Overall, we were very happy with the villa, the management company and Menaggio as a base for exploration. However, there are several things renters have to know: You 100% need a car. It is very far from town to walk and cabs are difficult and expensive. Parking is easy right at your apartment, but difficult in town.
We were able to rent the first day with the help of Elisa, but it would have been better to understand in advance and secure a car. It would have allowed us to drive directly from MPX, which would have been easier than the train and boat had we known we would need a car anyway.
There were several issues with how the property is described and how they communicated upon arrival. The apartment is in a complex which seems to have been abandoned by the developer. Only a few units in the various buildings are occupied. The pool is in a completely different building. You can walk there, but it is complicated because the keys do not work on the other building's gates and they did not explain where to go. You have to walk down a very long, completely dark corridor with steps up and down. It is difficult to figure out and not at all safe. They should show you where to go and they need to get the lights turned on, the elevator working (more direct access than crawling down a long, dark abandoned hallway), and issue keys to the gates. As it is, you have to use your cell phone flashlight to navigate, and you feel as if you are breaking into another building. They should accompany you up to the property and show you how to get into the pool and take care of the issues with access to make it simpler.
Once you are in, the pool is gorgeous and very well maintained. The fact that construction seems to have been abandoned poses no problems at all except for pool access.
Lastly, you have to take your trash into town, which isn't explained.
Only small issue inside is that we could not get the heat to work in the dryer. It ran for hours on every setting with no heat. Please check it and it would be helpful to leave simple instructions for the washer and dryer and the oven.
Other than those issues, it is a lovely place to stay and we had everything we needed.
