Best Things to Do in Lake Como

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Lake Como, also called Lago di Como or Lario, is found in Lombardy, northern Italy. It is a glacial lake shaped like the letter “Y” due to the movement of glaciers and the Adda River. With an area of 146 square kilometres, it is the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. It is also very deep, going down over 400 metres, which makes it one of the deepest lakes in Europe.

History

The area around Lake Como has a long history. People began living here in the Iron Age with a town called Comum. In 196 B.C., the Romans took control of the area. Julius Caesar later helped build a new town on the lake’s edge in 59 B.C., called Novum Comum. During Roman times, the lake was known for its good fishing and hunting. A Roman military fleet was even based here in the 4th century.

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During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the lake was the site of many battles. In the 1100s, the people of Como fought with Milan on the lake. Later, between 1525 and 1532, the Musso war took place here.

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The Best Things to Do in Lake Como

1. Bellagio

Plan your visit: Bellagio on Lake Como's official tourism site

The most famous village on the lake, on the point where its two southern arms divide. Climb the stepped lanes from the waterfront, walk out to Punta Spartivento at the tip of the headland for the view up all three arms, and come early or stay the night: from late morning to late afternoon it fills with day-trippers.

2. Varenna

Plan your visit: Varenna on Lake Como's official tourism site

Directly across the water from Bellagio on the eastern shore: a quieter village of painted houses with a lakeside walkway, the Passeggiata degli Innamorati, and a train station on the line from Milan. Walk up to the Castello di Vezio above the village for the view.

3. Villa Carlotta, Tremezzo

Plan your visit: Villa Carlotta official site

A villa built at the end of the 17th century on the western shore, named after Princess Charlotte of Prussia, who received it as a wedding gift in 1850. Its museum holds neoclassical sculpture, including works by Antonio Canova, and its terraced botanical garden is at its best in April and May, when the azaleas and rhododendrons flower.

4. Villa del Balbianello, Lenno

Plan your visit: Villa del Balbianello on the FAI site (opening days and tickets)

A villa on the wooded tip of the Lavedo headland, built in 1787 for Cardinal Angelo Maria Durini. Its last owner, the explorer Guido Monzino, left it to the FAI (the Italian National Trust), and his collections from the poles and the Himalaya are inside. The terraced gardens appear in Star Wars: Episode II and Casino Royale. Reach it on foot from Lenno or by taxi boat; check opening days and booking on the FAI page.

5. Villa Melzi Gardens, Bellagio

Plan your visit: Villa Melzi Gardens official site

The lakeside park of the neoclassical villa built in the early 19th century for Francesco Melzi d’Eril, vice-president of Napoleon’s Italian Republic. Walk along the water past statues, a chapel and a small Japanese garden; the gardens are a short stroll from Bellagio’s ferry landing.

6. Villa Monastero, Varenna

Plan your visit: Villa Monastero official site

A former convent turned villa, with a long botanical garden of citrus, palms and exotic plants stretching along the shore at Varenna, and a house museum with its period rooms.

7. Sacro Monte di Ossuccio

Plan your visit: Sacro Monte di Ossuccio on the official Sacri Monti site

Fourteen chapels built between 1635 and 1710 line a path up the hillside above Ossuccio, each with life-size statues of the Mysteries of the Rosary, ending at the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Soccorso. It is one of the nine Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2003.

8. The Greenway del Lago

Plan your visit: The Greenway del Lago di Como official site

A walking route of about ten kilometres along the western shore, from Colonno to Griante, linking villages, gardens and old churches with lake views most of the way. Walk a section and take the ferry back.

9. Como town and the Brunate funicular

Plan your visit: The Como-Brunate funicular official site

The city at the southern tip of the lake has a marble cathedral and an old town inside its medieval walls. The funicular climbs from the lakefront to the hill village of Brunate, with a view over the city and the first basin of the lake.

10. A ferry trip round the central lake

Plan your visit: Navigazione Laghi: official Lake Como ferry timetables and fares

The public ferries and hydrofoils of Navigazione Laghi link almost every village on the lake, and the triangle between Bellagio, Varenna, Menaggio and Tremezzo is the best way to see the villas from the water. A day ticket for the central lake makes village-hopping easy.

Practical Tips for Lake Como

Where to stay: Bellagio is the most famous and busiest base; Varenna is quieter and has a train station; Menaggio on the western shore is good for walkers and has ferries to both. Como town and Lecco at the southern ends are working towns and better for a stay on a budget, but further from the central lake.

Getting around: the lakeside roads are narrow and slow in summer and parking in the villages is scarce, so use the ferries. Check timetables and fares on the official Navigazione Laghi site.

Swimming: the lake gets deep quickly near the shore and the water stays cool, so swim at lidos and public beaches rather than off rocks.

Weather: the lake sits in a mountain basin and summer afternoons can bring sudden thunderstorms. Pack a light waterproof.

Meal times: many restaurants serve lunch from about noon to half past two and dinner from about seven, and close in between.

When to go: May, June and September are pleasant and less crowded. August, around the Ferragosto holiday on 15 August, is the busiest month of the year.

A Suggested 3-Day Lake Como Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive at your base (Varenna or Menaggio recommended). Settle in, walk the lakefront, have an aperitivo overlooking the water. Dinner at a local trattoria — ask your hotel for a recommendation away from the ferry dock.

Day 2: Take the ferry to Bellagio in the morning (before the day-trip crowds arrive). Walk the stepped lanes and visit Villa Melzi’s gardens. After lunch, ferry across to Tremezzo for Villa Carlotta. Return to base by late afternoon.

Day 3: Ferry or taxi boat to Villa Balbianello (go early, and check opening days first). Afternoon: hike a section of the Greenway del Lago — a walking route along the western shore with lake views most of the way. Final dinner somewhere you discovered on Day 1.

If you have a fourth day: Take the hydrofoil to Como town. Visit the cathedral, walk the old town, and take the funicular up to Brunate for the view.

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