Lecco Guide: What To Do In This Lake Como Hiking Town?

Lecco feels completely different from the fancy villa towns most tourists picture when they think of Lake Como.

If hiking, mountain views, and a real local Italian vibe matter more to you than villa gardens and constant ferry-hopping, this is one of the Lake Como bases we’d recommend.

We explored Lecco from the waterfront up toward the mountains, and that contrast is what makes the town work: you can spend the evening walking beside the lake, then be up at Piani d’Erna or on a proper mountain trail the next morning.

If you only have limited time, we’d prioritise the lakefront, Piani d’Erna and one hike above town. Below, we’ll show you what else is worth adding, what we’d leave for a rainy day, and whether Lecco is actually the right place for you to stay.

See exactly where Lecco sits on our Map of Lake Como.

Is Lecco worth visiting?

Yes, if you want the local, mountain-focused side of Lake Como rather than the postcard version.

Lecco is a lot more local, raw, less touristy, and far more focused on hiking than on pure tourism for the nice lakefront promenades and garden villas.

Stay here if:

• You love hiking and the outdoors.
• You want fewer tourists and lower prices.
• You prefer a lived-in local feel over a polished resort one.

Skip it if:

• The classic postcard Lake Como look is the whole point of your trip.
• You’re relying on frequent ferry connections to hop between towns each day.$

Our verdict: if this is your first Lake Como trip and Bellagio, villas and ferry rides are the dream, we would stay farther north around the central lake instead. But if your ideal morning involves boots, elevation and mountain views, Lecco makes much more sense and costs less too.

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How many days do you need in Lecco?

We’d stay at least one night for the town itself and two if hiking is part of your trip.

You can see the old town and lakefront in half a day, but Lecco makes much more sense when you give yourself time to get into the mountains.

With one day, we’d explore the waterfront and take the cable car to Piani d’Erna.

With two days, use the second morning for a proper hike around Resegone or Monte Barro, then return to town for a slower afternoon.

We would only stay longer if Lecco is your main hiking base for Lake Como rather than one stop on a wider trip.

The best things to do in Lecco

Everything below is doable from the town centre without a car.

We’ve ordered it roughly the way we have done it: visiting the town first, then head up the mountain, and if you have time left over, visit some culture-worthy places.

Stroll the lakefront promenade and the old town

Lecco’s lakefront is where the Città di Lecco sits with its wide promenades you can walk on and the Resegone’s ridge behind you, which you can visit.

Our favourite time is the evening passeggiata, when the whole lakefront fills with people doing slow laps before dinner.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Free, always open
• 📍 Getting there: A 10-minute walk from Lecco station to the water
• 🏛️ Detour: Visit the Torre Viscontea (Viscontea Tower) in the old town, which is the last surviving piece of Lecco’s medieval walls, a remnant of the fortified castle of the village of Lecco
• 🎭 Detour: Visit the neoclassical Teatro della Società and Parco di Villa Gomes, the city’s largest public park, which wraps a 19th-century villa built for Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Gomes, who nicknamed it Villa Brasilia
• 💡 Tip: Visit the promenade at golden hour. You get to see the golden light on the mountains across the water, the best feeling ever!

Ride the cable car to Piani d’Erna

If you want mountain views without committing to a serious hike, Piani d’Erna is the easiest choice in Lecco.

The cable car takes around five minutes to reach the 1,375 m (4,511 ft) plateau directly below Monte Resegone, so this works particularly well for families, casual walkers or anyone who wants to get above the lake without spending hours climbing.

We’d do the Sentiero Natura loop at the top and stop at one of the rifugi for lunch before heading back down.If you are already planning a full Resegone hike, Piani d’Erna becomes less essential because you’ll get the mountain experience anyway.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Check the current one-way and return fares on the official Piani d’Erna website before visiting. You can find the official website of Piani d’Erna here.
• 📍 Getting there: The valley station is in Malnago above town; bus 5 from Lecco station or Piazza Manzoni runs straight there, or drive up and park for a small daily fee

Hike Monte Resegone and the trails above town

The trails above Lecco range from easy forest walks to proper mountain routes with significant elevation, so difficulty matters much more here than simply picking whichever trail has the best photos.

