If you're planning a short trip to Lake Como, two days is enough to see quite a lot without needing to hire a car or move between different hotels.
We've visited Lake Como twice now, both times getting around entirely by public transport. On our most recent trip, we flew into Milan Malpensa, based ourselves in Lecco for two nights and spent our full day exploring Varenna.
We visited in February half term, when Lake Como is much quieter than you'll find it during the summer. We had blue skies, snow on the mountains and hardly any crowds, although the shorter winter days did mean we had to be a little more realistic about how much we could fit in.
We've actually visited Lake Como twice in February now and had dry weather with temperatures around 12°C both times.
For this trip, we chose Lecco as our base. It's easy to reach by train, accommodation can be better value than some of the more famous towns around the lake, and you can get directly to Varenna in around 25 minutes. There are also buses from Lecco to Bellagio, so you've got plenty of options without needing a car.
Our trip was technically two nights rather than two complete sightseeing days, so I'll show you exactly what we did, along with what I'd change if you have two full days available.
In this guide, I'll cover our route, where we stayed, how we got around Lake Como using public transport, what we spent and how I'd plan two days if we were doing the trip again.
We've also put together a full guide to getting from Milan Malpensa Airport to Lake Como, including routes to Como, Lecco, Varenna, Bellagio and Bellano.
Planning a bigger Italy trip? We’ve travelled around Italy loads over the last few years, mostly using trains and public transport. You can find all our Italy travel guides and itineraries here, including budget trips, where to stay and how to get around without a car.
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📍 Base: Lecco / Malgrate
🏨 Stayed: 2 nights
🚆 Getting around: Trains, buses and ferries
🚗 Car needed: No
✈️ Fly into Milan Malpensa
🚆 Train to Lecco via Milano Centrale
🏞 Walk around Lecco and the lakefront
🏨 Check into our hotel in Malgrate
🌅 Relaxed evening overlooking the lake
🚆 Lecco → Varenna-Esino, around 25 minutes
🏘 Explore Varenna and the lakefront
🍝 Lunch overlooking the harbour
⛴ Optional ferry to Bellagio or Menaggio if timings allow
🚆 Train back to Lecco
If you have two full sightseeing days: I'd use one for Varenna and the central lake, then spend the second exploring Bellagio and Lecco rather than trying to squeeze everything into one day.
For this trip, we chose Lecco as our base, although our hotel was actually just across the water in Malgrate.
Lecco isn't necessarily the first place people think of when planning Lake Como. Varenna, Bellagio and Como tend to get most of the attention, but we found Lecco really handy for a short trip without a car.
It's on the train line from Milan, and from Lecco you can take a direct train to Varenna in around 25 minutes, continue further north towards Bellano and Tirano, or take the bus to Bellagio.
We stayed at Hotel Griso Collection in Malgrate, which is on the opposite side of the water from Lecco. We paid £269 in total for two nights, which worked out at £90pp for the three of us.
The biggest selling point for us was the view. Our family room had a balcony overlooking Lake Como and the mountains, and in February there was still snow sitting on the peaks.
The hotel is around a 25-minute walk from Lecco station, but most of the route follows the lake, so we didn't mind doing it with our backpacks. That's worth bearing in mind if you're arriving with larger suitcases though.
For a two-day trip, I'd happily base myself around Lecco again. It gave us easy train connections without paying some of the prices you'll find in the more famous towns, and we could still get out and explore the lake during the day.
We didn't hire a car for either of our Lake Como trips and personally, I don't think you need one for this itinerary.
We flew from Manchester to Milan Malpensa Airport for our two-night Lake Como trip.
Our return flights cost £108pp, which included reserving seats together both ways. That's more than we'd usually pay for flights to Milan, but we were travelling during February half term and the Winter Olympics were taking place at the same time, so prices were higher than normal.
For such a short trip, we only took backpacks. It saved us paying for extra luggage and made getting on and off trains and walking to our hotel much easier.
Once we'd collected our bags at Malpensa, we followed the signs for the train station.
Both Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 have their own station, so you don't need to take a shuttle between terminals to catch the train.
Our route was:
Milan Malpensa Airport → Milano Centrale → Lecco
We took the Malpensa Express into Milano Centrale and then changed onto a train heading towards Tirano, getting off at Lecco.
The change at Milano Centrale was much easier than you might expect from such a huge station. We just needed to find our next platform and walk across to it, without leaving the station.
We did have one slight issue buying our tickets at Malpensa. Because the next train was due quite soon, it wasn't showing as available to buy through the apps or ticket machines. We went to the ticket counter instead and they sorted everything for us really quickly.
