Is Lake Como getting crowded like the CT and AC?

I'm going to be following your reports with interest.

They call it paradise
I don't know why
You call someplace paradise
Kiss it goodbye....
Don Henley

Varenna was definitely packed in July (always) and it's probably worse nowadays, due to 'revenge travel' after Covid and the Jubilee.

Like King Midas, who turned everything he touched into pure gold, everything Rick Steves' tours (and books) touch, are turned into pure zoos. But social media (like Instagram or TikTok) are also to blame. Popular spots are popularized even more through those media.

It's time to consider new venues and new travel periods (summers and holidays, when schools are closed, are the worst). There are beautiful places that are still largely uncrowded. Unfortunately not all are well served by public transit, so it is useful to invest in renting a car, which is also getting more expensive nowadays.

Hi pat,
I thought it was possible to buy multi day passes for the ferries? So that we don’t have to wait in line every day to buy tickets. Am I wrong about this?

We are at Logan airport now waiting to board. This is a 5 week trip. We won’t be in varenna until the first week of June. What will the crowds be like then??? 😢

Am also worried about the train strike on may 6 when we have train tickets to go from Milan to Parma.

Italian schools' calendars vary from Region to Region, since Regions have jurisdiction of school matters, but for the vast majority of regions the last day of school will be Saturday June 7, with a handful ending the school year on Tuesday June 10. (pre-schools will end toward the end of the month of June). Universities end the classes in early June and hold exams during the month of June also.

Since the first week of June, will be the last, with some final exams going on, Italians will not be traveling en-masse yet on that week, and Italian schools do not hold school trips in that period (April-Mid May is the heaviest for school trips), but of course there will be lots of tourists not affected by school calendar (like retirees and others non Italians whose schools end earlier)

i believe June 2 is another holiday, and multi day ferry passes are for about a week, I think. Good luck!

The multi day passes are for 6 days, but you can only buy those in person. If I remember right, that is longer than your time there, but I think it would be worth it for the convenience.

When we were there, at times during the day the lines were very long. If you get down to the ticket office right when they open, it was easy, or right when a ferry leaves, there is a lull.

Lake Como has been a tourist magnet long before Rick was born!!
It's always heaving in good weather.

But why stick to towns like Bellagio fi your ant to avoid the masses of visitors--there are other pretty towns with fewer crowds. (And other lakes, too, for next time)

The answer to Pat’s headline question: “ Is Lake Como Getting Crowded..?” appears to be a resounding “Yes!”
Could even change “…getting crowded” to “already too crowded.”

We were there last October and it was equally as crowded. Varenna was a mob scene and given how small it is, it was awful even as a day trip. There were no festivals or holidays going on when we were there.

Dang. This is a bummer.

The crowds here are composed of younger folks, 20-30-ish, European
mostly, and the gals are all dressed up. Guess it's the Instagrammers
and posers. One gal this morning had a long velveteen spaghetti-
Strapped gown, (80 degrees) and many gals had heavy make-up and long
satiny dresses. They aren't part of weddings, we are observing them
eating gelato and sight-seeing.

Maybe members of the Tuxedo Society. It's an exclusive instagram club where members pretend to be living a cliche, 'old money' lifestyle for the cameras. Yes, it really is A Thing, and they pay dearly for the privilege. Tagline: "Attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places." Lake Como is unfortunately one of those places.

https://www.fastcompany.com/91273556/attractive-people-doing-attractive-things-members-of-this-instagram-group-dress-up-to-make-old-money-content
https://www.instagram.com/tuxedosociety/reel/C8U0bjmtdY6/
https://www.instagram.com/tuxedosociety/reel/DJHFPknoP4p/

Kathy, you are describing the scene perfectly.

I'll write a Trip Report once we return, but getting up at 7am to buy round trip ferry tickets worked well. We left on a 9:30 am ferry to Lenno, and ticket-buying lines then were reasonable, not an issue. But by 10:30am, the problems start, as the train arrives and folks walk down in masses straight to the ticket booths.
Bellagio itself wasn't terrible, as it's bigger than Varenna.
However, coming back from Bellagio at 5pm was a disaster . We waited an hour for a ferry to Varenna. The lines were all jumbled, no one could determine which was a ticket buying line, and which was a line for ticket- holders for the Varenna ferry. People were everywhere around the ferry docks. The schedule was a joke, so never wait until the last ferry.
We spoke to folks who arrived on a later afternoon Varenna train , and didn't think they'd get to their Bellagio hotel because of the ferry ticket- buying situation . Someone heard them and gave the folks unused one-way tickets- saved their day.
I don't know what the private water taxis charge, but I wished I'd looked into it beforehand.
Sadly, this is our third- and last- visit to Lake Como.
How this country will move crowds of people for the Winter Olympics is beyond me!