Before leaving, we’d compare the distance, elevation gain, and recent trail reports, especially if you want to go to Resegone.

If you want an easier option, Monte Barro gives you excellent lake views without committing to the biggest ascent.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Free
• 🥾 Routes: From easy lakeside and forest walks to the full Resegone climb; the cable car cuts out most of the ascent if you want the summit ridge without the full slog
• ⛰️ Easier option: Monte Barro, the regional park across the Adda at 922 m (3,025 ft), gives beautiful lake views
• 🚶 Multi-day option: The Sentiero del Viandante, the old wayfarer’s path up the eastern shore towards Varenna, starts just north of town at Abbadia Lariana

See hiking routes around Lecco

Try a guided via ferrata above Lecco

If normal hiking is not adventurous enough, Lecco is also a great base for via ferrata, protected climbing routes that use metal cables, ladders and fixed sections to get you onto much steeper mountain terrain.

This private guided experience lasts around six hours and can be adapted to different ability levels, from more accessible routes to demanding climbs such as Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 around Pizzo d’Erna and Resegone. The guide provides the main safety equipment, including a helmet, harness and via ferrata kit.

We would only recommend this if you are comfortable with heights and have a reasonable level of fitness. Some of the routes include exposed vertical sections and can be physically demanding, so this is a proper mountain activity rather than a scenic walk.

Follow The Betrothed: Villa Manzoni and Pescarenico

Lecco is the town of Alessandro Manzoni’s The Betrothed, the novel every Italian reads at school, and following its traces is the town’s best cultural thread.

We’d pair Villa Manzoni, his childhood home and now the Museo Manzoniano (Manzonian Museum) with first editions and manuscripts, with a visit through Pescarenico, the old fishing quarter on the Adda River where part of the novel is set: this is where Fra’ Cristoforo’s Capuchin convent stood, the church the Capuchin friars founded as San Francesco in 1576, and where Lucia Mondella bids her famous farewell to the mountains.

We would only visit the villa if you already know The Betrothed, enjoy literary history, or have more than one day in Lecco.

If hiking brought you here and you only have a day, we would spend the time outside instead.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Villa Manzoni is ticketed as part of Lecco’s civic museum network
• 📍 Getting there: Villa Manzoni is a 15-minute walk from the centre; Pescarenico sits just south along the river
• 🚣 If your timing lines up: Pescarenico’s sagra brings out the Regata dei batej, a regatta rowed in the traditional Lucie boats named after Manzoni’s heroine

Visit Palazzo delle Paure

Palazzo delle Paure, literally the “Palace of Fears“, is Lecco’s main exhibition space on Piazza XX Settembre, home to the Modern and Contemporary Art Gallery of Lecco and rotating shows alongside the Osservatorio Alpinistico Lecchese (the Lecco Mountaineering Observatory) that suits the hometown of legendary climber Riccardo Cassin.

We wouldn’t sacrifice good mountain weather for it.

Save Palazzo delle Paure for rain, an especially hot afternoon, or a day when you want a break from walking.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Ticketed (6 euros), with combined entries across the civic museum network
• 📍 Getting there: Piazza XX Settembre, right in the centre
• 🪐 With kids: Palazzo Belgiojoso (Belgiojoso Palace) across town bundles Lecco’s Natural History Museum, Archaeological Museum, Historical Museum and the civic Planetarium of Lecco under one roof

See current exhibitions at Palazzo delle Paure

Climb the Campanile di San Nicolò

Locals call the 96 m (315 ft) bell tower of the Basilica of San Nicolò (the Basilica of Saint Nicholas) “il Matitone”, the big pencil, and it’s one of the tallest bell towers in Europe.

It has a 360-degree view over the lake and the Resegone from the balcony above the bells.

KEEP IN MIND: It’s only open a few days a week, so check it on their website!

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Guided visits only, by reservation
• 🪜 The climb: 396 steps, no lift
• 📍 Getting there: Piazza Sagrato della Basilica, in the centre
• 💡 Tip: Book a late afternoon slot for the best light over the lake

Because visits are guided and the tower is not open every day, check the available dates before building it into your Lecco itinerary.

