Where to sleep in Como: the city centre, the lakefront, Borgo Vico

Sleeping in Como: between municipal rules, new construction sites and neighbourhoods to discover

Anyone planning a stay in Como faces a city in transformation, with a well-established tourist tax system, a lakefront still under construction, a new hotel being built just steps from the Duomo, and neighbourhoods like Borgo Vico staking their claim to a distinct identity. Different sources tell the story, each focusing on a specific aspect of the city.

The tourist tax

According to the Municipality of Como, the tourist tax was introduced starting May 1, 2013, under legislative decree no. 23 of March 14, 2011. The relevant municipal regulation, the same source reports, was approved by City Council resolution no. 15 of March 25, 2013, and subsequently amended by resolution no. 84 of November 26, 2019.

The rates currently in force, which vary by type of accommodation, were set by the City Council with resolution no. 15 of January 24, 2019. The tax applies per person and per overnight stay, up to a maximum of four consecutive nights, and non-resident visitors pay it directly to the accommodation manager, who issues a receipt and then remits it to the Municipality.

The municipal website also details the obligations placed on accommodation managers: a monthly declaration due by the 15th of the following month, to be submitted electronically via the StayTour portal after registering with the Revenue Service; and payment of the tax within 15 days of the end of each month, via bank transfer, postal account, F24 form or pagoPA. In addition, there is an annual declaration—an obligation introduced by Article 180 of Decree Law 34/2020—to be filed by June 30 through an authorized intermediary, using the form approved by ministerial decree of April 29, 2022.

Exempt from payment, according to municipal guidelines, are children under 14, stays beyond the fourth day, and out-of-town university students under 26 enrolled at Como universities, provided they complete a specific declaration kept on file by the manager. Bed and breakfasts and holiday homes, meanwhile, are subject to the domestic TARI waste tax rate, calculated on the number of authorized beds. The Municipality further specifies that revenue from the tax is allocated to tourism promotion, event organization, and the upkeep of public spaces and greenery, and that registering a new accommodation facility—free of charge—is processed within 30 working days by the dedicated office, open Monday to Wednesday by appointment.

The new hotel next to the Duomo

Comozero recounts the birth of a four-star hotel overlooking the right nave of Como's Duomo, whose completion was expected by July 2020, with construction having begun in April 2019. According to the outlet, this involves converting a mid-19th-century residential building into a 20-room property, commissioned by Antique Corner Srl and designed by Elisabetta Cavalleri, who is also the site supervisor.

The ground floor, comozero reports, will remain available for the shops already present, with guest rooms starting from the first floor; in the adjoining section owned by the Diocese, the opening of the Duomo Museum was planned for 2020. The work, which took about a year for structural reinforcement, involved inserting micropiles under four columns showing signs of sinking linked to the subsidence affecting the city, with a survey of materials carried out together with the Politecnico di Milano. Collaboration with the Superintendency required special solutions, such as skylights instead of dormer windows in the attic rooms and no visible air conditioning units on the roof.

The same source highlights a notable figure—just over 800 B&Bs and holiday homes currently active in the city—and quotes designer Cavalleri as warning of the risk that Como could become an "open-air B&B," with homes and businesses serving residents disappearing: an outcome, the architect stresses, that is not her intention, which is not to "turn the city into an open-air hotel."

The lakefront construction site

The Province of Como describes the progress of work on the new lakefront promenade, whose first stretch between the darsena (marina) and Sant'Agostino was expected to open in March. In the section toward Sant'Agostino, the "boxes" embedded in the pavement for the flood-barrier system were already installed, with aluminum bars ready for manual assembly; the large marina gates, the outlet explains, will be closed whenever the lake level rises.

In Piazza Cavour, the construction site still showed pipes, excavators and sheet piling driven into the lakebed, slated for removal, while near the former Navigazione ticket office, final work on the sewage network was underway, with the water collection tank clearly visible. The historic parapets with their ship's-wheel motifs, already restored, showed traces of rust and will likely need repainting before final installation.

