Wow! All I can say is that this is an absolute must do if you are visiting Lake Como!! We did this…read moreprivate boat tour of the lake for an hour on the day we arrived and it was the best part of the whole trip. The boat is gorgeous, we were greeted with champagne. And got to explore the lake and see all the different villas. Our driver didn't speak the best English but he was so sweet and took so many great photos of us and play THE BEST MUSIC!!! 10/10 experience. It is pricey, but worth every penny.

These guys were amazing and professional. We had a fantastic experience. We were in Italy…read morecelebrating my parents 50 wedding anniversary. Taxi boat Varenna really did it up right. Everything from the wood trimmed boat, chilled prosecco, to the Andrea Bocelli sings playing in the background. It was truly an amazing experience. Luca was funny and informative and balances out the right amount of commentary to go along with our 1hour tour. I highly recommend and thank them for a great experience.

There is no shortage of taxi boats and private rentals for hire in Lago di Como. As you can see by…read morethe business name, most of the boat services sound the same by name and it can get confusing! Entrusting your hotel to help you with arranging for a private charter is your best bet. The company is based in Sala Comacina, in the greater Como area, but that's doesn't really matter, because they come to you! Our hotel (Relais Villa Vittoria) had a boat dock so we picked up from the hotel, which was super convenient. They are not just limited to private tours, they also offer taxi services on the entire lake in addition to wedding and special event transport. They have several boats in their fleet that range in size, from 15 seats to 78. We really lucked out with Boat-Service! The company is owned by three partners. Our guide was one of the owners, Marco. Marco arrived on time, the boat was in pristine condition and the entire ride was super smooth. He picked us up in the Castell d'Isola- their Venetian taxi. The emerald green interior was lovely! We really enjoyed our morning with Marco and would do it again! If you've been searching the web for a boat charter in the Como area, you can stop your search now. Cash only for the private boat tour.

The best boats with the greatest guides! It is a must-do on Lake Como. We enjoyed every minute!read more

Bellagio is arguably Lake Como's leading resort. That seemed to be the case as Gayle and I were…read morepart of the hordes coming off the ferry (from Varenna) on gorgeous, but hazy day. Bellagio is the self-proclaimed "Pearl of the Lake" and it is a pretty classy place, although there's the "tramp in the palace" feeling as well. We walked, we shopped, we enjoyed Lunch next to Sam Cooper and his family, and then got on the ferry again and explored Lake Como some more. Gayle was also on the lookout for Mr. Clooney, but unfortunately for George, Gayle had already married up. :)

If you find yourself in Como, Italy, definitely travel to Bellagio across the beautiful Lake Como…read more We took a small tour boat that takes a leisurely 90 minutes as they show you the famous sites and who lives where along the luxurious coastline of the lake. Halfway across the lake, the Italian Alps come into view. To me, the Alps were like a lighthouse drawing me into them. I couldn't help but be so amazed by their mystifying beauty. Once we arrived in Bellagio, we walked around the beautiful village with many shops and places to eat at. All the time, being watched by the overlooking Alps!

Mattia and his newly launched Lake Como Water Taxi is a luxury speed boat taxi and tour service…read morethat's a welcome addition to the old-school water taxi businesses that used to dominate the scene here. After earning his degree in mechanical engineering, Mattia decided to invest his money in a custom designed high-performance speed boat that he and his father designed and built. This young Italian entrepreneur is working hard to demonstrate the best in luxury service and custom-designed guided tours. Just outline what you'd be most interested in seeing, how much time/€£$ you'd like to spend, and Mattia will curate a memorable time! Mattia knows a great deal of history regarding historical buildings and towns along Lake Como (from ancient bridges and waterfalls, to famous olive orchards, to natural scenery and grand villas). Mattia is a consummate professional boat captain with years of experience as a Lake Como police officer as well as a captain and guide before starting his own premium service in May of 2015. His English and his restaurant recommendations are both excellent and he accepts credit cards as well as cash. His rates are comparable to other water taxi services with a captain, but they don't all include an eloquent guided tour for the same money. Be sure to call or text him to reserve your time slot during the peak summer months!

