What To Do In Lake Como For A Day: Must sees
Lake Como is home to the rich and famous! We recently just took a trip to Italy where we stopped by the stunning Lake Como. So, we thought it would be helpful to bring you a guide on what to do in lake Como for a day.
You might be thinking, why just a day? Well, with Lake Como only being a 30-40 minute train ride from Milan, it is a popular destination for a day trip out of the city. We mentioned Milan as one of the best holidays for young adults to visit, and lake Como is the perfect day trip! While you won't be able to cover the whole Lake in one day, there is more than enough to see and explore in a day.
Lake Como is a natural beauty in the North of Italy and known for being a playground of the rich and famous. With exclusive villas lining the coast of the Lake, incredible boats speeding up and down and immaculate views, what is there not to love!
As Lake Como is so big, we found it quite hard to work out where to start when planning our trip. Therefore we hope this guide on what to do in Lake Como for a day helps you out when picking where to go.
Let's dive into it!
What’s lake como like?
Lake Como is shaped like a wishbone, or some say an upside-down Y. It is the foothills of the alps between Switzerland and Italy in the Lombardy region of Italy.
It is the third biggest Lake in Italy, the deepest freshwater lake in Italy and the 5th deepest Lake in Europe, with the bottom of the Lake being more than 200 metres below sea level! That's deep. It is approximately 29 miles long! To put that into perspective, it would take you, on average, 15 hours to walk around.
Home to some of the most impressive villas, including George Clooney's iconic villa on the Lake. It also has some stunning palaces such as Villa Serbelloni, Villa Olma and Villa Carlotta. There is plenty to try and spot from a boat trip on the Lake.
The most popular town of Lake Como is Como itself. However, there are loads of towns surrounding the Lake, eventually leading up to Lecco. These include Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio. These are popular spots for people to stay when visiting Como, especially Bellagio.
The Lake offers boat tours, hiking, climbing and mountain biking. Not only that, it is home to some of the most beautiful restaurants, bars and resorts spanning across the whole lake perimeter.
What To Do in Lake Como For A Day: Lake Como Itinerary
So, what you are all here for a guide on what to do in Lake Como for a day. This is purely on our own experience and what we found to be the perfect day out in the beautiful Lake Como.
@acouplethingstodo Travel with us to lake como and stay in stunning accomdation #lakecomo #italy #travel #travelcouple #blog #acouplethingstodo #fyp #traveltok #travelbucketlist #traveltips ♬ in heat. - Hentai Xander
Of course, this is not everything you can get to in Lake Como as it is huge with many exciting activities. So don't worry; we will go through some of the other things to do in Como later in this blog if something else tickles your fancy.
So, let's start with getting to Como on this Lake Como Itinerary.
Getting to Lake Como
If you are already in Como and are lucky enough to be staying in Como for a few days, then you can ignore this. However, if you are going on a day trip to Lake Como from Milan or a surrounding city, or even coming straight from the airport, then this is how you get to this Northern Italy town.
So, we flew to Milan Linate airport. If you want to find out how we got our flights for free, check out our blog! From Milan airport, we got a taxi to Milan Central station, which cost around €25- €30. Of course, you can take plenty of much cheaper buses, but we were just so excited to get to Lake Como!
From there, we entered the huge train station. Don't get overwhelmed; it is not as scary as it looks. How we found out which train we needed by using Google Maps. It will tell you the time and the train line you need to get to Lake Como.
Train Italia (Trenitalia) and Italy Rail are the most popular train companies. There are machines dotted all over the station for both of these train companies. So, once you know which train it is, go to the machine and select your train tickets.
The tickets were super affordable! €5 for the standard class and €7.50 first class! The train only took 35-40 minutes and was really easy to catch! Once you arrive in Como, it is a short 5-minute walk into the town of Como.
Breakfast In The Town Of Lake Como
So, once you have made your way to Lake Como or are starting your day from the comfort of your accommodation, the first point of call is breakfast!
You can't spend a day in Italy without a cup of coffee. As well as being famous for its pizza and pasta, Italy is home to some of the best coffee. So you must start your day with a coffee.
You are never short of quaint pastry shops in Italy with a wide selection of baked goods. However, we would recommend a light breakfast with a tasty pastry and a coffee. This is because it is best to save yourself for all the pizza, pasta and gelato!
Our top pick would be Mignon patisserie. It has the most beautiful selection of pastries, chocolates and sweet treats! Great way to start a day in Lake Como!
We also think this is the perfect time to sit down and assess the day ahead. It gives you time to navigate yourself and decide what you want to do next.
Como - Brunate Funicular Railway
We would definitely advise doing this early on in the day! When we tried to go at midday, the queue was really long and the heat of the day made it unbearable to queue!
Therefore, you must take the cable car to the top of the hills if you have time before it gets too hot and busy. It is called the Como- Brunate Funicular and has operated since 1894. It is 1,084 metres long and takes you up to Brunate, where you can get insane views over the Lake.
It is a great way to get to a fantastic viewpoint over Lake Como and really take in where you are. Why we suggest doing this at the beginning when looking at what to do in Lake Como for a day is because it gives you that ultimate breathtaking view.
There is not much to do at the top, a few shops, but mostly houses. It shouldn't take you longer than two hours, which perfectly leads you to lunch when you arrive back down into Lake Como.
What To Do In Lake Como For A Day: Have Some Lunch
Once back safely on the ground, we have a feeling you might be pretty peckish. You will return back to one of the best parts to sit back and eat some food.
