Como Travel Guide
Como With Kids: What Children Pay and Where They Can Run
Como with kids costs less than most parents expect, because the city's price sheets are generous to children and its main sights sit close together. Children under 6 walk into the cathedral, the Pinacoteca and the Tempio Voltiano free. Under 4 ride the Brunate funicular free and pay nothing on Trenord trains or Navigazione boats. Under 14 are exempt from the tourist tax and, with a parent holding a ticket, ride Trenord free. This page lists every one of those rules from the official sheet that sets it, then the rules that keep a child out, the park and the pools, a family day with the ticket bill added up, and the practical detail of pushchairs and bags. What it does not do is recommend playgrounds or restaurants no official source describes. For the city start at the Como city guide start page, and for the trip as a whole read Como travel tips.
Quick answer What is free for children in Como and what keeps them out
Como is easy with children on price: under 6 enter the cathedral and the civic museums free, children up to 4 ride the funicular free and up to 12 pay $2.88 (€2.50) one way, and under-14s ride Trenord free with an adult family member holding a ticket. The limits are the cathedral's upper walkways, closed to under-14s and pushchairs, and the Villa Olmo park, where ball games and swimming are banned.
Key takeaways
- The boat tour with the Brunate funicular puts a boat and the hill into one two-hour outing, useful when small legs set the pace.
- The free lawns and paths of Villa Olmo are open until 23:00 in summer, but the lakefront lawns in front of the villa are off limits.
- For water, the pools and children's pool at Lido di Villa Olmo are the supervised option, though 2026 prices are not published.
- Every child rate sits in the price table, sight by sight.
What Children Pay, Sight by Sight
The table compares the free age, the child price and any family option for every sight and fare a family is likely to use in Como, read from each official price sheet: the cathedral, the civic museums, the Silk Museum, ATM, Trenord, Navigazione, Slow Lake Como and the Comune's tourist tax sheet.
| Sight or fare | Free | Child price | Family option |
|---|---|---|---|
| Como Cathedral | Under 6 | $3.46 (€3), ages 6-18 | Como Family Pass $17.31 (€15), up to two adults |
| Pinacoteca and Tempio Voltiano | Under 6 | $3.46 (€3), ages 6-18 | Como Family Pass $17.31 (€15) at each |
| Silk Museum | Not stated | $5.77 (€5), under 18 | $8.08 (€7) per parent, $4.04 (€3.50) per child |
| Brunate funicular | Up to 4 | $2.88 (€2.50) one way, $5.77 (€5) return, up to 12 | None, adults $8.54 (€7.40) return |
| Trenord from Milan | Under 4, and under 14 with a family adult | $3.11 (€2.70), ages 4-14 | Children free beside a parent or grandparent with a ticket |
| Boat to Cernobbio, band 1 | Under 4 without a seat | $2.08 (€1.80), ages 4-11 | None, adults $3.46 (€3) |
| Boat to Bellagio, band 6 | Under 4 without a seat | $6.92 (€6), day ticket $15.57 (€13.50) | None, adults $13.84 (€12) |
| Casa del Fascio guided visit | Under 5 | $5.77 (€5), ages 6-14 | None, adults $17.31 (€15) |
| Tourist tax | Up to 14 | Not charged | Exemption needs a declaration to the host |
ASF, which runs Como's city buses, does not print its child rule on the pages read, so buses are left out. Navigazione allows one adult for every three free under-4s. Figures current for in Q3 2026.
The Rules That Rule a Child Out
The price sheets are generous. A few other rules are not, and each is printed by the operator that enforces it. Read these before promising anything to a child.
- The cathedral's upper walkways: adults with ID only, and minors from 14 only if accompanied, one per adult. No pushchairs, and the route climbs steep narrow spiral stairs with a licensed guide. The ground floor and the free route are open to all ages.
- The premium pizza-making class is listed as not suitable for children under 14.
- The ravioli cooking class with wine is listed as not suitable for children under 12.
- The Faro Voltiano lighthouse in Brunate has been closed since 2024 for repairs, according to statements by the Comuni of Como and Brunate reported by local television, with no reopening date published. The ASF bus N9 to it is also suspended for works.
- The Villa Olmo park bans ball games, picnics, climbing trees and walls, and swimming. Bicycles are pushed by hand along the signed route.
- The Museo Archeologico Paolo Giovio and the Museo Garibaldi have their halls closed for maintenance, and the Villa Olmo villa itself is closed for restoration.
