Hotels near Lake Cruise

A lake cruise on Lake Como is best done on the regular public ferries rather than a tour boat. Gestione Governativa Navigazione Laghi has operated scheduled services here since the first steamboat Lario launched in 1826, and the current fleet of passenger ferries (battelli), hydrofoils (aliscafi), and car ferries (traghetti) covers the entire lake at fares a fraction of the tourist cruises. The central-lake day pass covers unlimited travel in the Bellagio-Varenna-Menaggio-Tremezzo triangle.

The routing decision is the interesting one. A single end-to-end ride from Como to Colico on the slow battello takes around 4 hours and covers the full 46 km length of the lake. The faster aliscafo cuts that to about 2 hours but skips some smaller stops. The Varenna-Bellagio car ferry crossing is the shortest, busiest, and most photogenic - 15 minutes across the centre of the lake with all three branches in view from the deck. Tickets are sold at every pier; pay attention to the colour-coded zone map at the kiosk.

Pro Tip: Sit on the right-hand side of the boat heading north from Como - that puts the western shore villas (Balbianello, Tremezzo, Cadenabbia) in your view in the morning when the light is best. Switch sides on the return leg in the afternoon.