When you come out of the Como-Brunate Funicular railway, you will pass a line of amazing restaurants on the waterfront, all with a stunning view of the Lake. There will almost be too much choice!
One of our top picks would be Ristorante Cervo. The staff were super friendly and chatty and gave great suggestions on wine and food. We had a super relaxed lunch here and stayed for over 2 hours!
It has the most gorgeous view of the Lake and is a great people-watching spot as people walk up and down Lake Como. It has all of the classic Italian dishes you could want and the iconic Aperol Spritz!
Would it be a trip to Italy without some gelato? We must admit this was our biggest weakness on our trip to Italy! We couldn't help ourselves from getting one every day, sometimes two! Therefore, when looking for what to do in Lake Como for a day, you must include stopping for some ice cream there.
After your lunch, take a stroll back down into the centre and pop into one of the many gelato stores. This is the perfect transition into your afternoon activities!
Hire A Boat
Now on to arguably one of the best things you can do on your day trip to Lake Como. A boat trip to explore Lake Como.
The best view of Lake Como is from the lake itself. You can get on a boat trip from Como pier, which then takes you around the Lake and allows you to get off at some other towns such as Bellagio.
Or you can do what we did and hire a boat. We rented a boat for 2 hours, which was one of the best decisions we made. What was so great about having your own boat over the pre-planned trips was that we had total control over everything we did.
Lake Como has no speed restrictions, so you can whizz up and down as fast as you want. You can get up close and personal with some amazing villas, such as George Clooney's! You can pick where you want to go and take as long as you want.
We rented it for 2 hours and managed to get up to this little island in the middle of the Lake, where we stopped, and Henry jumped in and swam for a bit. It was absolutely magical and an amazing experience.
That being said, the boat trips are great if you want to take a ride over to another part of the Lake. Or if you just want a casual guided tour around the Lake, they are also great for that too! For example, this boat trip takes you from Lake Como and Bellagio from Milan! How good is that!
We suggest taking the boat out in the afternoon because it is usually the hottest. So, the breeze from the boat will help you cool down. It also makes the Lake look so beautiful when the sun bounces off the water!
Go for an Aperitif /Early Dinner
So, before you head home for the day after your trip out on the boat, we suggest you stop for an Aperitif.
Aperitif is very popular in Italian culture and is usually between 6-8pm. This is where you have a few drinks, typically an Aperol spritz and some nibbles. The nibbles usually consist of bread, cheese and a selection of meats.
This is the perfect way to end your day in Lake Como. You can watch the sun go down as you enjoy some lovely drinks and snacks. The ideal end to a beautiful day out in Lake Como, one you will never forget!
Of course, you might want to stay late and have some dinner; it is entirely up to you! However, we would recommend the Aperitif as dinner in Italy usually starts around 9pm.
What To Do In Lake Como: Surrounding Area
So, here is our guide on what to do in Lake Como for a day, purely on our own experience. But, we thought it might be useful to suggest some alternative activities if the above ones aren't up your street.
Bellagio
People often assume when visiting Lake Como that Como is the only town you can visit. This is not true! The Lake is so big it goes all the way to Lecco. This means there are several stunning towns for you to visit.
Bellagio is one of the most popular towns and is home to many villas and resorts. As we mentioned above, you can get there by ferry if you take a boat trip. Or, it takes 50 minutes by car.
Once there, you will be met with cobbled streets, small restaurants and unmissable views. You can spend the day exploring the waterside, grabbing food, or even hiring a boat from here. It is another beautiful spot to admire Lake Como from.
Varenna
Varenna is a bit further out but easily accessible by road or boat. It is a small compact town at the foot of the alps with picturesque buildings. It is also not as popular as Bellagio, so it is perfect to go to avoid crowds.
While here, you can check out the Villa Monastero and the walled Castle of Castello di Vezio. Such a quaint and beautiful town, one not to be missed!
Museums
If all the boat trips and travelling are not for you and you just want to kick back and enjoy the town, then you must visit some of the museums.
When in Lake Como for a day, deciding what to do and see can be hard, but you won't be disappointed with the Historical Museum of Giuseppe Garibaldi. It explores ancient history to the middle ages with exhibits from local excavations. Perfect for the museum biggs amongst you.
Our Experience at Lake Como
@acouplethingstodo Best thing we did in Lake Como! #fyp #traveltiktok #lakecomo #italy #couple #couplethingstodo #traveltok #travelbucketlist #travel #traveltips #speedboat ♬ Ferrari - James Hype & Miggy Dela Rosa
If you have seen our travel with us to Lake Como TikTok, then you will know it was the first stop of our Italian adventure. It did not disappoint.
Even though we had a really long day of travel starting at 01:30 am, it did not stop us from hiring a speed boat as soon as we got there. By 4pm, we were whizzing up and down lake Como in the glorious sunshine.
Our first thoughts were, wow! It is true what people say, your breath will be taken away. It almost doesn't feel real, only looking back can we actually believe we were there! It is truly natural beauty and a must-see.
We were forecasting rain and thunderstorms the whole time we were there, but luckily the storm never came. Beautiful sunny skies, calm water and a bustling city. It is the perfect place to go and relax and enjoy excellent food with an incredible view!
One thing we will say is that we did not know how big it was! Ideally, you need to hire a car or a boat if you stay there longer than a day to get around and see all the towns. That being said, there is so much to see and do in Como itself that it won't dampen your experience.
We would say that Como is the ideal place for a long weekend to relax and soak up the sunshine and culture.
We hope you have enjoyed this blog, and it has been helpful when looking at what to do in Lake Como for a day! If you like this or have suggestions for future posts, get in touch!
