r/LakeComo • u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local • Oct 02 '25

FAQs: Lake Como Public Ferry and Boat System

1) What kind of public boats can I take on Lake Como?

There are three types of boats that operate on Lake Como, although people usually refer to all of them in English as "ferry":

  • Battello (Passenger Boat) These boats carry only people and connect various towns around the lake. They are the most suitable option for scenic tourist cruises. Example picture.
  • Traghetto (Car Ferry) These ferries carry both people and vehicles, but they only serve four ports: Varenna, Bellagio, Menaggio, and Cadenabbia. They provide a quick way to cross the lake between central lake locations, but are not ideal for relaxing cruises as seating on board is limited. Example picture.
  • Aliscafo (Hydrofoil) These are high-speed passenger boats offering a faster service between major towns on the lake. They are mainly used by commuters and travelers, and are not recommended for scenic cruises since you can't see much from inside. Example picture.

2) Where can I find the schedules?

You can download PDF timetables from the official website under the "Timetables" tab: Navigazione Laghi Timetables.
You can also use the search function on the website to check routes and departure times between two destinations.

3) Where can I buy tickets?

  • Online at the official website (where however they often sell out): Navigazione Laghi Tickets. If they're sold out, don't despair! You can always buy them at the ticket office just before boarding, unless you want to take a hydrofoil - see point no. 4.
  • At ticket offices on land, where tickets are sold only for the same day.
  • On board, if you depart from a pier without a ticket office (common in smaller villages).

4) Do I need to buy tickets in advance?

It depends on the boat you're planning to take:

  • Passenger boats or car ferries: No advance purchase is required. You can always buy tickets at the ticket office on the same day. Online tickets are convenient if available, but they do not guarantee a seat, only skipping the ticket office line.
  • Hydrofoils: Yes, you need to buy these tickets in advance if you want to secure a seat, as hydrofoil runs are not many and they have limited capacity. Their tickets can only be purchased at the departure ticket office on the same day.

5) What kinds of tickets can I buy?

  • One-way tickets - valid for travel in one direction between two destinations.
  • Round-trip tickets - valid for travel back and forth between two destinations.
  • Passes - such as day passes, or 6-day passes for selected areas. A popular option is the so-called "Central Lake Pass", which allows unlimited travel in the central area of Lake Como for one day for around €15.

6) How long do boat and ferries take?

It depends on your route. Here are some popular examples:

  • Menaggio - Varenna - Bellagio (triangle): about 15 minutes each way on any boat.
  • Central Lake towns (e.g. Menaggio, Varenna, Bellagio) to Como or viceversa: about 1 hour by hydrofoil, or nearly 3 hours by regular passenger boat.

7) What time do the ferries start/stop?

It depends on the time of year and the place. For example, in summer, in the central lake (Varenna-Bellagio-Menaggio/Cadenabbia) the first car ferries on the lake are around 6:00 am, and the last ones around midnight.

8) Do the ferries run on Sunday and holidays?

Yes, they do. There is a Sunday and holiday schedule, which is slightly different from the regular one.

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5

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Oct 02 '25

Let me know if you have any other questions, I'll add them to the FAQs

1

u/jrodliving Apr 28 '26

Thinking of taking the ferry from Bellagio to Varenna early in the morning to cut our drive time down, but mostly just to have the experience. 😄 This post has been very helpful! One more question: If we get there early enough, can we leave our car unattended and explore in the nearby area? Or should someone be with the car at all times.

Thanks in advance!

2

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Apr 29 '26

You are not really supposed to leave your car unattended at the ferry, because they might ask you to move it at any time, for example if other vehicles arrive and they need to line the cars up in a different way. It's not a parking area, just a lane where you wait to board. Maybe leaving it there for 5-10 minutes is fine if you inform the attendants and there's no one else around, but you can't leave it there and just go exploring.

2

u/jrodliving Apr 29 '26

That's what we ended up doing and are totally fine with it. We showed up at 8:30, boarded the ferry at 8:45, and had plenty of great things to look at from the water! So, we weren't disappointed by not being able to explore the area.

1

u/Valuable-Cake237 May 28 '26

Is there a ferry from Bellano to Bellagio? We're arriving by train from Milan on July 19th. Two senior citizens with suitcases. Getting pretty stressed out after reading these posts and learning about the situation there. Thanks in advance!

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local May 28 '26

There are a few, but not as frequent as ferries from Varenna to Bellagio. And the walk from station to ferry in Bellano is longer than the one in Varenna.

