Lake Como Travel Guide - Italy's Lake District

Lake Como, at the foot of the Northern Italian Alps, cements its reputation as a playground for the rich. The lake area, which almost disappears in winter, regains its dazzling beauty when March arrives and wakes from its sleep after the crowds start flocking to the towns: Bellagio, Menaggio, Tremezzo, Varenna, Lecco.

The Como area, which we chose for our honeymoon, was beyond what we'd imagined. I can say it's the most beautiful, the cutest, the most unspoilt place we've seen so far. The lovely texture of history keeps you company with colourful villas, and it feels as if you're inside a highly saturated photo, so vivid. Maybe it wouldn't seem this beautiful in summer because it's very crowded; we went in spring and really enjoyed the quiet and peace.

It makes you say "Do towns like this exist?"!

As you know, you need to get a Schengen Visa. The links below will help you with the visa application. Schengen Visa application tips: click! You can find the Schengen Visa required documents here. We've told you a little about the Como area; detailed information follows in the rest of the post...

What You Should Know About Lake Como

Lake Como is on the list of the most beautiful lakes in Italy and in the world. With this magnificent greenery around the lake, along with the cute landscaped houses and flowers, it feels like you've arrived somewhere in paradise. We're not far from Milan, and the influence of fashion shows: the people living around here dress as neatly and beautifully as the people of Milan, if not more.

In Italian it's Lago di Como, and in German Comer See. By the way, the Germans' most preferred holiday destination is the Italian Lake District! They've embraced it so much as a summer location that with German signs and menus you feel for a moment that you're in Germany.

Places to Visit at Lake Como

There are options both for walking and for resting

The area around Lake Como is so big and beautiful that we suggest setting aside at least 4-5 days to see and enjoy it all. Before going we made a little list and first visited the surrounding towns, and then we aimed to explore central Como. In 3 days we explored at a somewhat busy pace but very enjoyably. :)

👉 Towns to Visit at Lake Como: I've left the link for you!

Where Is Lake Como?

This magnificent lake is in the north of Italy, close to the Alps.

In detail, it's in the Lombardy Region of Italy, within the borders of the province of Milan, which we Turks know quite well. The area formed by the towns of Como, Bellagio and Lecco and the 2 arms of Lake Como is also known as the Larian Triangle.

When to Go to Lake Como?

In the Lake Como area, which has a Mediterranean climate, the winter months are warmer than the Italian average. Given that, summers are very hot and pleasant. Our choice was May. While the evenings are a bit cool, the days are absolutely won-der-ful! Of course, whenever you go, there's always a chance of rain. On all 3 days of our 3-day trip it rained on and off. :)

The number of tourists coming to the lake explodes in June-August and reaches its peak. Because of this, there are no rooms left in hotels/guesthouses, and most houses are already rented by German summer visitors. Because of the crowds, exploring with the enjoyment you dream of can get hard, so if possible don't choose the high season. Our suggestion is to enjoy it in spring or autumn. That way you can enjoy the quiet, the peace and the birdsong.

How to Get to Lake Como?

To get to the Lake Como area or Como city centre, you need to land at Milan or Bergamo Airport. Apart from that, you can reach it by train from cities like Rome, Florence, Venice and Verona.

Where to Stay in Como?

For a long time now we've dropped the starred hotel option and preferred boutique hotels or family-run guesthouses. With its tiny, one-of-a-kind design, the way it makes you feel special and all its lived-in character, we found a boutique hotel within the range we prefer that was, if we may exaggerate a little, beyond extraordinary! Our choice was B&B La Villa Como. The hotel, 3 kilometres from the city centre, practically looks down on the city of Como and Lake Como. Let's tell you a little about this lovely boutique hotel, and leave the rest to the photos, that is, to you.

In its garden there's an outdoor swimming pool where you can enjoy the panoramic Como view, and a sun terrace with a colour therapy shower. In the property's car park there are bikes you can use for free. Those who come by car like us pay 15€ a day for parking. In Italy, wherever you go, parking is unfortunately a headache! Knowing this, we generally did our city centre trips in the evening by bike. Italy promises perfect views for exploring by bike.

As for the rooms, there's air conditioning and Wi-Fi. You have your breakfast in what is actually the living room of this tiny hotel, converted from an old mansion, where the family also lives. The house's tiny British Shorthair cats always kept us company:) Right next to the living room is the kitchen, and that's where Madame makes exquisite food with her own hands. On the hotel's lower floor there's a mini shop where you can buy spa products, fresh Italian pasta and wines. A skin product, a body lotion with a milky scent and texture, that I still can't get enough of using!

