Hello,

I’m planning my trip to Northern Italy next month, which I previously mentioned here; I appreciate Sally’s reply, but it would be nice to get more. I have a planning blog here.

Previously I talked about being flexible on when I move around, based on the weather. Since I have less than two full weeks, I don’t have all that much flexibility, given the number of places I want to go, but in another aspect I still need to be flexible. Here’s the itinerary of transfers (spostamenti) I have in mind:

Monday Malpensa-Bellagio
Wednesday Bellagio-Mantova
Thursday Mantova-Bergamo
Friday Bergamo-Torino
Monday Torino-Bellagio
Wednesday Bellagio-Lugano (ferry to Menaggio, then bus)
Friday Lugano-Malpensa, catch return flight

I’m hoping to have the weekend in Torino to stay with a family friend, and since I’m not used to paying for lodging every night on a trip to Italy, it would be nice to get a break on that. This is where I need to be flexible, though, because she sometimes needs to travel on business on short notice, and can’t say for sure whether the dates will work until shortly before. The two stays in Bellagio would be to be with my parents, who will be residents of the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center. They can’t offer me lodging, and most hotels in Bellagio are closed for the winter; I’ve booked the first two nights at the Hotel Bellagio. I worry that my stays in Mantova and Bergamo may be too short; if the Torino stay is reduced, I might extend one of them; if I don’t go to Torino at all, I might think of another place to go.

I’ve chosen these places out of a general sense that they’re interesting places where I haven’t been, but I haven’t thought much about what I’ll do there; I’m just planning to print out Rough Guide pages and get a tourist office brochure. As is my style, I’ve looked extensively into how I’ll move around by public transportation; I have online schedules, notably the infopoint.it site for getting around Lombardia by all means. The rest of this post will be about what I’ve found out about these transfers, with questions stated or implied.

Malpensa-Bellagio: My flight arrives at 7.55 a.m., so I won’t expect to make the 8.30 bus to Como. I’ll plan to take the train to Como Nord Laghi, connecting at Saronno, appreciating that they’ve just started usually having 20 minutes, where it used to be 1 minute, to change trains. Given my jet-lagged state with luggage, it might be worthwhile to pay the extra 1 euro to go first class. Then I’ll probably take the bus to Bellagio, but if I’m delayed and just get to Como shortly before noon, I can take the ferry shortly after 12.

Now I’ll ask on behalf of my parents, who will arrive the week before: they’ll arrive at 10.30 a.m., and I told them they might as well take the bus to Como at 1. Now I see that they could catch a train as late as 11.53 and connect to a ferry at 13.35, getting to Bellagio at 14.18, or I think if they take the bus from MXP they can get the ferry at 14.20, arriving at 15.13. What are the merits of going by bus all the way with one change, or train with a change, then ferry? I expect that the ferry would be a more picturesque and faster way of making the first arrival in Bellagio; what about getting onto it with luggage? They are in their 70s but generally get around well, and they’ll try to travel light. Also I see that the Malpensa bus lists the Como stops as Autosilo Via Castelnuovo, P. Cavour, Staz. Autolinee, and Viale Aldo Moro. The schedule of the C30 Como-Bellagio bus shows the Como stops as Staz. FS and P. Matteotti. I’m thinking that P. Matteotti and the Staz, Autolinee are the same place, which is also near the ferry landing; is this correct, so would this be the place to connect?

Bellagio-Mantova: I’m thinking the best schedule would be the bus to Lecco, then train via Milano Centrale. On the pre-December schedule, I could have connected at Milano Greco Pirelli, which I found intriguing. I note that this trip within one region takes longer than the train from Milan to Rome.

Mantova-Bergamo: Most train itineraries on the Trenitalia site show two connections; all of Infopoint’s itineraries have you take the bus to Brescia, then the train; both take around the same amount of time. I could take whichever is first available; any comments on the merits of these: one fewer change, but a change of station and separate tickets? Do I understand that in both Mantova and Brescia the bus station is adjacent to the train station? I’ve had trouble finding the bus fare.

I was thinking the trains to/from Torino were straightforward, but when I looked up Bergamo-Torino on Trenitalia, one of the fare specials listed was “Torino-Milano a 1 euro”; when I selected that it showed unavailable for the train of my choice, but if I searched Milano-Torino as a separate trip it showed it as available for 1 euro. So this would be the way to do it once I’m sure that I’m making this trip, but I gather there are limited seats available, and it will be questionable whether I can get these if I’m going Friday evening-Monday morning as I was thinking. When I search Torino-Como, one desirable Milano-Como segment is a Cisalpino, which seems to require reservations but can’t be booked on the Trenitalia site; can it be booked on the self-service machines, or would I need to book it in person? Even in Torino, just before I leave?

Bellagio-Lugano: From the online maps, it looks like from the Menaggio ferry landing to piazza Garibaldi where the bus starts is about 400 meters; is this correct? I suppose I could walk it with my wheeled bag, but are there other options? Would taxis be waiting at the landing in this season? Now for Lugano: I know we’re getting out of Italy, but it’s close enough and for continuity I’ll keep the question here. The schedule of the C12 bus Menaggio-Lugano shows the Lugano stops as Lugano Cast.-sal. Ulivi and Lugano Cass.-term. Bus. I’m guessing these are Castagnola and Cassarate, outside central Lugano. I would hope to take a city bus from the bus station to where I might be staying in the center. The Lugano transit site says that a day pass can be bought for 5 Swiss francs from machines at the stops; suppose I’ve just gotten my Swiss francs from an ATM; can the ticket machine make change, or can I also get a pass at a newsstand or something? I might just get a coffee to be sure of having change. If I have trouble getting Swiss francs around the bus station and just feel like taking a taxi, could I pay the cab fare in euros, or by credit card?

The Lugano-Malpensa trip on Bus Express looks straightforward, if there aren't major changes after Jan. 31. For one who tries to have a good handle on Italian transportation, I have a lot of questions, and my itinerary may wind up being different. Well, I’ll appreciate any help on any part of this.

Andrew,

Your question is daunting - so much and so many details. But, what I do know is that the bus from Malpensa to Como will drop you off near the boat station. When we took the bus, there was no change. Getting on the ferry with luggage is no problem - lots and lots of people do it. There are two train stations in Como, one fairly convenient to the boats and one that requires a taxi/bus ride from the boats. You should be sure what station you want to arrive at in Milan to determine what train to take. Trains between Bergamo and Milan leave from and arrive at different stations in Milan - again you need to know which Milan station you want. I think the Cisalpino is a Swiss train. We have taken it many times from Venice to Zurich.

I always buy a Pozzorario at a newstand when I arrive so I will have all the train schedules with me. It's easy to peruse over a coffee and figure out which trains I want and when, depending on the mood of the moment.

Callie

Hi Andrew -
It looks like you've done your homework on your transportation options!

re: Your parents arrival in Bellagio, I believe simpler is better - especially after a transatlantic flight. Since they'll be in Bellagio for several weeks, they'll no doubt have other opportunities to see the town from the ferry.

I'm a big fan of Bergamo, and think you'd regret having ~24 hours there. I stayed in the upper city for about 3 1/2 days in 2001, and only visited sites in Città Alta; I didn't even get to the Accademia Carrara in Città Bassa.

On my first visit I was on a direct train from Milano Centrale to Bergamo. On my return visit from Venice, I had to change trains in Brescia. Sorry, I never left the station so don't know if the bus station is nearby.

Good luck with your plans -

Thanks. The transportation questions I have are pretty specialized, but I'll hope for more response. It looks like there's reason to consider staying longer in Bergamo.

Andrew