By PHILIP NORMAN

Stunning: Lake Como attracts celebrities such as George Clooney who has a home here

Otherwise you may be charged a small supplement for a knife and fork to cut your pizza. It would be harsh to judge an entire region by one small lunch-time episode - particularly the Italian Lakes, whose effect is generally so charming and calming.

But there it was at the foot of the menu in an outdoor pizzeria on the shores of Lake Como. Clienti who desired the use of eating-irons would face un supplemento.


Picturesque: Lake Maggiore is the biggest after Lake Garda and also said to be the sunniest

Even in New York, where you can be charged $5 for an extra fork to share dessert, they haven't yet thought of that one.

The Lakes, which swim through the Alps like a family of benign serpents, are sometimes called Italy's best-kept secret. It's one well worth exploring at this time of year, when everything has a sleepy, end-of-season feel but the weather is still (mostly) good.

Flights from Heathrow to Milan, the best access point, take under two hours, around the same time it takes to fly to Nice. And in many ways, the Italian Lakes provide what the French Riviera once did: a sense that it's still rather special to be British.


Water fantasy: Isola Bella is one of two main isles in the Borromean Islands, accessible by ferry

There for a three-day break with my student daughter, Jessica, earlier this month, I had vague preconceptions of scenic grandeur combined with Italian comfort - a kind of Switzerland-plus-pasta.

What I didn't expect was to find the world of E.M. Forster so perfectly preserved.

The Lakes were no secret to well-to-do Edwardian travellers, and their influence lives on, from the lofty old hotels with names like the Regina Palace and Grand Hotel Bristol to the formal promenades and ornate iron pavilions - seemingly transplanted from pre-Great War Brighton or Bournemouth - where you buy ferry tickets.


Idyll: A private villa on San Paolo Island in Lake Iseo, a region where excellent sparkling wine is produced

Travel Facts
Kirker Holidays offers three nights at the Grand Hotel Majestic on Lake Maggiore from £678 per person.

Price includes three nights on a bed and breakfast basis with flights to Milan Malpensa airport and return private car transfers. Call Kirker on 020 7593 2283 or visit www.kirkerholidays.com

source: dailymail