Villa del Balbianello opens for FAI Days on 10 October
Published on 10/11/2026 at 06:40 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWSKey points in brief
- FAI Days opened the gardens at Villa del Balbianello in Lenno from 10 to 11 October 2026.
- Online booking covered the gardens, Loggia Durini and film-location areas during the event on 10 and 11 October 2026.
- The interiors remained available only through guided visits for FAI members or visitors joining FAI on 10 and 11 October 2026.
- Villa del Balbianello has been managed by FAI since Guido Monzino donated it in 1988.
FAI Days opened Villa del Balbianello (the local name is unchanged) in Lenno, Italy, for a special garden visit from 10 to 11 October 2026. The public event brought the gardens, Loggia Durini and areas used as film locations into a programme run by the Fondo per l'Ambiente Italiano, or FAI.
FAI Days open the gardens from 10 to 11 October
The official programme listed the property as an in-person FAI event at Via Guido Monzino 1 in Tremezzina, the municipality that includes Lenno. The event was open to all, but online booking was mandatory for the garden visit and admission was limited.
Booking covered independent access to the garden, the Loggia Durini and the film-location areas. It did not include the interiors. This made the 10 and 11 October programme a focused way to see the outdoor setting while the house followed a separate guided-visit arrangement. The FAI Days garden programme records the dates, venue and access conditions.
Villa del Balbianello connects the event with its history
The property stands on the wooded tip of the Lavedo peninsula above Lake Como. A Franciscan convent existed on the site from the thirteenth century, before Cardinal Angelo Maria Durini transformed it in the late eighteenth century and commissioned the panoramic loggia.
Guido Monzino bought the house in 1974 and donated it to FAI in 1988. The interiors preserve furnishings, art collections and expedition material associated with the explorer, while the garden is arranged with terraces, statues, clipped trees and views across the lake. The FAI history of the property links the garden and loggia to the site's successive owners and uses.
That history gave the October programme a clear connection to the place: visitors were not entering a generic festival venue, but the landscape and architectural spaces that define the former residence. The garden route also placed the Loggia Durini and the film-location areas at the centre of the special access.
Access to the house stayed separate from the gardens
The interiors were available only through a guided visit reserved for FAI members and visitors who joined or renewed membership on site. Interior visits could not be booked online through the event page, and places were allocated on the day subject to availability.
The arrangement meant that a visitor attending the FAI Days programme on 10 or 11 October 2026 could access the outdoor areas through the required booking, while the house required a separate on-site step. The distinction matters because the garden booking alone did not provide entry to the rooms or collections.
Visiting Villa del Balbianello: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- The FAI Days garden programme took place at Villa del Balbianello from 10 to 11 October 2026 at Via Guido Monzino 1 in Tremezzina.
- Online booking was mandatory for the gardens, Loggia Durini and film-location areas, and admission was limited.
- The interiors were not included in the garden booking and could be visited only through a guided visit reserved on site, subject to availability.
- The property occupies the wooded tip of the Lavedo peninsula, with gardens, terraces, statues and panoramic lake views.
- Lenno is the reference locality for the visit, while the official address is in Tremezzina, on Lake Como.
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Frequently asked questions about Villa del Balbianello
When did FAI Days take place at Villa del Balbianello?
The garden programme took place from 10 to 11 October 2026 in Tremezzina, near Lenno.
What did the FAI Days booking include?
It included the garden, Loggia Durini and film-location areas, but not the interiors, on 10 and 11 October 2026.
Where is Villa del Balbianello and how do you get there?
The property is at Via Guido Monzino 1 in Tremezzina, on the Lavedo peninsula above Lake Como, with Lenno as the reference locality.
