Every year, around the start of November, the lake goes quiet. The water is still there, the mountains are still there, and on a sunny day it can look better than in August. But the boats are gone.
I will admit my first instinct is to call it: the season is over. My second instinct, about ten seconds later, is to ask: is it, though?
So I did the homework. Here is what still runs on our lakes in November, what the weather does this time of year, and what happens to the boats that are not on the water any more.
What still runs
The public boats
On Lake Como, Navigazione Laghi has been on its winter timetable since 2 November, and it runs until 14 March 2027. Boats and fast services still run between Como and Colico, and so does the Bellagio–Lecco line. The car ferry (traghetto) between Bellagio, Cadenabbia, Varenna and Menaggio has separate weekday and holiday timetables.
On Lake Maggiore, the Italian side keeps its winter lines too: Arona–Cannobio, Stresa–Intra, and the Intra–Laveno car ferry.
Lake Garda is the big surprise. From 2 November to 12 March, the only service running is the Torri–Maderno ferry. That is it.
On Lake Lugano, the Società Navigazione del Lago di Lugano's main timetable ended on 18 October. Last winter it ran weekend-only tourist lines over the Christmas holidays (6 December to 6 January), and again with its "Winter Tours" from 28 February to 28 March. The site does not show this winter's dates yet, so check before you plan around them.
One line appears on every timetable, in four languages: services may be suspended in bad weather or strong wind. Remember that one. It comes back later.
Renting a boat
This is where it gets thin. Several rental places close their office for winter. Some keep going. Boat2Go, between Bellagio and Lecco, says it runs all year. Centro Nautico Lario in Argegno has its office open from March to October but takes winter bookings by phone.
If you want one last day at the helm this year, it is possible. Phone first. Do not just turn up at the dock.
And if you are wondering what a day costs, I put the numbers for all three lakes on one page. Not sure whether you even need a licence for a rental? That page is here.
The November weather to watch
Short days
In Lugano the sun rises at 7:10 on 5 November and sets at 17:04. By the end of the month it sets at 16:41. That is under nine hours of daylight.
In July you can leave at four in the afternoon and still have hours to spare. In November four o'clock is nearly the end of the day. Plan to be back at the dock well before sunset, not at sunset.
Fog
MeteoSwiss calls November and December the typical fog months. That is mostly a problem north of the Alps, on the Swiss Plateau. The Swiss climate office says mist and high fog are rare on our side of the Alps.
Rare is not never. If you cannot see the far shore, you do not need to be on the lake. The lake will be there next weekend.
North foehn (the favonio)
This is the one I respect most. When the wind comes over the Alps from the north, it drops down into the valleys on our side, warms up and clears the sky. MeteoSwiss says a strong north foehn can reach 80 km/h or more, even down in southern Ticino.
Here is the trap. North foehn days are often the most beautiful days of the year. Blue sky, sharp mountains, warm sun. Exactly the day you want to go out.
Check the wind before you check the sky. Issue 16 covered docking in wind. I would not like to practise it in a foehn gust.
Cold water
Boat24 put the average surface temperature of Lake Lugano at 14°C this week. The RNLI, the British lifeboat charity, defines anything below 15°C as cold water. Fall in, and the cold shock makes you gasp and lose control of your breathing.
Their advice: do not try to swim straight away. Float on your back and wait for the first shock to pass. Then call for help or swim for safety.
And the water only gets colder from here. In summer a life jacket feels like a rule. In November it is the whole plan. On, not stowed (Issue 19).
What happens to the boats over winter
I do not own a boat yet (Issue 8, still renting). So here is what I know so far, from the people who do.
Haul-out
Many boats come out of the water for winter. They go onto a trailer, a cradle, or a rack in a boatyard or a covered shed. Other boats stay in the water at their mooring for the whole winter. Which one depends on the boat, the marina and the budget, and I have not priced it for our lakes yet.
Winterising (preparing the boat for the cold months)
The BoatUS winterising guide, and almost every one I read, starts the same way: follow your engine manual first. For an outboard, the usual steps are:
1. Fuel. Fill the tank, add a marine fuel stabiliser, and run the engine so the treated fuel gets right through the system.
2. Flush. Run fresh water through the cooling system.
3. Fog. Spray fogging oil into the engine to protect it from the inside.
4. Oil. On a four-stroke, change the engine oil and the filter. Drain and refill the gear oil in the lower unit (the part underwater, by the propeller).
5. Check. Look over the anodes (the metal blocks that corrode so the engine does not), the propeller and the shaft.
6. Store it tilted down, so any water drains out.
Not a weekend project for a beginner who has never done it. Ask the marina, or watch someone who has done it twenty times.
Bringing the boat home
If a boat is coming off the lake into your garage, my calculator is a good place to see what storage does to the yearly cost before you sign anything.
My honest view
The season is not over. It is just smaller.
Fewer boats, shorter days, colder water, and a wind that arrives on the most beautiful days. For a beginner, that means bigger margins: back earlier, a layer more, a life jacket on, and a phone call to the rental place before you set off.
What I still need to figure out
What winter storage actually costs on Lugano, Como and Maggiore, in CHF and €. Whether it is cheaper to leave a boat in the water or take it out. And how the people who own boats here handle the first warm day in March.
I will report back.
If someone you know has just put a boat away for the winter, or is wondering whether to, this is the issue to forward.
See you next Thursday.
— Ale
The season does not end. It shrinks. Winter timetables, fewer rentals, under ten hours of daylight.
Watch three things: the wind (north foehn comes with blue sky), the clock (back before sunset), and the water (below 15°C is cold water).
Phone ahead. Every time.
MeteoSwiss explains in plain language how the north foehn forms, where it blows in Ticino (Leventina, Blenio, Maggia, Verzasca), and how strong it gets. Ten minutes of reading that will change how you look at a blue November sky.
Renting a boat? I put everything I check before, during and after a rental into a free checklist, with a budget sheet at the end. Download the boat rental checklist
Honestly, I would not. The lake is around 14°C this week and falling. That is below the 15°C line the RNLI uses for cold water. Your body's first reaction when you go in is a gasp you cannot control. It is not a question of being a strong swimmer. Save the swim for June. In November, the only person who should end up in the water is nobody.
