Lake Como With Kids
What Lake Como with kids really looks like, from a family that plans these trips for a living.
Nicole Damiano, ASTA Verified Travel Advisor with FG Luxury Travel
Is Lake Como good for families with kids?
Very good. The ferry keeps kids entertained, the towns are small and safe, and there is gelato and pizza everywhere. It is one of the easier parts of Italy to travel with young children.
How many days do you need at Lake Como?
Three nights is the sweet spot. That gives you two full days on the lake and time for a villa visit or a day trip. Four nights if you want Milan or Lugano too.
Which town should we stay in?
Bellagio for the classic experience and the best ferry connections. Varenna if you want quieter and easier access by train from Milan. Como town if you want more restaurants and nightlife.
Do we need a car at Lake Como?
Not in the towns. The ferry handles everything on the water and the villages are walkable. A car helps getting from Milan and for day trips to Lugano, but once you are on the lake it is more hassle than help.
When is the best time to visit Lake Como with kids?
May through June and September through October. The weather is warm, the crowds are smaller and the villa gardens are open. July and August are peak season with higher prices and bigger crowds.
The Lake That Stops You Mid Sentence
You come around a bend in the road and the water opens up between the mountains and nobody in the car says anything for a second. That is Lake Como.
It is one of those places that looks too good to be real, and then you get out and walk down a stone alley to the waterfront and it still looks too good to be real. The towns are small. The ferries run all day. The gelato is excellent. And the whole thing works with kids in a way that most of Italy’s famous spots do not, because there are no long museum lines, no crowds pushing you off the sidewalk and no pressure to cover ground. You just pick a town, take a ferry, eat, and do it again.
Getting There and Getting Around
Fly into Milan Malpensa. From there you have two solid options: train to Varenna (about an hour on the direct line from Milano Centrale) or drive. I like the train for couples and the car for families with small kids and car seats. Once you are on the lake, the ferry is how you move. Buy a day pass and hop between towns. Cars are more trouble than they are worth in the villages themselves because the streets are narrow and parking is a project.
Three Towns, Three Different Feels
Bellagio
The one everybody knows, and it earns it. Steep alleys, tiny shops, gelato at every turn and the best position on the lake where the two arms meet. Walkable, photogenic, and the ferry dock puts the whole lake within reach. Start here if this is your first time.
Varenna
Quieter, smaller, and the train from Milan drops you right at the waterfront. The lakeside promenade is gorgeous at sunset and Villa Monastero is steps away. I like Varenna for families who want the views without the foot traffic.
Como Town
The biggest town on the lake, at the southern tip. More restaurants, more shops, a proper cathedral, and the funicular up to Brunate for a view that will make your phone storage disappear. Good if you want a little more going on in the evening.
Grand Hotel Tremezzo
The one on every magazine cover, and it is as good as it looks. The floating pool on the lake, the gardens, the rooms with balconies over the water. If you are doing one big splurge in Italy, this is a strong place to put it.
Hotel Du Lac, Varenna
Right on the water, a real family feel, and the terrace restaurant looks straight out over the lake. Rooms are simple and clean. The location does all the work.
Apartments in Bellagio
A two bedroom rental in the old town with a kitchen gives you space, flexibility and breakfast on your own schedule. Worth it for longer stays and families with picky eaters.
The Three I Build Every Lake Como Trip Around
Bellagio’s Waterfront and the Ferry Triangle
Walk the waterfront, eat gelato, take the stairs up through the old town, and ride the ferry to Varenna and back. The ferry triangle between Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio is the single best thing you can do on this lake. Buy the day pass and hop as many times as you want.
Villa del Balbianello
The villa at the tip of a peninsula in Lenno, with gardens that step down to the water on both sides. Star Wars filmed here. James Bond filmed here. Your kids will not care about either of those things and they will still love running around the terraces. Book ahead and take the boat over from Lenno.