Tours With a Child Rule Printed
Only some operators print an age rule. The small-group food tour with a full meal is the most family-friendly on paper: children under 10 pay a discounted price and infants under 5 take part free, though they still need a ticket. The boat tours and the pasta class at a local's home print no minimum age, so ask the operator before booking with a toddler.
The cathedral detail is on Como Cathedral tickets.
Sources: Cathedral upper walkways form, Villa Olmo park ordinance, EspansioneTv on the Faro Voltiano, ASF lines, Comune di Como, Museo Archeologico
Parks and Lawns: Villa Olmo and What Its Rules Allow
The one large green space in the city with a published set of rules is the park of Villa Olmo on the western shore. It is free, open every day, and more regulated than most families expect.
Hours and Entrances
The park and its botanical garden open every day, 07:00-23:00 from 5 April to 30 September and 07:00-20:00 from 1 October to 4 April, free. Hours can change for events, and the park can close in part or entirely in bad weather, for maintenance or for authorised events, with notices at the gates. There are seven entrances: two on Via Simone Cantoni, three on Via per Cernobbio, one on Via Bellinzona and one from Villa del Grumello.
The whole park is a pedestrian area.
What Children Can and Cannot Do There
The ordinance is specific. The lawns of the lakefront parterre in front of the villa are off limits, while the other lawns can be used. Ball games, picnics, glass bottles, drones, deckchairs and tents on the grass, climbing trees and walls, washing in the fountains and swimming are all banned.
Dogs stay on the paths on a lead. Bicycles are pushed by hand. For a family that means a walk, a run on the permitted lawns and the lakeshore view, not a football game or a packed lunch.
| Allowed | Not allowed |
|---|---|
| Walking the paths and the botanical garden | Ball games anywhere in the park |
| Using the lawns away from the lakefront parterre | The parterre lawns in front of the villa |
| Pushing a bicycle along the signed route | Riding a bicycle |
| Dogs on the paths on a lead | Picnics, glass bottles, chairs or tents on the grass |
| Looking at the lake from the shore | Swimming, climbing trees or walls, playing in fountains |
Other Green Spaces
No official Comune page read for this guide describes a playground at the Giardini a Lago or gives hours for the Spina Verde regional park, so neither is recommended here with detail. The lakefront promenade from Piazza Cavour past the Tempio Voltiano gardens to Villa Olmo is the obvious walk between them. The villa and its history are on the Villa Olmo page.
Sources: Villa Olmo park ordinance, Comune di Como, Villa Olmo
Where Children Can Swim in Como
Swimming is where parents most need the rules, because the lake looks inviting from every bench on the promenade.
Lido di Villa Olmo: Pools and a Children's Pool
The Lido di Villa Olmo, Via Cernobbio 20, has grass and sand sunbathing areas on the lakeshore, adult pools and a children's pool, a bar, a restaurant and hire of loungers, umbrellas and cots, according to the Touring Club Italiano listing. It is the supervised swimming option inside the city. Its operator's website was offline when this guide checked, so the 2026 season dates, hours and prices are not printed here.
Local press reported that the historic manager keeps the lido for the 2026 season. Check Lido di Villa Olmo for anything published since, and phone before taking children on a hot afternoon.
The Lake Itself
The official bathing season runs from 1 May to 30 September, and ATS Insubria samples the water from April to September. When a sample is bad, the mayor bans bathing at that point by ordinance until a good result follows. Swimming is banned outright in the Villa Olmo park.
No Comune ordinance on swimming in the city basin by the landing stages could be read, and with boats using the piers it is not a place for children in the water. The wider safety detail is on the Como safety page.
Sources: Touring Club Italiano, Lido di Villa Olmo, ATS Insubria, bathing water, Villa Olmo park ordinance, QuiComo on the lido season
Indoors: Volta, Silk and Paintings
Three museums open to children, all closed on Mondays. Each suits a different age, and each prints its own hours.
Tempio Voltiano: The Battery Man
The Tempio Voltiano on the lakeshore at Viale Marconi 1 holds Alessandro Volta's instruments and documents in a round neoclassical building. For a child who has used a battery it is a short, concrete story. It opens Tuesday to Sunday 10:00-18:00 with last entry at 17:30, has a lift, and children under 6 enter free, 6 to 18 at $3.46 (€3).
More on the Tempio Voltiano page.
Silk Museum: From Silkworm to Scarf
The Museo della Seta at Via Castelnuovo 9 follows silk through ten rooms, from rearing the silkworms to finishing the cloth, with an audioguide in three languages. The family ticket is $8.08 (€7) per parent and $4.04 (€3.50) per child up to 18. It opens Tuesday 14:00-18:00 and Wednesday to Sunday 10:00-13:00 and 14:00-18:00.