Cross the Ponte Azzone Visconti

Lecco’s old bridge over the Adda River, the Ponte Azzone Visconti (the Visconti Bridge), has stood since the 1300s, built by Azzone Visconti, the lord of Milan, to link the two banks of the only river that flows out of the lake.

We’d walk it at sunset and shoot back towards town, with the bridge arches in the foreground and the mountains behind.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Free
• 📍 Getting there: A 10-minute walk south of the centre, towards Pescarenico
• 🌊 Downstream: Just south, the Adda widens into Lago di Garlate and then Lago di Olginate, with a flat cycle path along the water

Recommended ITALY TRAVEL ESSENTIALS we personally use and trust
🧳 Carry-on / travel duffel	🎒 Daypack	👜 Anti-theft crossbody bag
👟 Walking shoes: Men | Women	🥿 Walking sandals: Men | Women	👕 Breathable layers: Men | Women
🧥 Packable rain jacket: Men | Women	🧢 Sun hat	🕶️ Sunglasses
🔌 EU plug adapter (Type F/L)	🔋 Power bank	💧 Reusable water bottle
🧴 Sunscreen	☂️ Compact travel umbrella

Take a 1-hour speedboat tour from Lecco

If you want to see this side of Lake Como from the water without going for a half day boat trip, this private one-hour speedboat tour from Lecco is a good option.

The route focuses on the Lecco branch of the lake rather than the more famous Bellagio side, passing places like Malgrate, Pescarenico, the San Nicolò statue, Isola Viscontea and Ponte Azzone Visconti, with an optional swimming stop. The boat is private for your group and has a sundeck, so we think this works especially well for couples, families or anyone who wants a more relaxed experience after hiking.

We’d choose this over a longer central-Lake Como cruise if Lecco is your base and you specifically want to see the landscape around Lecco from the water.

Swim at the lakeside beaches

Lecco has a handful of grassy lakeside spots where locals swim in summer, and they’re free.

This is worth doing if you’re visiting in summer and want a local afternoon by the water.

If swimming is a major part of your Lake Como trip, we’d choose one of the lake’s better-equipped lidos instead.

Summary:

• 💰 Cost: Free public areas; paid lidos exist in season
• 📍 Where: Local favourites include the lakefront parks north and south of the centre
• 💡 Tip: Water shoes help; most entry points are pebbly

Where to stay in Lecco

Where you stay in Lecco matters less than it does in some Lake Como towns because the centre is compact and the train station is close to the waterfront.

For most visitors, we’d choose somewhere between Lecco station and the lakefront. That keeps restaurants, trains and the old town walkable while still making it easy to reach bus connections toward the mountain trails.

Best for most visitors: central Lecco

Stay around the historic centre if you want to arrive by train, walk everywhere in the evening, and avoid using a car.

This is the option we would choose for a first stay.

Getting to and around Lecco

• 🚆 From Milan: Direct trains to Lecco’s stazione ferroviaria (railway station) take around 40 minutes, which makes Lecco one of the cheapest and easiest bases on the lake to reach
• 🚆 Up the eastern shore: The same train line continues north to Varenna and Colico, so the prettiest towns of the eastern branch are easy day trips without a car
• ⛴️ Ferries, the honest part: Connections to and from Lecco are more limited than the Bellagio, Varenna, and Menaggio golden triangle; outside peak season you may need to train to Varenna first and catch a ferry from there
• 🚗 By car: Useful for the trailheads, but the town itself is walkable, and parking near the lakefront is paid
• 🗺️ Orientation: See where Lecco sits relative to the rest of the lake on our Map of Lake Como

Lecco guide: final thoughts

We would choose Lecco if mountains, hiking and a more local Lake Como experience matter more to you than villas and constant ferry-hopping.

For a first visit, we’d stay one or two nights, spend the first day exploring the lakefront and Piani d’Erna, then use the second morning for a proper hike above town.

If you mainly want Bellagio, villa gardens and the classic central-lake scenery, we would base ourselves elsewhere and visit Lecco as a day trip instead.

But if hiking is one of the reasons you chose Lake Como in the first place, Lecco deserves much more than a quick stop.

If you’re still planning the rest of your trip, start with our full guide to the best things to do in Lake Como.

Written by Laura and Alexander, a travel couple with first-hand experience exploring Italy and Lake Como, from the boat tours to the Lake Como towns.