A scuba diver underwater in a wetsuit with tanks and mask On the water

First Dive in Lake Bolsena (Discovery Scuba)

Bolsena

Bolsena is a volcanic lake, clear and without salt, which makes it a gentler place to breathe underwater for the first time than the sea. The boat takes you out to one of the islands before anyone gets wet.

How the day goes

  1. Out to Bisentina or Martana with the instructor and the gear.
  2. The briefing: how to breathe, clear the mask, equalise on the way down.
  3. Down in shallow water, holding on to the instructor for as long as you want.
  4. Back on the boat, and a certificate afterwards to say you did it.

Breathing underwater is a strange business the first time and you need to be at ease in water to try it — the snorkelling trip stays on the surface.

Where it is

Bolsena at its real position from Rome, with everywhere else we list behind it — so you can see how far out this one is.

Bolsena, and where it is from Rome Bolsena drawn at its real position relative to Rome, about 114 minutes by car. The faint dots are the other places we list, so you can see how far out this one is. 114 min Rome Bolsena

Open it where the roads are

Takes you to Bolsena — the town, not the meeting point. Ask them where exactly to turn up; the number is on this page.

Getting there

Getting there, the comfortable way

  • 1 h 54drive from the middle of Rome
  • 142 kmeach way

  • Rent a car for the day

    The day stays yours: you leave when you want, stop where you want, and come back when the light goes.

    • You pick it up in Rome and drop it back in Rome
    • No timetable to build the day around
    • The stops on the way are the good part, and they need a car

    Affiliate link — you pay their price, never more, and they pay us. You book with Localrent, and anything about that booking goes through them.

    See prices on Localrent

  • Have a driver take you, door to door

    No parking to find, no wrong turns, and you leave when the day is done.

    • Picked up where you are staying, dropped back there
    • No parking to find and no ZTL to worry about
    • Nobody spends the day driving

    Affiliate link — you pay their price, never more, and they pay us. You book with Welcome Pickups, and anything about that booking goes through them.

    See prices on Welcome Pickups

Also around Bolsena

A kitesurfer riding across the water with a power kite overhead On the water

Snorkelling Trip to the Lake Islands

Boat trip to swimming and snorkelling spots around Bisentina and Martana islands, plus coastal points away from the summer crowds.

See the day
Three sailing dinghies under way near a pier On the water

Lake Circumnavigation by Rib Boat

Full circuit of Lake Bolsena by rib boat from the Porto Turistico di Bolsena, calling at Bisentina and Martana islands with stops for swimming, snorkelling and lunch.

See the day

More on the water

Two kayakers on a calm blue lake On the waterTrending

Kayak on Lake Albano

Three hours paddling across Lake Albano, gear included, children from six up.

€42.40 per person

Books on ckacademy.it

See the day
A rider on a hydrofoil board far out on the water On the water

Learn to wing foil on Lake Bracciano

A course of four lessons on the lake, board and wing included, with the club that runs them.

€400 per booking

Books on Sporting Club Sabazia

See the day
A sailing boat on open blue sea On the water

Introductory sailing lesson off Ostia

Forty-five minutes from Piramide by train, then you take the helm off Ostia.

€45 per person

Books on barcadicarta.it

See the day

We have not verified this one yet. Everything below comes from the operator and we have not checked it — treat it as a lead, not as a listing.

Photograph by Team3LIUCGloria, Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0. Not this place: it shows what the day looks like, and will be replaced with the operator's own photograph or ours from the field.

Links marked affiliate pay us a commission — you pay the operator's own price and we never take your money. How we rank