Details on the Silk Museum page.
Pinacoteca: For Older Children
The Pinacoteca civica in Palazzo Volpi, Via Diaz 84, runs across three floors from the Middle Ages to the 20th century, including drawings by the architect Antonio Sant'Elia and Giovio's portraits of illustrious men. It is step-free by ramp and lift except for one step in the Renaissance section, which matters with a pushchair. Tuesday to Sunday 10:00-18:00, last entry 17:30, under 6 free.
Teatro Sociale runs guided visits for groups, with children's groups of 20 or more at €130, but prints no individual family price, so a family visit means asking the box office.
Sources: Comune di Como, Tempio Voltiano, Museo della Seta, Comune di Como, Pinacoteca civica, Teatro Sociale guided visits
Up the Hill: The Funicular With Children
The Como-Brunate funicular is the ride most children remember, and its fare sheet has three lines that matter for families.
Children up to 4 ride free. Children up to 12 pay $2.88 (€2.50) one way and $5.77 (€5) return, against $4.27 (€3.70) and $8.54 (€7.40) for adults. A pushchair counts as luggage and pays $4.15 (€3.60), the same as a bicycle or a pet, so fold it or carry a sling if the child can be carried.
The car runs every day from 06:00 to midnight, every 12 to 15 minutes, and the ride takes 7 minutes. The lower station is at Piazza Alcide De Gasperi 4, about 10 minutes on foot from Piazza Cavour by our estimate.
At the Top
Brunate's tourist info point opens daily 10:00-16:00 from May to September and at weekends and on holidays from October to April. The Faro Voltiano lighthouse, the usual goal of a walk from the top station, has been closed since 2024, so do not promise the climb. The views and the village are on Brunate, the ride on the Brunate funicular page, and the lighthouse's status on Faro Voltiano.
Sources: Funicular fare sheet, ATM funicular timetable, Comune di Brunate, info point
A Family Day That Works, Our Routing
A weekday plan for two adults and two children aged 8 and 10, built on official hours and prices. The walking minutes are our estimates from the map, and the costs are our sums of the sheet prices.
The table sets out the day stop by stop with the ticket cost for the whole family of four. Food is not included, since no official source prices it.
| Time | Stop | Cost for the family (our sum) |
|---|---|---|
| 10:30 | Como Cathedral, tourist visit with the Como Family Pass | $17.31 (€15) |
| 11:30 | Piazza Cavour and the landing stages, about 4 minutes on foot | $0 |
| 12:00 | Lunch, your choice | Not priced |
| 14:00 | Funicular to Brunate and back, 2 adults and 2 children | $28.60 (€24.80) |
| 16:30 | Lakefront walk from the funicular to the Villa Olmo park, about 34 minutes | $0 |
| Total | Tickets for four | $45.90 (€39.80) |
Swaps for Other Days
- Rainy day: replace Brunate with the Silk Museum family ticket, 2 x €7 plus 2 x €3.50, $24.20 (€21) by our sum. More ideas are on the rainy day page.
- Sunday: the cathedral runs no tourist visits on Sundays, so start with the Tempio Voltiano Family Pass at $17.31 (€15) instead.
- Monday: the museums are closed, and the cathedral and the funicular are the day.
- Coming from Milan: two adults pay $24.90 (€21.60) return on Trenord, and the two children under 14 ride free beside them.
Sources: Cathedral price sheet 2026, Funicular fare sheet, Museo della Seta, Trenord tariff sheet
Trains, Boats and Pushchairs
The small print that decides whether a family day runs smoothly, taken from each operator's own conditions.
- Trenord: children under 4 travel free, 4 to 14 pay half, and under-14s travel free with an adult family member (parent, grandparent, uncle or aunt, sibling) holding a valid ticket. The route choice is on Milan to Como by train.
- Navigazione boats: under-4s travel free if they do not occupy a seat, with one adult for every three children. One free bag per passenger, longest side up to 60 cm. Bicycles are not carried on the rapido. Fares on the Como ferry page.
- Funicular: a pushchair pays $4.15 (€3.60) as luggage.
- Cathedral: pushchairs are fine on the ground floor route and banned on the upper walkways.
- Pinacoteca: ramp and lift, one step in the Renaissance section. Tempio Voltiano: lift.
- Tourist tax: children up to 14 are exempt, with a declaration to the host. Budget the rest on Como costs.