If I could go back in time, I would not have booked this service because now I am out a LOT of…read moremoney. I booked a water taxi to take us from Varenna to Bellagio so that we wouldn't have to deal with the chaos of the ferry when getting off of the train in Varenna. We took a morning train from Milan to Varenna and it was delayed which is out of my control. While sitting on that train, as soon as a knew of the delay, I contacted the company to let them know (which was an hour prior to my scheduled water taxi reservation so that they wouldn't be inconvenienced) and have someone waiting for us. Unfortunately they were unwilling to work with us. I was told that 15 minutes after the reservation they could no longer provide the service and I would be charged the full amount. I stayed in contact with them the entire time as a courtesy and they don't care. I paid a LOT of money for a 10 minute ride that was never provided. This is not how business is done in America. I know because my father ran a transfer company for years. Had this been in the US, I would have lost my deposit and swallowed it. Americans beware of booking with this company that was inflexible with me when I tried to inform them of something that was out of my control.

Had a great tour of Lake Como. Beautiful day with beautiful views. It was booked directly by our…read morehotel. We did the hour no stops around the lake. There are different tours available. We paid with cash so we got a small discount. Captain Luca was great. He had lots of knowledge and a few jokes to throw in. He knows where the George Clooney Villa is but I'm not sure which tour takes you there ;) Would highly recommend this tour.

After arriving in Bellagio for a short stay we were looking to get out on the water. Our high-end…read morehotel recommended these guys and we booked a 1-hour, private, "highlights of the lake tour" (230€). It was a 15 minute walk down to the waters edge (look for the blue and white striped poles) where we met the Australian wife of the operation and checked in. She was warm and friendly and gave us some good tips for other sight seeing during our stay. We boarded precisely at 4:30 and headed out right away. There wasn't much in the way of narration, in fact we had to keep asking questions just to get some information in between the pre-planned sights like the villa featured in the bond film Casino Royale and one of Richard Branson's houses. Most of the tour was spent at slow wake speed going along the shore. Not really any effort to try to help you get great pictures. In the end this didn't quite live up to expectations-just someone going through the motions and collecting a big fee. While it was great being out on the water, the high sides of the boat and slow speeds did little to cool us off on the very very hot day. Luckily we had brought along our own water! For 230€ per hour you'd think they'd serve prosecco and caviar. Cannot recommend

The water taxi is a faster yet more pricy option comparing to the public transit service. The…read morecurrents on the lake are likely more than you expected, so expect bumpy rides if you're taking the water taxi instead of bigger public boat.

From the owner: Varenna Water Taxi provides a safe and reliable water taxi service at Lake Como, Italyread more

An easy, relaxing yet exhilarating way to see Lake Como! We did their tour of the lake and will…read moredefinitely recommend it to anyone who wants to see the highlights of the lake. We customized the tour and for 8 people it came up to 350 Euros. The tour boat picked us up from Varenna, and proceeded to go by Bellagio, Menaggio, George Clooney's villa (haha...he was still with Elisabetta Canalis during that time), and then dropped us off in Como. The tour took 2 hours total and was worth every penny! Make all reservations through their website. Luca Valsecchi, our tour guide and captain, was very friendly, spoke excellent English and was knowledgeable about all the places that we buzzed by. I wish I could remember some of the stuff he talked about but I was enjoying just looking at the water, hills and villas that I was spacing out most of the time. Check out the pictures!

Very rude staff. Saw them mistreat some vacationers that mistakenly confused their location for…read moreanother boat rental.

We had a great experience renting a boat with Turari in August 2021 one day prior to showing up!…read more We opted for 4 hours -- anything shorter might feel a bit rushed, especially if you want to take some time and just lounge around/swim in the lake. The boat were in great condition and the owner gave us a thorough overview of features, being out on the lake etc. Performance is tame as its meant to be accessible to anyone, but we still enjoyed cruising fast enough to need to hold on at times :). Everything was very transparent in terms of charges (including gas usage charges) all represented on paper. We liked that it was clearly a family-owned business (they all sat down to lunch together as we departed, which added to the Italian charm).

Sergio and his son run the tour group. They are the best. The tour was so much fun. We saw so much…read moreof Lake Como we wouldn't otherwise see. Highly recommend.

From the owner: Il nostro modo di visitare la città è diverso da qualsiasi altro, perché prevede l'utilizzo di…read moreeBike (bici elettriche a pedalata assistita) con montato un iPad e cuffie bluetooth che permettono di visitare la città, la sua storia e i suoi monumenti e piazze mediante una spiegazione audio e testo in 6 lingue. Il nostro è un modo innovativo di vedere la città di Como, primo ed unico nel suo genere! - Our way to visit the city is different from any other because we provide eBikes (electric bikes) with an iPad mounted on it and Bluetooth headphones that will give you the possibility to visit the city, its history, monuments and squares with an audio description in 6 languages. Ours is a innovative way to see the city of Como, first and unique int it's genre.