Varenna: The Romantic Village on Lake Como

A pastel-coloured fishing village

Varenna began as a fishing village, and you can still feel it. There are no wide streets here: only stairways and lanes that climb from the shore, ochre, pink and terracotta façades pressed up against each other, washing on the line and boats hauled up out of the water. The old heart is the Contrada del Riva, the little waterfront where the houses are mirrored in the lake — one of the most photographed corners on the whole lake, and early in the morning, before the boats arrive, it is almost entirely yours.

Above the harbour opens Piazza San Giorgio, with its Romanesque church and the town hall: the spot where the village breathes. From here you set off for everything — the lakeside walk, the climb to the gardens, the path up to the castle. Varenna is small and entirely walkable: wear comfortable shoes, because here you are forever going up and down.

The lovers’ walk

The symbol of Varenna is the Passeggiata degli Innamorati — literally the “lovers’ walk” — a pedestrian path bolted to the rock that runs along the water and links the boat landing to the old centre. It is a short but theatrical stretch: walkways suspended over the lake, low arches, and a continuous view of Bellagio with the Grignone behind you. At sunset the light cuts across the lake and sets the houses on the opposite shore aglow — the right moment to stop and take your time.

It is an easy walk, suitable for everyone, but the surface can be slippery when the water is high or after rain: keep that in mind on windy days. For this lakefront alone the boat ride is worth it.

Villa Monastero and Villa Cipressi: two gardens on the water

Varenna’s two jewels are the gardens of Villa Monastero and Villa Cipressi, side by side at the southern end of the village. Villa Monastero began as a Cistercian monastery and is today a house-museum with a botanical garden that stretches nearly two kilometres along the shore: agaves, palms, cedars, statues, and a glimpse of the water at every step. Villa Cipressi takes its name from its cypresses and is known for its terraces dropping toward the lake — a succession of stairs, blossoms and balconies.

• Villa Monastero — a long, linear botanical garden along the shore, a house-museum you can tour, avenues of palms and agaves.
• Villa Cipressi — terraced gardens with centuries-old cypresses, now also a hotel, with an open view over the lake.
• The two parks are adjacent: many visitors see them back to back the same afternoon.

Opening hours and tickets change with the season (in winter they often close), so always check the official sites before you go. In spring and autumn the light is softer and the queues at the gates are shorter.

The Castello di Vezio, above the village

High up, where the houses end and the woods begin, you can pick out the outline of the Castello di Vezio, a medieval fortress with a tower that commands Varenna and the whole central branch of the lake. You reach it on a walk of about twenty minutes from the centre: steep but short, and at the top the panorama repays every step — Bellagio, the headland, the mountains, and the water opening in three directions. In summer the castle also stages birds-of-prey flying displays. Here, too, hours and openings are seasonal: check before you climb.

Varenna and Bellagio, two shores compared

Varenna and Bellagio look at each other across the water, right where the lake splits into its three branches, and together they make the classic pairing of a day out on Lake Como. Bellagio is livelier, more fashionable, full of shops; Varenna is quieter, more vertical, more romantic. The lovely part is that the ferry links them in about ten minutes, so you can see both in the same day. To give the other shore a whole day, read our guide to a day in Bellagio from Como.

Our advice: morning in Varenna, when the gardens are cool and the lanes are quiet, then the ferry to Bellagio for lunch and the afternoon. For a slower stretch on the lake — boat, villages and food — there is also our two-day weekend in Como.

How to reach Varenna by ferry

From Como, Varenna is reachable on the lake’s scheduled boats: the fast hydrofoil services take far less time than the slower boats that stop at every village, but the timetable changes a great deal between summer and winter. From Bellagio and Menaggio, instead, there is the frequent car-and-passenger ferry that crosses the centre of the lake in a few minutes. Varenna also has a railway station on the Milan–Tirano line, handy if you are coming from farther afield. Always check the current official timetables before you travel, especially for the last return crossing to Como.

Where to eat? Along the water you will find trattorias and restaurants built around lake fish — the classics are the lavarello (whitefish) and the missoltino, the sun-dried shad typical of Lake Como — alongside risottos and fresh pasta. Look for the places with a view over the little harbour, and check recent reviews for opening hours and availability.

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A morning on the lake, an afternoon in the kitchen

Varenna is the postcard; hand-rolled pasta is the memory you carry home. Many of our guests give the morning to the lake — villages, gardens, boats — and the afternoon or evening to our cooking class in Como, a short walk from the historic centre. In about 3 hours you learn the sfoglia with the resident chef trained at Rina Poletti’s Accademia della Sfoglia, build your own Aperol or Campari spritz to enjoy as your aperitivo, and finish with gelato topped with a few drops of Traditional Balsamic of Modena DOP. Choose the menu you like: tagliatelle with ragù or green ricotta ravioloni. For lake foodies, see also what to eat in Como.