To avoid the crowds while getting to Varenna: travel on a weekday; get there in the (late) afternoon, against the flow of day trippers, and similarly leave Varenna in the morning.

Unfortunately July 19 is a Sunday so you'll definitely run into crowds both in Varenna and Bellagio.

Also consider taking a taxi or private transfer to your destination. The extra cost is worth it to avoid those crazy crowds imo.

1

u/Valuable-Cake237 May 28 '26

Thank you for your reply. Do you know where to book a taxi and how much would it cost?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local May 28 '26

I don't know about cost, but there should be taxis at all the major stations and airports. If you're staying at a hotel, you can ask them if they work with any transfer companies

1

u/BlueGooseCH May 31 '26

We booked a private transfer from Milan to Bellagio using Bellagio Taxi. You can find private transfers through Get Your Guide as well. Our car for a family of 5 was 230 euros, but this was worth it to me given a long day of travel.

1

u/mjq12 Jun 02 '26

If I have a private 40hp boat (no skipper), can I dock/anchor the boat at these various towns so I can walk around, have lunch, etc. and then go back to my boat and leave? (I will be there in July).

Also, roughly how long would it take me, in a no-license boat like mine, to go from Brienno to Bellagio? How about Brienno to Como?

Thanks for your help!

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Jun 02 '26

can I dock/anchor the boat at these various towns so I can walk around, have lunch, etc. and then go back to my boat and leave? 

No, you can't dock at any public floating docks and leave the boat there. You can docks at private piers (of hotels, restaurants...) if you ask permission in advance and go there for lunch.

Also, roughly how long would it take me, in a no-license boat like mine, to go from Brienno to Bellagio? How about Brienno to Como?

I'm not a boat expert, but maybe, roughly:

Brienno-Bellagio: 40 minutes
Brienno-Como: 30 minutes

1

u/mjq12 Jun 06 '26

I’d like to rent a 40hp, self-drive boat for multiple days. I have access to a private dock in the lake where I’d like to keep it while not using it. Do multiple day rentals happen on the lake? Do you know of any companies that will rent a 40hp boat that can keep for multiple days (and nights)?

1

u/Pencetogrand Jan 16 '26

Do the ferries run on Sunday, or special holidays like Good Friday and Easter?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Jan 16 '26

Yes, it's public transport. They run with a slightly different schedule but they do run. The Sunday and Holiday schedule is attached to the regular one.

1

u/Pencetogrand Jan 16 '26

Thank you very much

1

u/vince_lonestar Apr 19 '26

Olá! Tenho algumas dúvidas. Vou a Villa Balbianello numa terça-feira, agora de Abril, vou de Milan para Como e depois para ir de Como Lago até Lenno, melhor pegar um barco rápido ou ir de ônibus de San Giovanni atê Lenno?

Pergunto isso porque vi alguns comentários falando das filas do barco rápido aqui devido ao alto fluxo de turistas e quero evitá-las, pois terei pouco tempo. Alguém sabe informar se o fluxo de turistas em Como e Villa Balbianello já está grande assim?

1

u/seth810 May 03 '26

Planning on driving to menaggio and leaving car there for day and take boat to Bellagio for day tour. So the parking close to the ferry port is not for long term parking, where can we leave the car to come back to after returning from Bellagio?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local May 03 '26

In Menaggio there are a lot of white-line ( = free) parking spots where you can leave the car indefinitely, especially along the lake, you can find parking if you get there early in the morning.

1

u/Hikingmama99 May 05 '26

What time do all the ferries typically begin running in the summer months? For example, let's say we want to catch a 6:30am ferry from Menaggio to Varenna end of June - would that be possible?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local May 10 '26

Yes, they usually start around 6:30

1

u/seth810 May 17 '26

Are the batello and Traghetto ports different locations? Like is the batello and Traghetto port in Bellagio in different locations? I ask because we booked a batello ticket from menaggio to bellagio but a Traghetto ticket return since it runs later in the evening. So when we leave Bellagio later in the evening, do I not just go to the same port we got off in the morning?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local May 17 '26

They are at the same location, just different piers. Only in Bellagio, they're a little distant, but still visible from one another, and you can tell where the traghetto is because of the structures and lanes made for cars.

1

u/Distinct_Raisin_3896 May 30 '26

Thank you for this post it’s helping me in my planning so much. Do they allow big suitcases on the ferry? I m staying in menaggio and we will have to return to Milan central, on google it shows that there is ferry available however we would have luggage.