On May 24, I was in Varenna and I cursed myself for my naivety. I knew from the forum here that it was a great place, and after a few days on Lake Maggiore, we thought, why not Varenna? I had no idea it was an Instagram zoo, to be honest. I've decided to research what's popular on Instagram in the future and then avoid it.

But it was still fun watching the ferry dock in Varenna from the balcony of our apartment. Even today, I can still hear 'Bellagio, Bellagio' or 'Menaggio Menaggio' ringing in my ears... :-)

Since I find the lake truly stunning, like all the lakes in northern Italy, I'll follow our landlord's advice and come back in winter.

We were just in Como area (mid april). We had hoped that early in the season would avoid the crowds. Unfortunately we didn't. It wasn't too bad in the morning, but by about 10:30 the ferries and trains accessing are jam packed with tourists taking probably an hour or two to get on the ferry. I considered it intolerable by afternoon and just wanted to get out of there. It is definitely getting like the Amalfi coast and is overrun.
It is beautiful, but intolerable. If you go, start early and try to be done by noon.

Reading these reports, I doubly appreciate and barely believe my incredible good luck to have spent 3 nights in Varenna last October without any crowds. It was mid October and there was intermitant rain which must have kept the crowds away. The lake and the town were enchanting and peaceful. After a daytrip on the Bernina train, when I walked back to my B&B, I did not see a single other person on foot between the train station and the main plaza. Bellagio was quite busy even with rain but there were no lines for ferry tickets. Maybe the best strategy might be to try to choose, rather than avoid, a rainy day.

steve, I lived your pain. It's just so sad..

I wonder if I was oblivious or savvy last year when I was in Bellagio for three nights in July with my family. It was as crowded as usual, which wasn't bad, or worse. I was in Varenna and Bellagio two years ago and the crowds were the same. We went to Varenna for a day and did not have trouble with the ferry either way. The only ferry trouble we encountered was trying to come back to Bellagio from Como via ferry (we drove there to drop off the car). The line was extreme at 10 am, and after an hour in it, and continued notices of the next ferry being full and then the next, we walked to the bus stop and had a thrilling bus ride back to Bellagio (seriously, the bus drivers' skill is unparalleled). We'll see if Im eating my words in 2 months when I will be back to Como.

I think it is time for people to start exploring other places, rather than returning to famous places, which may be beautiful, but have now morphed into zoos. I decided not to return to the Cinque Terre after my last experience 15 years ago. I think I'm done with Lake Como as well. It's been a long time since I went to the Amalfi coast, therefore I might try another time, but I have plenty of unexplored places to visit before I try again.

If you are interested in lakes, besides Lake Maggiore, which is better able to handle crowds, both Lake Garda and nearby Lake d'Iseo are less crowded (except for Sirmione on Lake Garda). Also Lake Molveno, just north of Lake Garda, has won the prize of the best lake in Italy for the 10th year in a row according to the Touring Club Italiano.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1A3sqWfbPC/?

The WSJ mentioned this the other day and it seems to be true, there are no more off seasons. Or shoulder seasons. It's always YMMV.

If you are interested in lakes, besides Lake Maggiore, which is better able to handle crowds, both Lake Garda and nearby Lake d'Iseo are less crowded (except for Sirmione on Lake Garda).

Lake Garda surprised me. I'm one of those Germans who, as a child, was always allowed (or rather, had to) spend the vacation at Lake Garda. It was always way too crowded for me. It wasn't until I was an adult that I went there in January, and it was fantastic. Hard to believe, we were almost the only ones going to Sirmione :-) And I was at Lake Maggiore last year beginning of May, before we went to Lake Como. That was great at Lake Maggiore because there was hardly anything going on.
So I think both Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore are great to visit outside of peak season and school holidays. However, Lake Como seems to be only bearable in winter - at least that's what our landlord in Varenna said.

The other lakes you mentioned are also on my wish list. Thanks.