Lake Como

Why Visit?

Find yourself in the unspoiled nature, enchanted by the rare beauty of small towns, inspired by the culture and traditions of this land and experience the emotions of outdoor activities. Lake Como was not only a romantic travel-destination for poets like Stendhal, Mark Twain and Flaubert but also birthplace and habitation for many celebrities (Madonna, George Clooney, Gianni Versace, Ronaldinho and Sylvester Stallone) The city of Lecco on Lake Como is closely connected to the life and work of the famous Italian writer Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873). The plot of his famous novel, the romantic love story “I Promessi Sposi”, in English “The Betrothed”, is set in Lecco on Lake Como and the surrounding area.

Lake Como, also known as Lario, is the third largest of the Italian lakes (after Garda Lake and Maggiore Lake) and, with a maximum depth of approximately 410 meters, is also one of the deepest lakes in Europe. Its characteristic shape, reminiscent of an inverted Y, results from the melting of glaciers.

Located at the foot of the Alps, Lake Como provides one of the most picturesque sceneries in the world. The blue of the water and the green of the surrounding hills and the Alps in the north, give beautiful views and landscapes. If you’re going to visit the Italian lakes, you’ll be surprised to learn about the many things to do at Lake Como.

Prepping our kites at the beach

Those who love hiking can find many natural paths. Lake Como is surrounded by a lot of hills and mountains, which offer lots of places for hiking and trekking with different difficulty levels. During your walk, you might come across several refuges or inns, where you can taste some traditional food.

Lake Como is also ideal for all those who like cycling on the road and exploring the coast by bike. In the northern part of the lake, there is also a cycling way along the river Adda, and you can reach Switzerland and Silvaplana through cycling routes, passing by Chiavenna.

Lake Como is wonderful to do water sports (sailing, kitesurfing, and windsurfing), thanks to the winds that blow on this lake!

Checking the wind

During the holidays, you can also go from Como to Milan by train and visit the capital of the region, the capital of fashion, to see a different side of Lombardy. There you can find the most trendy bars and restaurant in Italy, in the world of Fashion, art, theatres, nightlife events of all kinds.

When you are at Lake Como, you'll always find something to do!

Wind and Weather

The weather in Lake Como is very similar to that of the Mediterranean climate, but due to its alpine location and being on the lake, it somehow has its micro-climate. Because of this unusual weather system, you will see a variety of trees including palm trees which you wouldn’t expect to see in a mountain location. In the winter, the lake helps to maintain a higher temperature in the surrounding region. Average daily temperatures range from about 4°C in January to 25°C in July and August. Water temperatures can reach an average of 24 °C during July and August.

Lessons from the boat

Lake Como is ideal for kiting because of the consistent thermal winds that provide great conditions from April through to October. Lake Como experiences four major winds!

1. Breva: blowing from the South. It’s the main wind on Lake Como, the thermic Wind that develops when the days are Sunny and when no opposing North Pressure Wind is blowing. This thermic wind is stronger at the level of Dervio and Cremia where the lake gets more narrow (for the venturi effect). This is the prevailing wind regime from April to September, and the stretch is about 15-18 Knots. And is the ideal wind for kitesurfing.
2. Tivano: blows all year-round from 6-10am from the Northeast; this is the thermic wind of the night opposite to the Breva. For advanced kiters, this wind can be good for early morning sessions the strengths is about 15-18 knots.
3. Ventone: blowing from the North, often after a thunderstorm in the mountains with gusts up to 25-30 Knots. It is not recommended for beginner kitesurfer.
4. Menaggino: blows from the South with strong gusts, mainly after thunderstorms in summer. This wind is also not recommended for beginners

We wouldn't suggest that you base your trip on Windguru or Windfinder as they don’t work for Lake Como very accurately nor predicting thermic winds in general. The reason for this is that they model their forecasts on larger-scale pressure systems and don’t pick up the smaller-scale thermal regimes or the influence of the local topography in accelerating the wind. The strength will not be predictable but if there are sunny days the thermic wind will blow starting at 12:00 until sunset at about 15-18 knots.

The kitesurfing schools on Lake Como start the lesson directly on the water preparing the kites in the middle of the lake. The thermic wind (Breva) is ideal for beginners usually is best at Dervio and Cremia where the lake becomes more narrow, and due to the venturi effect, the wind gets stronger there.

Beautiful Lake Como

Teaching from the boat is a good way of taking care of the students: students can practice body dragging, water starts, riding and tricks followed by the instructor on the boat. Many schools; including Sports Paradise, only conduct private lessons with walky-talky assistance to offer the best quality level for the lesson. This way, even when the students drift downwind is not a problem as the boat follows each person and at the end of the session everyone is picked up on the boat and brought back to the port or the beach. Once everyone is back, you can prepare the kites for the next session and enjoy the evening at the Kite Bar with all other kiters!

Kitesurfers that are already able to ride upwind can choose to start from the land or to the boat provide a "shuttle" service whereby they take everyone out on the water and pick up all the riders at the end of their kitesurf session. Sports Paradise provides a pouch to have a phone and people can call the instructor on the boat. Using the shuttle service with the boat is a safe way of kiting at the lake.

Getting Around

Getting around on public transport and public boat transport is easy at Lake Como Every small town and village has a small port. Also, train stations are present in almost all villages and there is a good connection even to Milan.

Sessions like these!

Food and Drink

While Larian cuisine predominates the lake, rustic mountain flavours are not lacking, nor are hillside delights. Mountain and hill are caretakers of that genuine tradition. You will find a lot of small “trattorie” and restaurants all around the lake and on the hills and mountains surrounding Lake Como.

Nightlife

Nightlife is rich in events especially from April to September; bigger Towns as Lecco and Como also offer outdoor concerts and festivals during the summer and many pubs and discos. You will never get bored!

No Wind?

As it appears from the description above, at Lake Como you never get bored if you enjoy the outdoors! There is also a wakeboard Park in Colico if you want to practice a water sport without wind! Paragliding is also very popular, and there are schools in the North of the lake where you can see the wonderful landscape of the lake.

Grand Hotel Lake Como

In addition to that, you can also decide to go sightseeing in Milan, and it is not necessary to explain how many things there are to do in this city!

Internet

Internet connection is always present in every restaurant or hotel.

Accommodation

We are located in Dervio, where there are some nice and cheap and a residence overlooking the lake. In many villages. Camping around the lake is also favoured by many visitors.

Breathtaking views

Menaggio Lake Como

Make sure you go exploring!

TURA Paragliding Lake Como