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closeWhen people say Lake Como, the lake is the bit that gets the attention. We’ve shared a few favorite ways to enjoy it before - like visiting CASABIANCA or La Velarca - but there is another bit that gets passed over too quickly: Como.
Some guests arrive thinking Como is a small lakeside village, or a useful place to pass through on the way to Bellagio, or simply the name of the lake. But Como is a real city with Roman roots, medieval walls, a Gothic duomo, working markets, wine bars, and streets that feel like they’ve seen a few lives.
There’s a lot to see and do in Como, but here are the Belvedere Bellagio team’s favorite ways to explore the city. We’ve slightly cheated as the first four are in Como, the final three are further around the lake. Forgive us.
If you only have one evening in Como, it would be very tempting to spend it at Vineria Vitani.
Sitting in the historic Cortesella neighborhood, on one of the city’s oldest streets, Vineria Vitani has around 11,000 bottles on display, ranging from the classics of Valtellina and Piedmont to bottles that are much harder to find. If you are a collector, or simply someone who enjoys hearing why a particular vintage matters, this is a very good place to sit down.
You can buy bottles to go, but we prefer the slower version: a glass at the table, something small to eat, and time to look around. There are cold dishes, cheeses, cured meats and beef tartare, but the real pleasure is in letting the owners guide you toward something you might not have chosen yourself.
Como has its grand moments. The Duomo, of course, but we have always had a soft spot for the Church of San Fedele.
From the outside, it is simple and austere. The square around it is still a place of small shops and local movement, even if, yes, parts of the craft market have become a little more commercial over time.
Still, there is something in the shape of the square that takes you back. You can imagine merchants arriving with wagons, voices carrying across the stone, and Barbarossa’s soldiers passing through on patrol. Perhaps that sounds dramatic, but some places make the past very easy to picture and San Fedele is one of them.
If you can arrive in Como before lunch, start at the Mercato Coperto in Via Mentana.
The covered market has been part of the city since 1934 and still feels like a proper working place. You’ll find local Lombardy produce, fresh fish, flowers, and small stalls where people are buying ingredients for dinner rather than souvenirs for a suitcase. Saturday is especially good as farmers bring in more local goods from around the region.
One of our team’s favorite mornings is very simple: rent a bike, go to the market, buy flowers from the kiosk, then cycle to Villa Olmo. The ride takes about 15 minutes from the center, following the lake toward the northwestern edge of Como.
Villa Olmo sits at the end of the Lino Gelpi promenade, surrounded by its Italian-style garden, fountain and flower beds. Inside, there are paintings, statues, and frescoes by Andrea Appiani and Domenico Pozzi. There’s a kiosk nearby where you can stop for breakfast. It’s peaceful in a way cities rarely are.
The funicular from Como to Brunate sounds touristy until you do it and remember why people keep recommending it.
In just a few minutes, the city drops below you and the lake starts to arrange itself into a clearer shape. From Brunate, you can continue on foot through the village, following cobbled streets and paths up toward the Faro Voltiano - a tall octagonal lighthouse and monument.
The lighthouse was built in honor of Alessandro Volta, Como’s great scientist, and the view from here is worth the uphill stretch. You see the lake, the city, the mountains, and that particular meeting of water and stone that defines this part of Lombardy.
A few steps from the lighthouse is La Polenteria. If you like traditional food, especially cheese, this is a good place to know about. After a walk uphill, polenta always makes a lot of sense.
Now for some things to do outside Como, further along the lake…
The Argegno-Pigra cable car gives you one of the quickest changes of perspective in the region.
In about five minutes, it carries you from the lakeside town of Argegno, at around 200 meters, up to the mountain village of Pigra, at around 850 meters. It is one of the steepest cable cars in Europe, and the view back down to the lake is almost startling in its simplicity.
This is the great gift of Lake Como. You can be by the water at breakfast and in a mountain village in time for your second coffee of the day.
For another view of the lake, go to Varenna and walk up to Castello di Vezio. The climb is steep, with cobblestones underfoot, and takes around half an hour from Olivedo at the northern end of Varenna. You can also reach it from near Villa Monastero, following the Sentiero Scabium, which takes a little longer.
The castle itself was once a military outpost and it still has that watchful feeling. You can visit the gardens, dungeons, walls and tower, where there is a permanent exhibition about the Lariosauro, the lake’s prehistoric legend which Franco wrote about in a previous note.
Then there are the ghosts.
Across the grounds you’ll find pale sculptures that look like figures caught in the middle of leaving. There is also a centaur which makes the place feel even stranger. My kids usually love it. Adults pretend they are being sensible then take just as many photos.
Careno is one of those places that makes you lower your voice without quite knowing why.
You park on the street then walk down the steps toward the lake. There is a small beach where you can swim, stone houses pressed into the slope, and Trattoria del Porto waiting close to the water.
The restaurant feels like going back in time in the best possible way. Dishes are still brought out on silver plates, the terrace looks across the lake, and nothing is trying to be modern.
Zambra, the owner, is also the keeper of the keys to the Romanesque church of San Martino which sits beside the trattoria. Don’t forget to ask about it.
The famous stereotypes of Lake Como are famous for good reason. The villas, boats, gardens and views are all part of the story. But Como itself deserves your time too.
Go for the city’s old stones, its market mornings, its austere churches, its wine cellars, and the small journeys that begin from its shores. Go because the lake is beautiful, yes, but also because the word Como carries more history than many people realize.
A presto,
Giulia
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