the lake Como area is very scenic, full of wonderful places to see, but the roads are narrow, winding and a bit demanding for a driver not used to mountain-like roads. Bellagio is right in the centre of the lake, with very good ferry service to take you around, not too much expensive without a car. Most of the tourist spots are just a easy walk away from the pier; there are of course tourist services with day excursions too. Since Bellagio is a top destination, you could find it more expensive than the other towns around, but the lake, the mountains, the promenade and the food make up for the difference. Venice for a day trip is definitely too far, even with a car, but you'll find many less known little towns to visit as Linda suggested before. Driving down from Lake Como to Tuscany takes some time, 5-6 hours, and you need to drive across some of the most trafficked motorway junctions in Italy, like the Milano ring road, the Bologna junction and the Appennini crossing bottleneck. Nothing really terrible, but driving time could grow by hours if there's some traffic jam. That said, it makes much more sense to go south via rail and rent a car in Tuscany (Firenze or Sinea, I'm not sure there are rentals in Chiusi). Bye

Paolo Trieste, Italy