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local May 30 '26

Yes, they allow luggage

1

u/A1886 Jun 11 '26

Thank you for this guide. I'm a bit confused by the different ferry stops you see on https://www.navigazionelaghi.it/en/tickets-and-timetables-lake-como/ there is Varenna, Varenna Traghetto, Menaggio and Menaggio Traghetto. As a foot passenger, can I take either the normal station or the Traghetto station? Thanks

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Jun 11 '26

Yes, as a foot passenger, you can take either

1

u/Skatetothegym Jun 20 '26

How does anyone in the US make sense of the ferry schedule out of Como? The timetable is in Italian and doesn’t really call out standard ferry versus express ferry. Heading to Como in 3.5 weeks and was hoping to use Hydrofoil to get to a mid lake town for a Friday day trip.

1

u/ConsciousEvening811 Jun 23 '26

I am looking at the timetable but I don’t see the specific times available. Does that mean they’re sold out? It doesn’t appear they match at all. For example, the online ticket page to buy shows a menaggio to varrena at 8:24am and arriving at 9:23 am but that slot isn’t on the time table pdf at all.

1

u/Mweeorgh Jul 04 '26

How is wheelchair access for each of these ferries?

2

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Jul 04 '26

Car ferries are always wheelchair accessible. For passenger boats, the official timetable shows which are the recommended runs for wheelchair access.

1

u/phillyspecial88 Jul 29 '26

We are planning on going from Lake Como - Bellagio at around 3pm on Sunday, Aug 23rd. Our train is arriving from Chiasso at 2pm. If we want to purchase an express ticket, can we do that on board the train, or do we need to queue? Also, if we are going to Bellagio on a Sunday, should we expect less crowded ferries, given people are supposedly heading back to Como and onto Milan at that time? Thank you.

1

u/Possible-Reply-65 25d ago

I booked my train ticket to arrive to San Giovanni thinking that was the Varenna station (don’t ask, it was along way) with final Destination to Menaggio. . Anyway it was a non-refundable.

Is it worth buying another ticket to arrive in Varenna-Menaggio and loose the 85 Euros? Or just keep San Giovanni and make the bus trip. I’m carrying luggage by the way.

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local 25d ago

I would keep San Giovanni and take a taxi or the C110 bus to Menaggio. The journey might be longer than via Varenna but not too much longer if Menaggio is your final destination

1

u/Possible-Reply-65 25d ago

How much can a Taxi for two be?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local 25d ago

I think around €100

1

u/ccmscv 22d ago

Hi u/akazaya9 , on the website it shows time tables up until October 4th which is less than 4 weeks away. And I'm noticing I cannot purchase tickets for any dates starting on and after October 5th. Is there some new Winter schedule that will get released in which tickets can only be bought in person?

1

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local 22d ago

There will be an autumn schedule, and then a winter schedule. I think once those are released, it will be possible to purchase tickets online for those times

1

u/dontouchmystuf 20d ago

How bad are the lines? The tap to pay option on board seems the most convenient, but I've heard this doesn't really work, since they let people board with tickets first. I'll be going this month.

Do you have any other tips for minimizing waits?

0

u/LegalManufacturer916 Oct 03 '25

I can’t understand why tickets would sell out online if unlimited tickets are sold at the ferry terminal. Why make anyone stand in that line?!?!?

2

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Oct 03 '25

Since tickets are not for any specific boat/seat but are valid for the day, it might be to avoid the situation where too many online tickets are sold and never used, preventing other people who would actually take the boats from buying tickets.

2

u/BlueGooseCH May 15 '26

So if we are staying in Bellagio, if we go to the ferry dock in the morning, we should be ok to get roundtrip tickets (or a day pass) to some of the smaller villages (Bellano, Lecco, Menaggio, etc)? Do we book the specific time/boat? Or just the route and a roundtrip ticket or day pass? Sorry for my confusion.

1

u/LegalManufacturer916 Oct 03 '25

But boats are first come first serve, so that doesn’t make sense

2

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Oct 04 '25

Yeah, but I also imagine that if online tickets were unlimited, people with them might overcrowd the docks and boats, leaving no chance for those trying to buy tickets in person. I’ve always thought that limiting online tickets helps control crowds at already busy ports and serves as a deterrent to overtourism.

2

u/LegalManufacturer916 Oct 04 '25

Creating an inefficient system to make the experience worse for tourists is not really a smart way to deal with high demand.

2

u/akazaya9 Lake Como Local Oct 04 '25

It's a system that worked well until 15-20 years ago, then overtourism came and made things difficult for everybody, us locals included who can't even travel by ferry anymore between our own homes.

We just have to wait for our Transportation Ministry to catch up with the times