Minibus Rental Across Italy

Hiring a Coach with Driver in Como

Como suits a coach until it meets the old town walls or the lake road. Two rules shape the plan: who may enter the limited-traffic zone, and the length limit on the road to Bellagio.

The old town is for hotel guests only

The walled old town (città murata) is a limited-traffic zone, or ZTL. A tourist coach may enter it only to carry guests of a hotel inside the zone or right beside it. The authorisation is requested online through the city portal, with SPID, the registration number and proof that the coach is doing a hotel transfer. Filing it up to 48 hours afterwards is also accepted.

Inside, the coach follows a fixed route from Piazza Verdi round to Piazza Cavour and back out. Piazza Cavour is the one place to stop: 15 minutes at most, with the local bus stop kept clear. Since 2023 coaches may not stop in Piazza Roma.

Setra 49-seat touring coach, exterior
Setra 49-seat touring coach, exterior

Where the coach waits

A group that is not checking in gets off outside the walls. Viale Innocenzo XI is listed for short stops only. Longer waits go to one of two listed coach parks: next to the stadium on Piazza Atleti Azzurri d'Italia, or on Via Regina Teodolinda near the basilica of Sant'Abbondio. Both are paid and time-limited.

Trains arrive at Como San Giovanni, above the old town, or at Como Nord Lago by the water. A coach can meet either and go straight to a hotel or the pier.

Airports for groups arriving in Como

Stadiums and arenas a coach can reach

  • Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia — Como 1907 football; on the lakefront next to the city centre

Coach day trips from Como

  • Cernobbio — about 6 km, about 15 min
  • Lugano, Switzerland — about 33 km, about 40 min
  • Lecco — about 30 km, about 45 min
  • Tremezzo (Villa Carlotta) — about 31 km, about 55 min
  • Menaggio — about 35 km, about 1 h 5 min
  • Bellagio (coach route via the Valassina and the Ghisallo pass) — about 40 km, about 1 h
  • Varenna (via Lecco) — about 51 km, about 1 h 20 min
  • Milano (Duomo) — about 52 km, about 1 h 5 min
  • Bergamo (Città Alta) — about 82 km, about 1 h 35 min
  • Stresa (Lago Maggiore) — about 87 km, about 1 h 25 min

Coach rules in Como that shape the day

  • Milano Malpensa (MXP) is about 52 km by road from Piazza Duomo in Como (about 1 h by coach). Milano Linate (LIN) is about 56 km (about 1 h 15 min) and Milano Bergamo (BGY) about 81 km (about 1 h 35 min).
  • Trains arrive at Como San Giovanni (main line to Milano and Switzerland) above the old town, and at Como Nord Lago, the lakeside terminus of the line from Milano Cadorna.
  • The old town of Como is a limited-traffic zone (ZTL). Tourist coaches may enter it only with an authorisation and only to carry guests of hotels inside the ZTL or right next to it. The authorisation is requested online (with SPID) through the city portal, with the vehicle registration and proof of the hotel transfer; it can also be requested up to 48 hours after access.
  • Coaches with a ZTL authorisation use a fixed route (Piazza Verdi, Via Rodari, Piazza Roma, Via Giovini, Piazza Cavour, Via Fontana, Via Cairoli, or the reverse). Stopping is allowed only in Piazza Cavour, to load and unload passengers and luggage in the shortest time and never more than 15 minutes, without blocking the local bus stop. Since 2023 coaches may not stop in Piazza Roma.
  • Coach parking listed by the city: Viale Innocenzo XI for short stops only (engine off, loading and unloading), and for longer stays Piazza Atleti Azzurri d'Italia (by the stadium) or Via Regina Teodolinda by the Basilica di Sant'Abbondio (paid, time-limited).
  • Bellagio by coach: the lakeside road from Como to Bellagio (SP583 "Lariana") is closed to vehicles longer than 10.5 m, and coaches that ignored the limit have become stuck at Nesso and Lezzeno. Full-size coaches reach Bellagio over the hills via the Valassina and the Ghisallo pass. Many groups go to Bellagio by boat instead.
  • The roads along both shores of the lake are narrow, with tight bends and few places for a coach to stop. The operator plans the route and the stopping points for the size of coach; for the western shore and the villas, a smaller vehicle or the lake boats are often the practical choice.
  • Lugano (Switzerland) is about 33 km away. Crossing into Switzerland is a customs border: passengers carry passports or identity cards, and the coach must meet Swiss rules for international coach journeys.

Bellagio: the long way round

Vehicles longer than 10.5 m are banned from the SP583, the lakeside road to Bellagio. A full-size coach takes the hill route by way of the Valassina valley and the Ghisallo pass: roughly an hour for about 40 km.

Many organisers skip the road. From the Piazza Cavour pier, public boats and hydrofoils serve Bellagio, Varenna, Menaggio, Tremezzo and Cernobbio. A common plan: coach to Como, boat to Bellagio, coach back from another pier.

The western shore and further out

The roads along both shores are narrow and winding. For Villa Carlotta at Tremezzo, about 55 minutes away, the operator plans the route and the stops for the size of coach. A midi-coach is often easier.

Lugano is about 40 minutes away, across the Swiss border. It is a customs border: everyone carries a passport or ID card, and a coach crossing it has to comply with Swiss international coach rules. Milan's Duomo is about 1 h 5 min and Stresa on Lago Maggiore about 1 h 25 min.

Questions organisers ask

Which airport is closest to Como?

Malpensa, about 52 km from Piazza Duomo and about an hour by coach. Linate takes about 1 h 15 min and Bergamo about 1 h 35 min.

Can the coach drop us at the Duomo?

Only if the group is staying at a hotel in the old town, and then only at Piazza Cavour. Otherwise the coach sets down outside the walls and everyone walks in.

Is Villa Erba easy to reach by coach?

The congress and exhibition centre at Cernobbio is about 6 km from Como, around 15 minutes by road. The operator agrees the set-down point with the venue for the event.

Other group trips we arrange

Vehicles with a driver