The Funicular to Brunate
Seven minutes straight up the mountain from Como town in a little cable car, and the view from the top is the entire lake and the Alps behind it. Kids love the ride itself. Adults love what they see when they step out. Bring a snack and stay for sunset if you can time it.
Family Time, Built In: Lake Como With Kids
Lake Como with kids is slower than Rome or Florence, and that is the whole point. The ferry is the activity. The gelato stop is the activity. Walking down stone steps to a swimming spot is the activity. You do not need a plan for every hour. The lake fills the gaps.
The one thing to know: stairs. The towns are built into hillsides, so if you have a stroller, leave it at the hotel and use a carrier. Older kids will be fine. Little ones in strollers will not love the cobblestones.
Gelato tasting in Bellagio
The funicular up to Brunate
Swimming at Lido di Bellagio
Villa Carlotta gardens
PARK & DOWNTIME PICK
Lido di Bellagio, the public pool and beach area right on the lake. It has a pool, a patch of grass, a snack bar and calm water for wading. The afternoon reset between morning towns and evening dinners. A few euros to get in, and worth every one.
Five Things To Eat Around the Lake
Nicole’s Perspective
The Italy that families actually need
I plan a lot of Italy trips for families with young kids, and the most common mistake is trying to do too much. Rome, Florence, Venice, the Amalfi Coast, all in ten days. Everyone is exhausted by day five.
Lake Como is the antidote. Three or four nights here, either at the start of a trip when you are jet lagged and need to ease in, or at the end when you need to breathe before the flight home. The kids ride ferries. You sit at a waterfront table with an Aperol spritz. Nobody is standing in a line.
I have routed families through here dozens of times, paired with Milan on one end and the Dolomites or Switzerland on the other. It fits almost any Italy itinerary, and it changes the pace of the whole trip. That is what makes it worth the stop.
The Day Trip: Milan
Milan is about an hour south by train or car and makes an easy day. The Duomo is one of those buildings that stops kids in their tracks, especially if you go up on the roof and walk around the spires. Add a pizza lunch in the Navigli canal district and the Museo della Scienza if you have science kids. Be back on the lake for dinner.
If Switzerland is calling, Lugano is only thirty minutes from Menaggio by car or bus. Swiss chocolate, a different lake, a different language, and the kids get a passport stamp.
Things I Would Tell A Friend Before They Booked
How Many Days
Three full days is the sweet spot for Lake Como. Four if you want a day trip to Milan or Lugano. That gives you time to actually sit still and enjoy the lake instead of rushing through it.
Day one, Bellagio by ferry, the old town, gelato, the waterfront. Day two, Villa del Balbianello in the morning, Varenna’s promenade at sunset.
Add the funicular to Brunate, the Lido pool afternoon, Villa Carlotta gardens. Or a day trip to Milan for the Duomo and the Navigli.
Lake Como fits before Milan, after the Dolomites, or as the calm days between Florence and Switzerland. Three nights is the right add.
Lake Como With Kids, Answered
Is Lake Como good for families with kids?
Very good. The ferry keeps kids entertained, the towns are small and safe, and there is gelato and pizza everywhere. It is one of the easier parts of Italy to travel with young children.
How many days do you need at Lake Como?
Three nights is the sweet spot. That gives you two full days on the lake and time for a villa visit or a day trip. Four nights if you want Milan or Lugano too.
Which town should we stay in?
Bellagio for the classic experience and the best ferry connections. Varenna if you want quieter and easier access by train from Milan. Como town if you want more restaurants and nightlife.
Do we need a car at Lake Como?
Not in the towns. The ferry handles everything on the water and the villages are walkable. A car helps getting from Milan and for day trips to Lugano, but once you are on the lake it is more hassle than help.
When is the best time to visit Lake Como with kids?
May through June and September through October. The weather is warm, the crowds are smaller and the villa gardens are open. July and August are peak season with higher prices and bigger crowds.
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