Our train tickets from Malpensa to Lecco cost £46.11 one way for two adults and one child. Based on making the same journey back, that would work out at around £30.74pp return.
We've since put together a full Milan Malpensa Airport to Lake Como guide, covering routes to Como, Lecco, Varenna, Bellagio and Bellano, so have a read of that if you're trying to work out the best route for where you're staying.
Once we arrived at Lecco station, we headed towards our hotel in Malgrate, which sits just across the water from Lecco.
It's around a 25-minute walk from the station, but a lot of the route is along the lake, so it's actually quite a nice walk. We only had backpacks, which made it easy enough, but I'd probably think differently if I was dragging a couple of big suitcases with me.
We'd planned to find somewhere to eat on the way to the hotel, but didn't really come across anywhere suitable that was open. That's one thing I'd plan a little better if we did the same trip again, particularly when visiting in winter.
Our family room had two double beds, although they were slightly smaller than a standard double, plus a pull-out bed. The room itself wasn't as modern as some of the renovated rooms we'd seen online, but it was spacious, clean and worked well for us.
The real selling point was the balcony and the view. We looked straight across Lake Como towards the mountains, which still had snow sitting on the tops in February. It was probably one of the best views we've had from a family room, especially for what we'd paid.
There was also a rooftop hot tub, although unfortunately this was closed during our winter visit.
By the time we'd checked in, we were hungry and didn't really fancy walking back out looking for somewhere to eat.
The hotel's restaurant menu didn't have loads that appealed to the kids, so we ended up ordering room service instead.
We ordered three pizzas and four Cokes and paid €90. The pizzas weren't particularly great either, so this definitely wasn't our finest budget travel moment.
If we did it again, I'd either eat in Lecco before walking over to Malgrate or pick something up to take back to the hotel.
It didn't spoil the evening though. It gets dark early in Lake Como in February and we don't particularly enjoy being out late when it's cold anyway, so we were quite happy getting warm, putting a film on and spending the evening in the room with that view over the lake.
It was a very relaxed first day, but with only two nights at Lake Como, we'd deliberately saved our main sightseeing for the following morning when we were heading to Varenna.
For our full day at Lake Como, we decided to visit Varenna. We'd actually been before as part of our Bernina Express trip, but really liked it and wanted to go back when we had more time to wander around.
From Lecco, getting there couldn't really be much easier. We walked back to Lecco station and took the direct train to Varenna-Esino, which takes around 24 minutes.
Our tickets cost £7.30 in total for two adults and one child, so it was a really cheap day trip too.
Varenna station sits slightly above the town, but it's only a short walk downhill towards the lake. Once you're there, everything is easy enough to explore on foot.
One of my favourite parts is simply walking along the lakefront. The Passeggiata degli Innamorati, or Lovers' Walk, follows the edge of the lake between the ferry area and the centre of Varenna, with some gorgeous views across the water.
From there, we wandered around the harbour and through the little streets behind it. Varenna isn't huge, which is part of why I like it. You don't need an itinerary packed with attractions to enjoy being there, and it's a really easy place to spend a few hours just walking around.
There are a couple of bigger attractions if you want to add them. Villa Monastero has gardens stretching along the lakefront, and Castello di Vezio sits above Varenna with views over Lake Como.
Because we visited in February, not everything was operating to the same timetable you'd find during the main season, so I'd always check opening dates before building your day around a particular attraction.
We stopped for lunch at Bar Molo, right beside the harbour.
Despite it being February, we were able to sit outside overlooking the lake. They had heaters and blankets, and with the sun out it was actually really lovely.
Our meal came to €81 for the three of us, and afterwards we stopped for gelato, which cost £3.32.
This is one of the reasons I wouldn't rush Varenna just to tick off several Lake Como towns in one day. Sitting beside the lake having lunch and actually having time to enjoy where we were was much nicer than constantly checking the time for the next train or ferry.
Yes, and if you're visiting during the warmer months with longer daylight hours, Varenna and Bellagio work really well together.
Ferries run across the central part of the lake between Varenna, Bellagio and Menaggio, so you can use Varenna as your starting point and add another town quite easily.
We considered doing more ourselves, but because we were visiting in February, daylight was limited and the winter ferry timetable wasn't as frequent. Trying to fit Varenna, Bellagio and Menaggio into the same day would have meant rushing around rather than actually enjoying any of them.
If I was doing this itinerary in spring or summer, I'd probably spend the morning in Varenna, have lunch there and then take the ferry across to Bellagio for the afternoon.
