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Lake Como boating

It wasn't cheap at $260 for 3 hours, but renting a little 40 HP motorboat at Bellagio was one of the best parts of a memorable 2-week tour of Italy. Easy to pilot, and they really move at full throttle. The mountains are awe inspiring, and there was more than enough room for everyone even around Bellagio. The villas and towns are best seen from the water. You can't stop at ferry docks, but the operators will let you know of scenic restaurants -- we went to one by boat for lunch reservations, and guess who had the table next to us? Green Day!

On the other hand, at Capri your best bet is to get a traditional gozzo boat with the skipper provided. The water is choppier there, and part of the fun of Capri is stopping for a swim or to explore a cave like the Green Grotto. And of course the Blue Grotto -- don't even dream of trying to pilot your own boat there yourself, because it's a madhouse. Finally, you can shoot through the stone arch of Il Faraglione, kind of a must-see.

Posted by
905 posts

If you had rented the boat in Varenna you could have had it for 5 hours for the same price.

Posted by
31 posts

Not quite. Varenna was 190 EUR for 3 hours, vs. 200 EUR in Bellagio Lake By Boat that we used -- both prices are before tax, and the USD amount is higher. Plus we'd have had to pay for 2x ferry ticket to Varenna to rent it and again to return, since we stayed in Bellagio. I was pleasantly surprised that Bellagio's rental boats were only slightly more than Varenna's.

I could have boated longer since I'm a boat fan, but 3 hours was plenty. And that included 1.5 hours of it sitting docked at a restaurant while we had lunch with Green Day.

We knew Rick liked Varenna and were eager to see it, but it was ruined when we arrived by all the other people coming off the trains that Sunday. Huge lines for any restaurant or cafe, including all the ones Rick names in the tiny town. We strolled the lakeside lovers' walk which was nice, but nothing close to the beauty of boating on the lake.