Como is an Italian city with around 85,000 inhabitants in the region of Lombardia and the "capital" of the famous lake. It is located on the southern tip of the western branch of Lake Como in a small basin surrounded by wooded hills, and borders directly with Switzerland. The city centre is located on the lakeside, near the Cathedral, one of the biggest in the region. The old town can still be seen to comply with the original Roman “castrum” (castle) design, with well preserved and high look-out towers. Inside the walled part of the city, two of the most note-worthy building are the S. Abbondio and S. Fedele churches, whereas the architectural gems are the rationalist palaces built by the city’s native Giuseppe Terragni: the ex-Casa del Fascio, the Monumento ai Caduti war memorial, the Asilo Sant'Elia and the Novum Comum. The nearby Tempio Voltiano contains a number of relics and heirlooms belonging to the scientist Alessandro Volta, who is credited with the invention of the battery.

Villa Olmo houses a number of art exhibitions. A trip up the funicular railway connecting the city with the panoramic Brunate village on top of the mountain of the same name is also recommended, as well as a visit to the cathedral and the Castello Baradello. Every day, exactly at 12pm, you can hear in the entire area facing the lake echo with a cannon shot fired to announce the arrival of midday. Como is known also for a number of well known personalities, such as Pope Innocent XI (1611 - 1689), the physicist and inventor Alessandro Volta and Cosima Liszt, daughter of Franz Liszt and wife to Richard Wagner.

Accommodation in Como’s student residences

Como is home to the University of Insubria, as well as a number of faculties of the University of Milan and the Milan Polytechnic, whose residences often offer affordable accommodation for visitors during the summer months. It should be understood that these residences are designed primarily for students and not children or adults expecting a high level of luxury. However, with this in mind, the halls do meet a level of comfort that we expect most visitors to be happy with, and we will welcome any feedback where this is not the case.

Getting to Como

Como is linked to a number of other cities in the Lombardy province via the national rail service. Since 2008 the city is also linked with Milan via its S11 local railway service. The Como – Brunate funicular railway has been in service since 1894. The lake itself has been navigated since 1826, with various services connecting the city with other settlements on the shores of the lake – recreational boat trips play a large role in what the lake has to offer. The nearest airports are the Alzate Brianza (Verzago), Lugano-Agno and Milano Malpensa. Como’s international seadrome also hosts Europe’s only hydroplane pilot school.

The hills surrounding the current location of Como have been inhabited since at least the Bronze Age by a Celtic tribe known as the Orobii. Some remains of settlements are still present around the hills to the South West of the city. Around the 1st century BC, the area became subject to the Romans. The city centre was situated on and around the nearby hills, however, it was soon moved to its current location by order of Julius Caesar. The swamp near the southern tip of the lake was drained and the plan of the walled city in the typical Roman grid pattern of perpendicular streets was laid out. The newly founded town was named Novum Comum and had the status of municipium. The city grew greatly thanks to donations from Pliny the Elder and Pliny the younger, who were both born in Como.

In 774, the town surrendered to invading Franks led by Charlemagne, and soon became a centre of commercial exchange. In 1127, Como lost a decade-long war with the nearby town of Milan. Several decades later, with the help of Frederick Barbarossa, the Comaschi could avenge their defeat when Milan was destroyed in 1162. Frederick promoted the construction of several defensive towers around the city limits, of which only one, the Baradello, remains today. Subsequently, the history of Como followed that of the Ducato di Milano, through the French invasion and the Spanish domination, until 1714, when the territory was finally taken by the Austrians. Napoleon descended into Lombardy in 1796 and ruled it until the year 1815, when the Austrian rule was resumed after the Congress of Vienna. Ultimately, in 1859, with the arrival of Giuseppe Garibaldi, the town was freed from the Austrians and became part of the newly formed Kingdom of Italy under the House of Savoy. At the end of the Second World War, after passing through Como on his escape towards Switzerland, Benito Mussolini was taken prisoner and shot by partisans in Giulino di Mezzegra, a small town on the north shores of the lake.