Is Como City Worth Visiting? What We Loved and What We Didn’t

Is Como worth visiting, or is it all hype? If you ask me, the answer is a resounding YES!

Of all the places we visited in Lake Como, Como city was one of the two that surprised us the most, and we ended up staying way longer than anticipated.

Como has so much to offer, culturally and historically, and not to mention foodwise! It’s bigger than many of the other Lake Como towns, making the options way wider than other places around the lake.

But, like most places, Como has its pros and cons, and I’m here to help you untangle the doubts you might have about whether it’s the right destination for you.

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Things we loved about Como

Charming old town

Como Old Town is incredibly charming, with so many beautiful buildings everywhere. It’s one of those places you just want to get a gelato while getting lost in its streets, soaking in everything around you!

We stayed in Como alone for a couple of weeks, and every day, we noticed something that kept us staring at a house, a shop, or a street corner.

I get it that you might not have as much time in Como as we do when slow traveling, but trust me when I say, just let yourself get lost in the streets of the old town for 2-3 hours before you leave.

Besides, you have some of the top attractions there, like the Como Cathedral and multiple wonderful squares to fall in love with.

Vegan gelato everywhere

Don’t get me started on the gelato! While I’m normally eating fully plant-based, I sometimes go vegetarian in Italy, but just for some things like mozzarella on the pizza and Parmeggiano Reggiano on the pasta.

But I really prefer my gelato vegan, and I LOVED how many vegan options there were in Como beyond the obvious sorbet options.

I even found my favorite gelato, nocciola (hazelnut), completely vegan, and Mohammed fell in love with an almond flavor, which was amazing!

While we returned daily to Ge.Lab gelateria close to the cathedral, because of the almond gelato, we did find great vegan options many other places too. The perk of being in a larger destination!

Not as overtouristed as other Lake Como destinations

After traveling around Lake Como and Lake Maggiore, we found Como way less overtouristed than other destinations, like Varenna and Bellagio.

Como is a bigger city, which spreads tourists around, yes, but we felt a good mix of locals and tourists. Besides, you can always escape the tourist center and find hidden gems, bars, and restaurants away from the crowds.

That said, Lecco was our absolute favorite place on Lake Como, and there were a lot fewer tourists there. But again, Como is the gateway to Lake Como with direct trains from Milan, so most travelers will pass through Como in one way or another.

We still loved that it didn’t feel crowded or overwhelming walking around, even to the tourist sites.

Como cathedral

Do I need to say more? This was my first trip to Lake Como as an adult, and Como Cathedral blew me away!

The cathedral was built over a span of almost 400 years, from the late 1300s to the mid 1700s, and like so many other major cathedrals in Italy, it features different building styles.

For some reason, I love these cathedrals even more because they have so much beauty from different centuries in one building.

And may I add, all churches and cathedrals in Italy are free to enter, and there was no queue to get inside when we were there.

Beautiful lakefront

Como’s lakefront is beautiful, and there’s a lovely promenade to walk along it. You also find some of Como’s top attractions along the lakefront, like Tempio Voltiano, which is a museum dedicated to Alessandro Volta, which is the Como-local scientist behind the battery as we know it today.

You also find the Life Electric Monument, a modern statue that symbolizes energy and electricity. It was installed in 2015 and designed by the artist Daniel Libeskind. You must walk out on the pier to reach the statue in the middle of the bay, where the views of Como are pretty awesome.

But I really love the walk further ahead, past the funicular to Brunate, where it’s a bit more relaxing with fewer people.

Easy trip to Brunate with the funicular

We absolutely loved taking the funicular, dating back to 1894, to the tiny hilltop village, Brunate, for the most epic Lake Como views.

Not only was it a nice experience, but it was also dog-friendly, and we didn’t pay anything extra for Atlas, which was an extra perk.

Brunate is a tiny village overlooking the lake, known as “The balcony over the Alps” for its spectacular views.

Besides, Brunate is known for its Art Nouveau-style villas, but my absolute favorite thing to do is the hike to Voltiano Lighthouse. The lighthouse was built in 1927 and dedicated to Alessandro Volta, hence the name.

Things we didn’t like so much

Parking (with a van)

Como is a busy city with limited parking, and parking with the van was challenging. Not because we had a big van, this was with Persi, and she’s a very small van. That means, we didn’t need more than a normal parking space.

But even using the app Park4Night, we couldn’t find a great place to park. So we stayed on a street along a wall, with residential buildings on the other side. Luckily, we got some privacy, though cars were driving by all day and night.

If you’re campervanning in Italy, this is probably not the best place to stay with a van, but we still found it worth it to enjoy the town for a while.

On the other hand, if you’re on a Lake Como road trip with a rental or private car, staying in a hotel, I recommend looking for a hotel with parking to avoid the hassle of finding parking nearby.

Swimming opportunities

So, this is one of the things that annoys me in Italy. Mind me, I’m half Italian and spent months at the time every year in Italy since I was a baby, and most of the time on the beaches, so I’m allowed to say it.

The privatizing of the beaches is super annoying! Being in a lake town where you can’t go swimming anywhere in the summer heat is super annoying.

Como has a small beach off the promenade, but it’s strictly prohibited to swim there.

While there are some paid opportunities nearby, they won’t let dogs there, so traveling with a dog was challenging for us in the summer heat. I mean, Atlas got to shower in the drinking fountains all day, but it was more challenging for us!

Verdict: Is Como worth visiting?

Summing up, I truly think Como is worth visiting, and it’s one of the places we’ve returned to several times after our first visit (not only for the ice cream, I promise!).

That said, Como is a city, and some of the smaller towns around Lake Como are more peaceful. But definitely not the touristy ones.

While the parking issue is more valid for those of us who travel by campervan, it’s still going to be a challenge to park with a car. And finally, if you don’t travel with dogs, you can easily pay for one of the lidos around Como to go swimming.

We really love the city and will be back again as soon as the opportunity arises!

Happy travels!