Lake Como Travel Guide: Bellagio, Varenna, Ferries and How Many Days

Stay two or three nights on Lake Como, in the central lake where Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio face each other across the water, and move between them by ferry rather than by car. Two nights give you one full day on the water with the villa gardens; three let you add Villa del Balbianello, a slower morning in Varenna or a boat to Como town. The lake is about an hour from Milan by train to Varenna, and its narrow shore roads make the ferries the real transport. Lake Como covers about 146 km² and is more than 400 m (1,300 ft) deep, one of the deepest lakes in Europe, and the mountains rise almost straight from the water.

We plan Lake Como for couples, families and multi-country trips every season. This guide covers the villages, the ferries, the villas, where to sleep and what we steer travelers away from.

Lake Como at a glance

How many days on Lake Como

• A day trip from Milan: possible to Varenna or Como town, but you spend much of it on trains and ferries. We suggest it only when the hotel nights are elsewhere.
• Two nights: our standard. One day crossing the central lake by ferry, with Villa Carlotta or Villa del Balbianello and lunch in Bellagio; one evening in your village after the day visitors leave.
• Three nights: the stay we prefer for honeymooners and first visits. Add a private boat day, a garden morning in Varenna and time to do nothing on a terrace.
• Four nights or more: for slow travelers, hikers and families who want a pool afternoon every day.

On a two-week Italy and Switzerland trip, we usually give two or three nights to Como and two to Lake Maggiore. If you are choosing between them, read Lake Como vs Lake Maggiore.

The central lake: which village is which

The three branches of the lake meet in the middle, and that is where almost everyone should stay.

Bellagio sits on the tip of the peninsula, with stepped lanes, silk shops and the lakeside gardens of Villa Melzi. It has the widest choice of hotels and restaurants and is busiest at midday. There is no train station: you arrive by ferry or by road.

Varenna, on the eastern shore, is a small village of colored houses with a lakeside walkway, the gardens of Villa Monastero and a station on the Milan to Tirano line. It is the practical choice for travelers without a car, and it goes quiet in the evening.

Menaggio, on the western shore, has a lakefront square and more space, with good connections north and toward Lugano in Switzerland.

Tremezzina, the stretch of the western shore that includes Tremezzo, Lenno and Mezzegra, has some of the grandest lakefront hotels, Villa Carlotta and Villa del Balbianello.

Como town, at the southwest tip, has the cathedral, a lakefront and the trains to Milan and Switzerland. It is practical, but far from the central lake's scenery; we use it for a night or a lunch, not as the main base.

Getting around by ferry

Navigazione Laghi, the public operator, runs three kinds of boats: ordinary passenger boats, faster services and car ferries in the central lake. The central triangle between Bellagio, Varenna, Menaggio and Cadenabbia is served from early morning to late evening. In summer 2026, the crossings took 10 to 30 minutes, and from Menaggio boats left for Varenna roughly every 30 to 60 minutes. The summer timetable ran from July 1 to October 4, 2026, and a winter timetable with fewer boats runs from November 2, 2026 to March 14, 2027.

Our practical advice:

• Buy a one-day free-circulation pass if you plan more than two hops; single tickets for each leg add up and the lines at the ticket offices are long in summer.
• Check the last boat back to your village before dinner elsewhere. It is often earlier than travelers expect outside July and August.
• Leave the car. The shore roads are narrow and slow in summer, and parking in the villages is scarce. If you arrive by car, we pick a hotel with parking and use the ferries for the rest.
• Book a private boat for one day. A water taxi with a skipper lets you see Villa del Balbianello from the water, circle Isola Comacina and stop where the public boats do not. It is the highlight of most of our Como stays.

The villas and gardens

Villa Carlotta, Tremezzina. A lakefront villa with a museum of sculpture, including works by Canova, and a large botanical garden famous for its azaleas and rhododendrons in spring. In 2026 it opened daily from March 20 to October 18 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., with shorter hours until November 8 and on selected dates until December 8.

Villa del Balbianello, Lenno. A villa on a wooded point, owned by the FAI, Italy's national trust, and the most photographed place on the lake. It opens from March to January, every day except Monday and Wednesday, and booking ahead is required. You reach it by taxi boat from the Lido di Lenno or on foot: about 1 km (0.6 miles) from Lenno with an uphill stretch, about 25 minutes.

Villa Melzi, Bellagio, and Villa Monastero, Varenna, are lakeside gardens within walking distance of the ferry piers, easy to combine with lunch.

Most gardens are at their peak from mid-April to May. We schedule the villas in the morning and leave the afternoon for the water.

Where to stay on Lake Como

Whatever the base, ask for a lake-view room, ideally on an upper floor. The difference in price is often smaller than you expect, and on Como the view is the trip.

Getting to Lake Como

From Milan by train. Trenord's line from Milano Centrale to Tirano stops at Varenna-Esino, about 1 hour 5 minutes away, with the first and last trains early in the morning and late in the evening. For Como town, trains from Milano Centrale reach Como San Giovanni in about 40 minutes, and Trenord trains from Milano Cadorna reach Como Lago, on the lakefront, in about an hour.

By car or private driver. Bellagio and Varenna are about an hour and a half from central Milan by road. From Malpensa airport, allow about the same.

From Switzerland. Lugano is about 40 minutes by road from Menaggio, and trains from Zurich and Lugano reach Como San Giovanni. From Tirano, at the end of the Bernina line from St. Moritz, regional trains run down the Valtellina to Varenna. Our Lake Como to Switzerland guide covers each crossing in detail, and the Bernina Express guide covers the mountain section. For that route on its own, with the 2026-2027 timetable, read Lake Como to St. Moritz.

When to go

April to June brings the gardens in flower, warm days and full ferry timetables. September and October are just as good, with warmer water and fewer crowds. July and August are hot and busy, the most expensive months, and the roads fill up; we book early and plan around the boats.

From November to March, many hotels close, the gardens are shut or open on selected days, and the ferries run less often. The lake is quiet and atmospheric, but we suggest it only for a night or two within a wider trip. Our best time to visit tool has the detail month by month.

Lake Como with reduced mobility

Lake Como is beautiful but steep. Bellagio's lanes are stepped, Varenna climbs from the water, and the ferry gangways move with the waves. The flattest stays are on the western shore around Tremezzo and Menaggio, where the lakefront walkways are level, and in Como town. For wheelchair users, we choose a hotel with step-free access from the road, plan visits by private boat with a crew that helps, and check in advance which villa gardens have level routes, since several are built on terraces.

Trips that include Lake Como

Our Switzerland to Italy by Train in 14 Days, from €5,499 (about $6,380) per person, spends a full private day on Lake Como: Villa Carlotta with a guide, then a Venetian-style water taxi past Villa del Balbianello and around Isola Comacina, before the Borromean Islands on Lake Maggiore. For a shorter trip, Italy and Switzerland in 7 Days covers Milan, Lake Maggiore and Lugano, and we can swap a night for Como. Read our Lake Maggiore travel guide for the other lake, or see our 10-day Italy itineraries. To pair the lake with the mountains, our Dolomites and Italian Lakes in 10 Days continues from Lake Como to Lake Garda and Val Gardena.

Tell us your dates and who is traveling, and one of our designers will send you a custom Lake Como plan with prices.