret River.com and Rottnest Island to name a few. These days, Dianne chooses to write about things she is passionate about, food, wine and travel and regularly posts on her blog Travelletto.com.
Di knows her way around the kitchen, wishes she could surf, pretends to keep fit and loves the sound of fast cars. She’s a people watcher, an ex-chocoholic and shamelessly addicted to travel, proper coffee, and all things Italian.
You can find Danielle on these channels:
Places mentioned in the show
- Bergamo – small city in Italy’s Lombardy region in the foothills of the Alps and close to Milan
- San Pellegrino – tiny town with amazing day spa and replica casino
- QC San Pellegrino Terme – day spa and hotel in a restored palazzo
- Casino San Pellegrino – magnificent Art Nouveau building inspired by the casino in Monte Carlo
- Lake Iseo – small lake close to Bergamo popular with Italians
- Varenna and Lenno – towns on Lake Como that Di visited
Resources
- Learn other places to look out for in 50 Incredibly beautiful small towns in Italy and find out the Best way to learn Italian
- Listen: to Episode #040 Small Italian cities to visit for some other gems around Italy and for more places to visit in Northern Italy, Episode #055 Piedmont – Lesser Known region of wine truffles! and Episode #32 A love letter to Brescia
- How to plan a trip to Italy – our article that takes you step by step through trip planning to help you build your dream trip
- Italy Travel Planning – the FREE community on Facebook where you can ask questions and get inspiration for planning your trip
- Travel shop where you’ll find items mentioned in the show
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Transcript
Prefer to read along as you listen? You can download a PDF version of the full transcript of this episode.