Efoil Lesson Review: Glide on Lake Como, Italy

Lake Como, Italy, a spot celebrated for its breathtaking natural beauty, seems too it’s almost a super cool place to try new adventures. Recently, I had the opportunity to experience an Efoil lesson right there on Lake Como, more specifically in Lecco. The promise? Gliding above the water on an electric hydrofoil. The question? Could a beginner actually pick it up, and was it worth it? I’m here to break it down for you, very simply, so you know what you might expect.

What is Efoiling Anyway?

So, Efoiling, just a little bit like something from the future, arguably is a sport that uses an electric surfboard with a hydrofoil. This foil, positioned underneath the board, very much lets the board lift out of the water as you pick up speed. The result is pretty interesting. It feels a bit like you’re soaring. That is that the Efoil itself is controlled by a wireless hand-held remote, just a little for controlling the speed, basically making it pretty user-friendly – supposedly anyway!

Booking and Prep

Finding an Efoil experience in Lecco isn’t really too tough. A number of watersports providers have popped up, basically offering lessons and rentals. I booked mine online and, honestly, the process seemed straightforward. Leading up to the lesson, communication was regular, they sent confirmations, along with details about what to bring – swimwear, sunscreen, that kind of thing. Arriving at the lake, the location itself was rather picturesque. Lecco, at the southern tip of Lake Como, offers like amazing views, arguably acting as the ideal backdrop for a watersports adventure, pretty awesome too, right?

First Steps: Dry Land Training

The lesson kicked off on dry land, pretty basic but key. The instructor started with a simple overview of the Efoil board, basically explaining how it worked and pointing out important safety aspects, so everyone got a chance to become pretty comfortable with the gear before getting near the water. We covered stuff like how to hold and operate the hand controller. More or less, we were told how to control our speed, so, very, very important indeed, given that things could move quite quickly once you are out on the water! Also, we went over the basics of getting on the board, initially in a stationary position. Getting a feel for balance right away meant we sort of knew what to anticipate once afloat. As well as the operational stuff, the teacher spent a while talking about all of the safety points: what to do if you fell (which, just between us, I did lots of times!), and all of the hand signals to be aware of.

Getting Wet: In-Water Practice

Then, the thing that everyone looked forward to. Once we’d run through everything safely, so, too it’s almost time to head onto the water, to see if we could get up and Efoil. In the water, the instructor basically towed each of us behind the boat, which helped a bit to get the feel for the board moving before we had to deal with using the motor ourselves. One at a time, we practiced lying flat on the board, in the process gradually learning how to shift our weight and get a sense for balancing. Eventually, we tried getting up onto our knees, a helpful stepping stone on the way to standing. Okay, very clearly, I struggled quite a lot with getting my balance right (maybe surfing isn’t going to be my next career?), but very quickly I felt a little bit more in control. After a few false starts I actually started to feel that the board was far easier to control from my knees and felt a little confidence coming, if only slowly. Each person in the group got the chance to take their time and figure things out at their own speed, that, very genuinely, helped. You were not pressurized or felt that you were holding the rest of the group back if you were finding something hard to learn!

The Flight: Rising Above the Water

Standing up is that the point where the real fun begins. It needs small, controlled movements, and progressive acceleration using the hand controller. The moment the board lifted out of the water was actually surprisingly smooth. It took a bit of concentration and very gentle shifts in weight to try to stay balanced but, basically when I was up, the feeling was really something. It is just like gliding over the water, very quiet, and really peaceful. It’s unlike anything I have experienced, I guess. Honestly, I only stayed up for a few minutes at a time on my first attempts. I think my best was about 15 seconds but, very gradually, I became more balanced, arguably more confident, and finally able to start stringing longer stretches of “flight” together. On occasion, and I want to emphasize just occasionally (I would hate to portray that I found this at all easy!) I found myself looking around at the amazing landscape while gliding smoothly across the top of the water. A really spectacular feeling.

What I Loved

The instructors are something that I definitely need to touch on. Super-skilled and supportive, and with loads of patience, they’re very key to making the whole experience positive. Also, obviously, it’s that beautiful spot that made everything special. Lake Como, with its clear waters and lovely villas dotting the shoreline, is hard to beat. So, even when I was wiping out (pretty often!) I was in a cool spot. The equipment seemed very high quality. I saw people using Efoils of all shapes and sizes and all appeared new and well maintained. I was fitted with a helmet and a buoyancy vest before being allowed anywhere near the water so that the providers took the safety elements very seriously.

The Instructor and their Approach

Something that might be useful for you if you are planning to give this a try; the teaching approach. My instructor broke everything down. Nothing was too fast, all very manageable. Starting with safety tips and then basic maneuvers. Then the communication was excellent. It felt as if my instructor knew when to push me harder, yet when to give me space so I could go along at my pace. For anyone trying efoiling, there’s nothing worse than feeling pressurised to improve and feeling as if you’re not meeting expectations. That didn’t exist for anyone in our little group.

Things to Consider

Efoiling isn’t completely a cheap experience. The costs for lessons and rentals might be a bit steep, so just check different places so you know you are getting very good value. The lake might get choppy, so it’s probably something to consider that affects the experience a bit, specifically if the weather isn’t the greatest. It does demand some level of fitness and balance. I spent more time than I want to think about in the water so anyone with significant balance issues might find things difficult, just a little bit anyway!

Was it Worth It?

Totally, definitely worth it. The feeling of gliding over the waters of Lake Como is amazing. Sure, there’s a learning curve, I fell countless times, and it might make a bit of a dent in your holiday spending money but the buzz of flying above the water is super cool. If you’re after something memorable and you like a challenge, giving Efoiling on Lake Como, Italy is a yes from me.