Among the design details reported by the Province of Como are an engraving on the first step of the promenade quoting Pliny the Elder, plans for 13 square planters 50 centimeters tall with LED lighting and Lagerstroemia plants, purple as the guiding color for flowers and plants, LED spotlights set into the porphyry paving, and benches inspired by a prototype by Ico Parisi. At Sant'Agostino, in the area once used for hauling boats ashore, the outline of a large circular flowerbed with stone seating from Como's quarries has been marked out. The same source notes that in the weeks following the report, linden trees identical to the existing ones were to be replanted, that porphyry paving was being laid at the entrance to Viale Geno with completion expected within a couple of weeks, and that the bike path planned along the current pedestrian route still needs to be built by the Municipality.

Borgo Vico, the artists' quarter

A different character emerges from QuiComo's account of Borgo Vico, where painter Ester Negretti's studio has been based for a year. She has gathered signatures from residents and shopkeepers for an appeal to mayoral candidates asking for the street to be closed to traffic on summer weekend evenings. "The idea is to turn this street into Como's Brera," Negretti said, citing the pedestrianization of Times Square as an example to argue that neighbourhoods come back to life without cars.

Along the street, according to QuiComo, various artistic and commercial ventures coexist: the studio shared by painter Fabrizio Bellanca with his mother Marcella Chirico, also an artist; the studio of architect-turned-painter Marco Vido; and former orchestra conductor Enrico Collina, now a painter. The street's artists, the outlet reports, point out that past events organized in Borgo Vico drew not only locals but also tourists interested in the artwork on display, even though the Manifest event was cancelled that year due to lack of funding. Christmas lights, QuiComo adds, will still be installed on this street as well.

On the commercial side, the same source cites the venue i Figli dei Fiori, which recently turned part of its space into a bistro, alongside longstanding fixtures such as the knife-sharpener Riccadonna, the butcher Eugenio, and the venue Birrivico. Adding further charm to the neighbourhood, according to QuiComo, is the former Church of Santa Caterina, built in 1634 on foundations dating back to the late 13th century and now privately used as a venue for events and exhibitions.

Where to stay: a map of the area

A broader overview of the accommodation options comes from Zipangu, which describes Como as a city located at the southern tip of the lake's western branch, a short distance from the Swiss canton of Ticino, and well connected to regional transport networks. The small, easily walkable historic center is anchored by the lakefront promenade, with mid-to-upscale hotels concentrated in this area and more budget-friendly options pushed to the city's outskirts.

Among the examples cited by Zipangu are the Albergo Terminus, a four-star hotel in a 19th-century building on Lungolago Trieste near the pier and the Duomo; the Albergo Firenze, a three-star property in the historic center within the limited-traffic zone with no parking; the apartment Le Quinte del Duomo, just steps from the cathedral; the guesthouse Al Porticciolo di Sant'Agostino, near the funicular and the lakefront; the property In Riva al Lago near the Como Lago train station; the guesthouse Sant'Agata, in a period building with free private parking; the Borgo Antico, a three-star property on Via Borgovico near the Como San Giovanni train station; and the guesthouse Carducci, within the old walled city.

Zipangu also describes the Breccia neighbourhood, west of the center and served by the A9 motorway, home to the Church of San Cassiano, known for the "Maggio Organistico Breccese" festival, and several historic villas, as well as the property L'Antica Corte Lazzago, about 15 minutes by car from the center. On the lake side, the same source highlights Cernobbio as one of the most exclusive destinations, with high-end hotels including Villa Flori, a 19th-century villa directly on the lake; Moltrasio, a starting point for scenic trails, with the Albergo Posta in the town center; Carate Urio, less than half an hour from Como; and Blevio, on the road to Bellagio, with the family-run inn Albergo Milano 1920. Rounding out the picture is Casa Silvana, a small apartment in the southern part of the city, near the Silk Museum.