Sources: Trenord tariff sheet, Navigazione Lago di Como tariff, Comune di Como tourist tax information
Bookings That Work With Children
Five bookings with no printed age bar, or with a printed child rule that helps. Prices are in US dollars as listed by each operator, all cancel free up to 24 hours before, and where no minimum age is printed it is worth asking the operator before booking with a toddler.
from $72.23
Lake Como Boat Tour with Brunate Funicular and Scenic Views
A one-hour shared boat tour out of Como with a Prosecco, bundled with a priority-access Brunate funicular ticket and free time to explore the hilltop village on your own.
Check Availability
from $56.40
Lake Como Small-Group Boat Tour with Prosecco
A one-hour shared boat cruise on the first basin of Lake Como with a Prosecco toast and a captain pointing out Villa d'Este, Villa Erba and George Clooney's Villa Oleandra. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included.
Check Availability
from $46.33
The Iconic Como City Tour • 2-Hour Golf Cart Experience
A two-hour tour of Como and Cernobbio in an open electric golf cart with a driver and a seven-language audio guide, stopping for photos at Villa d'Este and Villa Erba.
Check Availability
from $113.50
Lake Como: Small-Group Local Food Tour with Full Meal & Wine
Three and a half hours walking Como's centre across four or more food stops, pizza, polenta, cured meats, sciatt, gelato and coffee, with wine included and a local guide.
Check Availability
from $102.03
Como: Pasta and Tiramisu Class at a Local's Home with Wine
A hands-on class making two pasta types and tiramisu at a local's home near Como, with wine, Prosecco and nibbles included. All dietary requirements can be accommodated on request.
Check AvailabilityPrices, ratings and details are the platform's own. dollar figures are the listed prices — the platform bills in your account's currency.
The Family Stops on the Map
The cathedral, the funicular, the three museums, the park and the lido, with the fact that decides each one for a family. Coordinates from OpenStreetMap and Wikidata.
Walking times on this page are our estimates, not an official figure.
The Rest of a Family Trip
Three pages that turn this plan into a day, each with the detail a family needs.
Brunate funicular
The ride children remember, with the full fare sheet and timetable. The family rules are in up the hill.
Villa Olmo
The villa's history and the free park beside it, where the park rules decide what children can do.
Rainy day in Como
The indoor sights with their hours and closed days, for the afternoon the lake is grey.
Como With Kids: Questions
Is Como good for kids?
On price and distance, yes. Under 6 enter the cathedral and civic museums free, under 4 ride the funicular free, and the main sights are close together. The limits are the museums' Monday closure and the park rules, all set out in the rules that rule a child out.
What is free for children in Como?
Entry to the cathedral, Pinacoteca and Tempio Voltiano under 6, the funicular up to 4, Trenord and Navigazione boats under 4, Trenord under 14 with a family adult holding a ticket, and the tourist tax up to 14. The Villa Olmo park is free for everyone. See the price table.
Where can kids swim in Como?
Lido di Villa Olmo on Via Cernobbio has pools including a children's pool, though its 2026 hours and prices are not published. Swimming is banned in the Villa Olmo park itself. The rules are in where children can swim.
Can I take a pushchair around Como?
Mostly. The cathedral's ground floor and the Pinacoteca (ramp and lift, one step) take one, and the Tempio Voltiano has a lift. The funicular charges $4.15 (€3.60) for a pushchair, and the cathedral's upper walkways ban them. More in trains, boats and pushchairs.
Can children go up the cathedral's walkways?
Only from age 14, accompanied, one minor per adult, with a licensed guide, and never with a pushchair. Younger children can take the free route through the nave. The ticket options are on Como Cathedral tickets.
Is Como good for toddlers?
For short outings, yes: under-4s ride the funicular, the trains and the boats free, and the park paths suit a pushchair. Stairs rule out the cathedral walkways, and no playground is described on an official Comune page. The family day keeps each stop short.
Como With Children, on Film
Three family trips to the lake filmed by parents: small children on boats, in towns and on the move, useful for judging pace before you plan the day.
LAKE COMO ITALY FAMILY VLOG | Exploring with 2 little kids
Two small children around the lake, a realistic look at the pace a family day takes.
Video: Maddie CastellanoLake Como with kids - 2 days of fun at the lake
Two family days at the lake, to set against the costed day on this page.
Video: Where in the World are the WaaijersHow to Travel to Lake Como with Kids
An interview on planning the lake with children, covering transport and bases.
Video: Riveting Trips by Jeanie ColcloughVideos load from YouTube only when you press play.
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