Bed & Breakfast La Villa is a 5-minute drive from the shores of Lake Como. Generally chosen by couples, we thought once you've seen this hotel you'd want to choose it too. 😜😄

Bergamo & Milan Airport and Getting Around

How do you get to Como city centre? Our choice on our Lake District trip was to rent a car. Having come to Italy, isn't the best thing to rent a Fiat 500?! :) If we hadn't rented this car, seeing the tiny towns would have been very hard, and on the narrow streets and roads you want the road never to end. Like a dream!

We landed at Orio al Serio International Airport with Pegasus. Right at the exit we did our car rental and picked up our sweet car. We rented the car with full insurance for 30€ a day. By the way, at the Vodafone dealer at the airport we straight away got a data-only SIM. It would be very useful while travelling for 6 days, just 20€. From the airport it was 90 kilometres, about 1 hour, to Como city centre.

There are various alternatives for those going by public transport. But the fastest route is this: as the first option, from Bergamo Airport you reach Milan city centre after a 2-hour journey. From there, taking the Como train from Milano Centrale station, you can reach Como San Giovanni station in Como city centre in 46 minutes. One disadvantage of flying with Pegasus is airports far from the city centre.

If you land at Bergamo, you can only just reach Como city centre in about 3 hours. As the second option, if you're landing at Milan Airport, you come to the city centre and, again with the same train, can reach Como city centre in 1 hour 30 minutes. Apart from renting a car, there are bus, boat and taxi options too. Leaving the car aside, we can say the ideal is getting around by bus. Lines C10 and C30 run on two different routes around Lake Como. Apart from the bus, if you'll visit the trio of Menaggio, Bellagio and Varenna, boat transport will also be quite fast. You can get tickets for around 10-15€. Let's repeat our suggestion: the most advantageous and economical way to explore the fairy-tale route around Lake Como is renting a car! 👣🗺🚗

Como - Italian Cuisine

Nobody dislikes Italian food!😋😬 Whatever country we go to, we always order a pizza. Of course Italian food isn't limited to pizza, and you're in exactly the right place to try it. Choose the most local, least touristy-looking little restaurants and cafés. What's lined up for you to try: the best pizza, lasagne, risotto, seafood pastas and the exquisite dessert-ice cream duo!

Seafood Pasta - Spaghetti Frutti Di Mare / Four Cheese Pizza - Quattro Formaggi

You don't really have the chance of a bad meal in Italy anyway; we ate our lovely meal in Varenna, the most popular of Lake Como's towns. Right on the lake, the Bar Il Molo restaurant is very popular. We liked the delicious food, but we'd eaten better in Italy! 😇 We enjoyed the view.. With pasta and pizza, of course the Italian beer 'Korona' goes well. 🍕🍝🍻 1 pizza, 1 pasta and 2 beers 30€.

Making better pizza than the pizza place in Varenna, Ristorante Orologio Pizzerie in Como city centre was our second choice. With a stylish ambience and a perfect tiramisu, it confirmed our choice. We got a tiramisu to take away too! 😋 1 large pizza, 1 salad (Greek-style with cheese), 1 dessert and 1 water 23.50€.

Ice Cream - Gelato

Italian ice cream is something else. Ice cream is good in every form, but gelato has a very different taste; there are lots of flavours, and both the cone option and the cup option are fun. One scoop of a huge ice cream is 1-2€. We say try all the flavours at one place you like:)

By the way, we ate our most delicious and cheapest ice cream in the town of Menaggio in the Lake District. For us, the loveliest, sweetest town is Menaggio too!👍👍

Shopping in Como

In these towns, so close to Milan, there are boutique shops selling all kinds of textile products, handmade wine and cheeses. You can buy local produce and give it as gifts, or make the flavours you liked in Italy at home and invite your friends. What we love most is hosting friends after we get back.

** In Como, rather than shopping, enjoy tasting food and nature.

Cycling in Como

If it hadn't been our honeymoon, we could have come to this area by bike and done wonderful routes. We'll come again! The cyclists tempted us. The roads are smooth, cute and just as tiny! The best thing would be to enjoy that exquisite view slowly by bike. One more wonderful option for those looking for a route to pedal.