In winter, I'd make the decision on the day based on the weather, ferry timetable and how early you get started.
After spending the day in Varenna, we took the train back to Lecco. The journey only takes around 25 minutes, which is one of the reasons Lecco worked so well as a base for us.
We still had some time before heading back to the hotel, so we had a wander around the shops in Lecco. I'm not quite sure how the kids were hungry again after the big meal we'd had in Varenna, but they decided they wanted McDonald's for dinner.
I wasn't particularly bothered about having anything else to eat by that point, and after our €90 room service the night before, I wasn't complaining about the cheaper option either.
Afterwards, we headed down towards the lake and sat by the water for a while. It was a really nice way to finish the day, with the mountains all around us and the lake right in front.
Eventually it started getting a bit too cold to sit there, so we walked back around the lake towards our hotel in Malgrate.
Our trip was two nights, but we didn't actually have two full sightseeing days. Day one included flying into Milan Malpensa and travelling to Lecco, then we had one complete day before flying home.
If I had two full days at Lake Como, I'd definitely use the extra time to see a little more, but I still wouldn't try to cram every town around the lake into one trip.
I'd keep Varenna exactly as we did it, but get there early and then take the ferry across to Bellagio in the afternoon.
You could spend the morning wandering around Varenna, walk along the lakefront, visit Villa Monastero if it's open and stop for lunch before catching the ferry.
I'd then spend the afternoon in Bellagio before either taking the ferry back to Varenna for the train or catching the bus directly back to Lecco.
In summer, when you've got much longer daylight hours and more frequent ferry services, you could potentially fit even more in. Personally though, I'd rather enjoy Varenna and Bellagio properly than spend the day racing between three or four different towns.
For the second day, I'd give myself some proper time in Lecco. We enjoyed wandering around the shops and sitting beside the lake at the end of our Varenna day, but because our trip was so short we didn't dedicate a full morning or afternoon to exploring it.
You could combine Lecco with Bellano, which is further north on the same train line as Varenna. We've stayed in Bellano on a previous trip and it's another easy place to reach without a car.
Alternatively, if there was somewhere else around the lake I really wanted to see, I'd use this as the flexible day and plan it around the ferry and bus timetables.
If it was my first ever two days at Lake Como, though, my priorities would be Varenna, Bellagio and Lecco. That gives you some of the famous Lake Como scenery without spending most of your two days getting from one place to another.
Flights: £108pp
Hotel: £90pp
Airport trains: £30.74pp return
Lecco ↔ Varenna trains: £4.84pp return
Flights, hotel & transport: £233.58pp
🍕 Room service: €90
🍝 Lunch in Varenna: €81
🍦 Gelato for two: £3.32
🍔 McDonald's: £16
🥐 Breakfast on the go: around £10 each day
Food is definitely somewhere we could have spent less, particularly the €90 room service on our first night. Apart from that, I don't think our costs were bad at all considering we were visiting Lake Como during February half term.
Yes, I think two days is enough for a first trip to Lake Como, especially if you're adding it on to a longer Italy trip or looking for an easy short break from the UK.
You're obviously not going to see the whole lake in two days, but I don't think you need to. Lake Como is somewhere I'd rather visit at a slower pace than spend the whole trip jumping on and off trains, buses and ferries just to say we'd been to as many towns as possible.
Our trip was only two nights and we didn't even have two complete sightseeing days. We still had time to explore Varenna properly, spend some time in Lecco, have a long lunch overlooking the lake and enjoy the views without feeling like we were constantly rushing somewhere else.
If I had two full days, I'd add Bellagio and give ourselves more time in Lecco, but I still wouldn't try to fit every famous Lake Como town into one weekend. Varenna, Bellagio and Lecco would give me more than enough for a first visit.
You also really don't need a car for an itinerary like this. We've visited Lake Como twice now and used public transport both times. The trains make places like Lecco, Varenna and Bellano really easy to reach, while ferries and buses can get you across to other parts of the lake.
I'd happily visit in February again too. We've had dry weather and temperatures of around 12°C on both of our February trips, and seeing the snow-covered mountains behind the lake was gorgeous. You do have to work around shorter daylight hours and reduced winter ferry timetables, but in return we found it incredibly peaceful compared with the Lake Como you see during the busy summer months.
For me, the biggest thing is to pick a good base and don't over-plan it. Lake Como is just as much about sitting beside the water, stopping somewhere for lunch and taking in the views as it is ticking off different towns.
And after two visits, it's somewhere I'd still happily go back to again.
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