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Transportation from Salzburg, Austria to Bellagio, Italy

What is the simplest way to get from Salzburg, Austria to Bellagio, Italy on Aug. 9?

Posted by
19630 posts

Assuming you are not looking for the SA answer of "Get in your car and drive.", there are a several train and bus routes. The simplest (fewest connections) would be:
1. Railjet train to Zurich, connecting to EC train to Lugano, connecting to a regional train to Como (San Giovanni), connecting to a bus to Bellagio. Leave at 9:46 am and arrive at 9:30 pm.
2. IC train to Innsbruck, connecting to an EC train to Verona, connecting to an EC train to Milan, connecting to a regional train to Como (San Giovanni), connecting to a bus to Bellagio. Leave at 11:00 am and arrive at 9:30 pm.
Bus timetable from Como (San Giovanni) at:http://www.bellagiolakecomo.com/sites/www.bellagiolakecomo.com/files/C30%20BELLAGIO%20COMO%20ESTIVO%202015%20valido%20dal%209%20Giugno%20al.pdf
Train timetables at www.bahn.com

Posted by
5187 posts

Susy,

As Sam has pointed out, there is no simple way to travel from Salzburg to Bellagio.

It will take you 10-12 hours of traveling, so you may want to stay either in Zurich or Verona for at least one night, then head over to Bellagio.

If you choose option 1 above (given by Sam), once you arrive in Lugano, you can take a bus (line C12) to Menaggio, then a ferry over to Bellagio.
If you choose option 2 above (given by Sam), once you get to Milan( Milano Centrale), you can take the regional train to Varenna, then a ferry across to Bellagio.

You can check ASF bus ( line C 12) schedules here: http://www.asfautolinee.it/linee-e-orari/orario-linee-in-pdf/extraurbana-lago/language/en-US

Here is the website for the ferry schedules: http://www.navlaghi.it/eng/c_illago.html

Posted by
515 posts

From my experienced that will take more than a day. We left one morning from Bellagio and got to Zurich at dinner time. There is no train to Bellagio, in fact, the roads are so narrow that in some places only one car can pass in opposing directions. We actually left Bellagio about 8 am and took a bus to Como, and got the train station, and then the long and scenic trip through the mountains to Zurich maybe 5 pm. After an hour layover, got to Munich about 10 pm. Munich to Salzburg is not too far - maybe 2 hours.

I know there is a train from Salzburg to Vienna, and then a few hours to Milan. Probably you need to take the train to Como and catch a bus to Bellagio.

By the way, I found one restaurant in Bellagio that we really liked. It was way up the steps on the right side, and run by a British woman and her Italian boyfriend.

Posted by
4 posts

Thanks everyone. Would it be simpler to leave from Munich? What would the time frame be?
I'm staying at the Hotel Centrale up a steep flight of stairs with luggage & don't want to arrive in the dark. Should I stay 1 night in Lenno or ?, then take the ferry to Bellagio?

Posted by
19630 posts

I know there is a train from Salzburg to Vienna, and then a few hours to Milan. Probably you need to take the train to Como and catch a bus to Bellagio.

Salzburg to Vienna is totally wrong direction.
Munich is going backwards too unless you want to fly, which may be an option for a lot of money.
Get an early start and you can make it in daylight. Leave at 7 am and take the Innsbruck, Verona, Milan, Como route and you can be at Como San Giovanni by 3:43 pm and get the 3:50 pm bus to Bellagio. If you hit a snag, there is also a bus at 4:50 pm.

Posted by
16893 posts

The Swiss site http://fahrplan.sbb.ch/bin/query.exe/en can give you connection schedules for trains through Italy to Varenna, another favorite town to stay on Lake Como, via connections at Innsbruck, Verona, and Milan. If departing from Munich, you don't need to make the train change at Innsbruck. In summer, ferries do run late enough to get you from Varenna to Bellagio, if you have started from Salzburg at 7:00, but I'd be happy to stay in Varenna, instead of stressing about one more connection. Ferry schedules are at http://www.navigazionelaghi.it/eng/c_orari.asp.

Posted by
32171 posts

susy,

Travelling from Munich would make the trip a bit easier. One route you could use.....

  • Train Munich to Milan (via Verona). One of the shortest departures is at 09:38, arriving 16:55 (time 7H:17M, one change at Verona Porta Nuova).
  • Train from Milan to Varenna-Esino. You should be able to connect with a departure at 17:20, arriving 18:23 (time 1H:03M, direct).
  • When you arrive in Varenna, walk down the hill to the Ferry dock in front of Albergo Olivedo and take the Ferry to Bellagio (about 20 minutes - there's a ticket booth there).

With this method, your trip would be 8H:45M to Varenna. I didn't check the Ferry departure times, so didn't estimate all the way to Bellagio.

As a previous reply mentioned, you could also consider staying in Varenna, as that's also a beautiful town and that would simplify the transportation a bit. If you use that route, I'd suggest buying return tickets to / from Varenna when you arrive at Milan as the ticket office in Varenna is not staffed (although there's a helpful travel agency in Varenna where you can buy rail tickets). Use one of the Kiosks at the ticket office at Milano Centrale usually has a long queue.

One IMPORTANT point - be sure to validate the tickets for the trains to and from Varenna prior to boarding, or you'll risk hefty fines!

Posted by
4 posts

Thank you, Ken. I just booked 1 night in Varenna, so I will probably do the route you suggested. It sounds like the simplest. Thank you so much!

Posted by
32171 posts

suzy,

One night in Varenna??? You likely won't arrive there until about suppertime using the schedule I provided earlier, so will only have a few hours in the evening to look around and then will have to check-out by about 10:00 the next morning. That's not much time.

Posted by
5187 posts

Susy,

You're traveling all the way from Salzburg or Munich to spend only ONE night in Varenna?

I hope you reconsider your travel plans and stay at least 2-3 nights in Varenna so you can actually enjoy
cruising the mid-lake & visit some of the villages such as Menaggio & Bellagio.

Posted by
4 posts

Ken & Priscilla,
I tried to get a 2nd night at my hotel in Varenna but couldn't, but I am spending a week in Bellagio. Thanks everyone for your help! Can't wait to get to Lake Como!