which station to transfer between cities in Italy (Venice-Florence-Lake Como-Milan)

For Venice, you'll want Venezia Santa Lucia. For Florence, Firenze Santa Maria Novella. For Milan, Milano Centrale. The one that puzzles me is for Lake Como, because if you're staying in Verona, you're fairly close to Lake Garda, but not so much to Lake Como.

I think you mean Varenna for Lake Como, not Verona which is east of there. For the hassle of getting there as well as it’s incredible beauty, please give Lake Como another night at least.
Take one night from Milan.

If it is Varenna, then the station is Varenna-Esino.

I'm assuming you're flying from Milan to Amsterdam? Otherwise it's a 13 hr train ride!

OP is going to Milan for the shopping ( per a previous post) so the exhortation to spend more time at Lake Como is for naught :(

VARENNA- ESINO, NOT Verona, to get to the Lake Como destination

thanks for everyone's feedback.

to clarify going to Lake Como, which city do I take "Varenna the station -Varenna-Esino" ? In Florence or Milan ? What route / station from Lake como to Milan ?

Fly home from Milan to Vancouver, Canada.

You have to stop thinking of it as Lake Como or people will think you are going to the town of Como. You are not. . Your hotel is in Varenna. That town is on Lake Como.

That town's train station is called "Varenna Esino". There are direct trains to there from Milan. And the same going back. It takes about an hour.

When you get to VARENNA-ESINO station: be all ready, standing with your luggage, right by the exit door of the train.
The train will stop for only a couple of minutes before leaving again, and you don't want to leave anything, or anyone! on board.
You then need to walk down a hill to get to Varenna and your hotel.
I agree that you would be better cutting out so many nights in Milan, and staying in Varenna for at least two nights.

A very helpful website is www. rome2rio.com You can enter the Hotel Ala address and the Florence address, and it will show you exactly what transportation is available, plus it gives you the Italian names of the stations which you will need for the trenitalia website. You can also use it to enter a train station name and your hotel to see how to reach your hotel, i.e. Varenna-Esino and your Hotel Olivedo, Varenna.

To aid in viewing trains & at the stations, Florence = Firenze; Venice = Venezia

per https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Hotel-Burchianti-Florence/Hotel-Olivedo-Varenna

it takes up to 4.5 hr one way to arrive in Varenna,

would be better to arrive in Milan, staying for 1 N, then stay 1N in Varenna, then return to Milan for rest of the trip ?

Thanks.

You can also arrive to Firenze Campo di Marte. It's a less busy with tourists than Santa Maria Novella and sometimes the train fares are cheaper to that station (even with the fast trains), then you taxi to the hotel. However from the SMN Station to your hotel is walking distance so you don't have expense of taxi fare.