Lake Como Tour by Car - Italy's Lake District

Many tourists and many travellers on their Italy trips usually skip Milan, saying "what's the point of going to Milan!" We can say its popularity grows day by day thanks to cheap flights and it being the centre of the fashion world. But sadly it's always the route for short holidays! More people draw their route towards the tourist areas of Southern Italy. But after seeing the area around Lake Como we said "Not Rome, not Venice, not even Florence!" The first Italian destination of our dreams, one we think is a must-see: Italy's Lake District!

The main reason we chose this place was to make a calm honeymoon route and get out into nature. In that sense, those thinking of this route for a honeymoon, or those for whom it hasn't even crossed their mind: don't hesitate, buy the tickets and make the bookings! We set aside 4 nights and 5 days in total for the Como and Garda area. You can stay longer if you like. Believe us, you'll be very happy. For us, the best thing here is to enjoy nature, water and mountain views to the full. Without trying to race the clock!

So we went to central Como; is the Lake Como area easy to get around? Our answer is of course "no": to get around the area, a car is a must! Travel Guide covers getting to Como in detail; let's briefly go over it here too:

From Milan to Como you can get there in about 1 hour on a direct train. But catching this train's times is quite hard. To catch it you may have to wait, and as a result a big part of your day can be wasted. Our choice was to rent a car from Bergamo Airport, and thanks to the car there was nowhere we didn't go. On top of that we rented a sweet, sweet Fiat 500; the cars are tiny anyway, adapted to the streets.

Throughout our Lake Como trip we stayed at B&B La Villa in central Como. We think it's an incredible place! We liked it a lot and recommend it!

Putting central Como on the back burner, we set off saying we must first discover the wonderful towns around it! To discover Lake Como, at least stay faithful to the holy trinity of Varenna - Menaggio - Bellagio :)

Lake Como - Menaggio

Within 1 hour of leaving Como you can reach this lovely town. On the way to the town, I'm sure the roads and the view will impress you. Especially on the single-lane two-way roads, cruising along at the foot of the mountains, right by the lake, is in a word per-fect! Especially if the weather is a bit nice, you just want to be on the road.

As for Menaggio, don't expect super touristy places; this place is like a syringe injecting plenty of natural beauty... You can add pleasure to your walk by the lake with the famous Italian ice cream. By the way, during our whole Italy trip we tasted the most delicious and cheapest ice cream here. A huge cone for just 1€.

Lake Como - Varenna

We explored Menaggio quickly and turned our route to Varenna. If you don't want to drive around the lake, the only way to get to Varenna is to cross by ferry. Don't say "What about the car?" right away: there's the option to cross with the car. Naturally it has a fee too. Crossing with a car costs 8.60€ (driver included) and the standard fare for 1 person is 4.60€, so you can cross for 13.20€ in total. The half-hour journey is very enjoyable. If you have time, you can of course also enjoy the road along the shore.

Varenna, a cut above Menaggio, is both more touristy and livelier. Still, it's fair to call Varenna one of Lake Como's modest towns. Compared with its touristy neighbouring towns, Varenna is quite quiet.

With its lively, colourful houses, it's clustered just a few steps from one of the best-preserved medieval centres in the area. In Varenna, besides the magnificent lakeside setting, the main attraction here is the huge gardens of Villa Monastero, famous for its convent, now open to the public and home to plant species from all over the world. We can say we saw every shade of green and were once again amazed by the lake view.

You can't skip climbing the hills above Varenna. In a village on top of the hills there's a castle with a thousand-year history, Castello di Vezio, known as Vezio Castle. It overlooks almost all of Lake Como. It was built in its time by the Lombard Queen Theodelinda to defend and control the lake and the villages around it, and it was also used as an old military outpost in the Middle Ages. A little ladybird becomes the guest accompanying our lovely tour!

Lake Como - Bellagio

We explored Varenna over hill and dale; our new route is Bellagio! But we said that's enough for today. On a new day we set off to discover Bellagio

Bellagio is probably the town with the most famous and expensive houses around Lake Como. It sits at the tip between the lake's two southern arms and deserves almost half a day's tour. :)

Narrow cobbled streets built on steep slopes keep you company. Italy's truly picturesque* streets are right here! You can spend hours wandering around the town, which is covered with antique buildings, shops and places to eat, as you move away from the shore through labyrinthine streets.

* Its look is beautiful enough to be the subject of a painting. Oh my, oh my!

Along with the famous lakeside promenade, you can also visit the two gardens in Bellagio open to the public, at Villa Melzi and Villa Serbelloni.

If you like, you can also explore the town on a short ride on the tourist train. Lavender stands caught our eye here too, as in almost every village.

Bonus: Lecco

After Menaggio, Varenna and Bellagio, saying let's not return by the same route, we decided to go to Como via Lecco. A new route, a new discovery! We said we can't not see Lecco too. 😀

It's fair to say this town, which came to us like a lottery win, must be added to the list too. It really deserves to be on the list of places to visit at Lake Como..

By the way, wherever we went during our Italy trip, the first thing we looked at was the famous ice cream, the gelato. We check both the taste of the ice cream and, from its price, we can tell whether the town/city is expensive or not. Let that be a mini tip:)

After getting your ice cream, you too have every right to want a pleasant walk along the shoreline, looking at the lake's breathtaking view and the mountains meeting the lake. 😬 Also, in Lecco you'll see Malgrate across the lake.

Water sports are also very popular at Lake Como. There are wonderful opportunities for divers. Of course, don't say "We'll dive to the bottom!" right away, because the deepest point of the lake is a full 410 metres deep! Lake Como has long since taken its place on the list of the deepest lakes in Europe.