Best Lodging on Lake Como

Do you know what town you want to stay in?

I was there in November 2021. Weather was fabulous although ferry schedule is reduced but I was able to get around just fine. Everything is walkable. I am S, F, 70+, solo, public transpo traveler. I always stay in apt as I usually do 4-30 days in one place and appreciate a washing machine, kitchen, and space. I find hotel rooms and my very strict criteria for an apt make the apt even a better option. Stayed in Como due to ferry and recommend booking.com for accommodations.

Oops!! I forgot to mention we will be staying in Varenna. Sorry!

Varenna is quite small and has a train station which means it can be busy with visitors arriving and departing. Varenna also has 10-minute ferry service minutes to Bellagio and 20-minute ferry service to Menaggio.
Menaggio may be the quietest of these 3 towns with spectacular views from the western shore of Lake Como. Menaggio also has an Agriturismo set in a river valley called “Agriturismo La Vecchia Chioderia.” It’s only 2.5 miles beyond Menaggio’s town center and Bus#C12 can give you a lift for 1.5 miles of the 2.5 miles. Taxis are also available in Menaggio.
This Agriturismo farms trout from its own fish ponds and pork on land. Accommodations are in a main building and also individual cabins. With rates starting at €60 for 2 guests, including breakfast, this Agriturismo was featured in a recent New York Times article on how to affordably visit Lake Como.
Another Agriturismo in the river valley just beyond Menaggio’s center is “Agriturismo Barcola.”

https://www.hotelvillacipressi.it/en

We've stayed at this place and loved it. Can walk to train station and other places. Check it out and see if it fits your needs.

We love the Hotel du Lac in Varenna, and recommend a lake view room with balcony. However, they haven't opened up reservation for spring/ summer 2025 yet. We are waiting. Enjoy!

In Varenna we have only stay;ed at Albergo Milano, and we like it a lot. WE sta;y in the “attic room” in Casa Rossa, the annex building next door. This room is very large, bright and airy, with a large terrace balcony with a table and direct view over the lake. It also has a “kitchen corner” with fridge, sink, and I believe a stovetop. All of these features make it a good choice for a longer stay like yours. One caveat is that unless things have changed we were last there, there is no elevator, so you are climbing stairs to the 4th floor. We call that exercise but others might find it a negative.

Albergo Milano is currently taking reservations for next summer, at least through June from what I have seen. They are walkable from the train station, but there are steps involved in that.

Villa Cipressi and Hotel du Lac both sound perfect. Unfortunately, the are both out of our price range. $1000+/night for 5 nights is more than we can budget for. We could probably go up to $500/night if it was in easy walking distance of the central area of town. Any thoughts?

We went a few years ago and fell in love with Bellagio, we found an AirBNB right on the famous steps street. It had a little balcony facing the water and also another off the kitchen facing a rooftop brkfst place. It had a little clothesline and shutters and I have fond memories of hanging my towels like I lived there with the people having brkfst lol. It was a 4th or 5th floor walk up and so was very affordable. It was a 2 bedroom with AC and a fantastic pizza place on street and amazing gelato and other pastries at top of steps. We ferried over to Varenna and rented a boat and went all around the lake, you will love it!

We picked Varenna because we thought it would have the most restaurants and the best ferry connections. We won't have a car and want to explore other places on the lake as well. Do other locations have equally as good or better ferry connections?
An airbnb makes a lot of sense though if it's close to the ferry. I'll be 78 and my wife 75 next summer and the thought of climbing up and down 5 floors every day doesn't sound too great!

Bellagio has the most restaurants ( more than 60) and most frequent ferry service. Bellagio and Varenna have the reputation of being the most expensive towns to stay in. Menaggio and Varenna each have more than 30 restaurants.

About 3,000 residents live in Bellagio and 3,000 in Menaggio. Varenna has about 800 residents, but that doesn’t mean you won’t see more people in Varenna because the train station sees thousands disembark each day from the 70 trains arriving from Milano, Tirano and Como.
You can check websites such as www.Trivago.com for accommodation prices which will vary depending on when you go. It doesn’t get more expensive than July and August when most Europeans are trying to beat the heat while on vacation.

Hotel du Lac in Varenna is nowhere near $1000 USD a night.

We are booked there next month, in their best room, and it is only $600 AUD for a fully cancellable reservation. That is only around $400 USD, and you could get a smaller room for much less.

Hotel du Lac for next summer?
We are currently waiting for them to open spring 2025 bookings. (I just checked with them last week.)I believe we paid around 250 euros a night spring, 2023, lake view with balcony.
There is also a hotel with the same name in Bellagio. Did the OP check the correct property?
Good luck!