11 days in July - flying into MXP in Milan with two young kids

Varenna on Lake Como is an easy train trip to the shores of Lake Como with beautiful scenery and lake access for swimming. If you felt you needed to stay over one night in Milan there are many comfortable, affordable hotels close to the train station. We stayed at the Hotel Berna which is a five minute walk from the train station with a wonderful, full breakfast included. The fastest trains to Varenna run about one every two hours with zero stops and take about one hour.

Thank you! Is Lake Como easier to get to from Milan than Lake Garda? I keep reading Lake Garda is more family friendly? Also how hard is it to rent a car in Varenna and drive to Tuscany?

How about heading direct from MIlan Malpensa (MXP) to Stresa on nearby Lago Maggiore.

Very kid-friendly, more so than Milan. This is a lakeside town with a cable car up a mountain, a palace in the lake you can get a boat too.
Photo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Stresa-Alpino-Mottarone_Sv%C3%A6vebane.JPG
That is the palace on the island at the left of the photo.

1h45 from the airport to Stresa by train (one change), or 45 mins by taxi if your budget will stretch. See https://www.rome2rio.com/s/Milan-Malpensa-Airport-MXP/Stresa
Tourist info here: http://www.visitstresa.com/

Then you can take your train from there, via Milan, to Florence or wherever and pick up your car for the second part of the trip.

rddysm, I was typing as stmurray2 and you replied. Lake Garda is over to the east, nearer Venice and the Adriatic. Maggiore and Como are within an hour of Milan. You need to check a map.
Varenna on lake Como, and Bellagio are beautiful. But, I suggested Stresa on Lago Maggiore because it is a bit more lively than Como, more activities for kids and not just romantic eye-candy for adults, though Stresa is also beautiful.

Ah, that makes sense! I was thinking Lake Garda was closer to Milan. Lake Maggiore sounds lovely too, esp the castles and cable car which my 9-year-old son would love. Does the lake make for good swimming too? I had read somewhere that the scenery there wasn't stunning as Lake Garda or Lake Como?

If you have any suggestions on places to stay, let me know. We prefer places with a mini-kitchen and suite or two bedrooms. But we wouldn't be staying a full week and I know in the summer many places require a Sat. to Sat. stay...

Ah, that makes sense! I was thinking Lake Garda was closer to Milan. Lake Maggiore sounds lovely too, esp the castles and cable car which my 9-year-old son would love. Does the lake make for good swimming too? I had read somewhere that the scenery there wasn't stunning as Lake Garda or Lake Como?

If you have any suggestions on places to stay, let me know. We prefer places with a mini-kitchen and suite or two bedrooms. But we wouldn't be staying a full week and I know in the summer many places require a Sat. to Sat. stay...

I am with Chris on this one.
I would go straight to Stresa on lake Maggiore. It's next to the Malpensa airport. Actually that's what I do when I use Malpensa. Lake Maggiore is very beautiful and you should spend at least 3 to 4 nights there.

If you plan to go to an agriturismo in Tuscany later you will need a car for Tuscany, so you might rent it directly when you arrive at MXP. Lake Maggiore (Stresa) is only 40 min drive from the airport, so it's doable also after a long overnight flight.
Alternatively there is a bus from the airport to the lake.
http://www.safduemila.com/alibus-2016-malpensa.lagomaggiore.html
The train option is also available but the faster way is to take a taxi to nearby Gallarate (10-15 min by taxi) and catch the train from Gallarate to Stresa (25 min). Using the Malpensa station instead of Gallarate involves considerable backtracking. Train timetables below, but as I said in your shoes I'd rent a car. Probably easier with two small kids too.
www.trenitalia.com

Any place in Tuscany is good. There are agriturismo everywhere. The most popular with Americans is the Provnce of Siena, but the province of Arezzo is just as beautiful and not as expensive (those pesky Americans inflate prices with their crazy tipping habits). Besides Siena and Arezzo are bordering provinces and some famous destinations in the province of Siena can be reached faster from Arezzo (e.g. Montepulciano). Some of the most famous towns in the AR province are, in this order, Cortona, Arezzo, Anghiari, Poppi, Castiglion Fiorentino, Camaldoli (largest National Forest), Lucignano, Loro Ciuffenna, and many others.

Umbria (Assisi, Perugia, Spello, Castiglion Del Lago, etc.) are just an hour or so away.

If you fly out of Milan you need to spend the night in the Milan area. If you keep the car that long, you might even consider going back to lake Maggiore on the last night.

Don't keep the car if you stay in the city of Milan. Cars and large European cities are not a good combination.

Thank you! This sounds like a great option. How long is the drive roughly from Lake Maggiore to Tuscany (Arezzo or Siena) and is it an easy one? We live in NYC so don't drive a lot!

And yes, would love to just ditch the car in Arezzo maybe and then take the train from Florence back to Milan? Wouldn't mind spending one night in Milan! Surely some great food there!

From Stresa to Arezzo is 300 miles (practically all freeway driving). I'd say 5 hour drive. However you need to add pit stops along the way for food/bathroom/fuel. So that can easily take the better part of a day.
The freeways are mostly toll freeway. You get a ticket at the booth on the entrance ramp, then you give the ticket to the attendant at the freeway exit ramp booth. Based on the distance traveled you get charged. It works like a parking garage.
You don't need to exit the freeway system (and pay toll at each exit) for your pit stops. Rest areas on the freeways (area di servizio) are little malls, equipped with all types of services, besides fuel stations, including restaurants and shops and a place for your kids to play. So your 5 hour drive might turn out into a whole day experience. My wife loves those Autogrill rest stops. We eat and shop there more than when we actually reach our destination.

ViaMichelin.com will be very helpful to you as you plan your road trips. Folks here say that the driving times tend to be a bit optimistic. Remember, too, that they do not include time for any stops.

I don't think anyone here has come right out and said that Milan-Malpensa Airport is not, in fact, terribly close to the city of Milan. Be careful about where you choose to stay on your last night if your return flight departs early.

I guess I didn't realize MXP was so far from Milan center. Where do people generally stay if they fly in and out of there?

If I have a morning flight, I spend the night in Milano, near Mulano Centrale and then take the Malpensa Express to MXP the next morning.

If the flight is very early, I would spend the night near MXP.

Thank you. Another question just dawned on me. A big part of the reason I chose to travel in July instead of April is because I wanted it to be warm enough for swimming for the kids.

But do people even swim in Lake Maggiore or Lake Como and if so, where? I'm not seeing much on places to swim...

Thank you!

There are beaches everywhere at the lakes.

Lago di Garda
Lago di Como
Lago Maggiore
The one here is near Baveno, not far from Stresa.

Once you decide which lake to go, just do a google search using the key word SPIAGGIA (beach) or SPIAGGE (beaches) followed by the name of the 'lago' (lake).

Near lake Maggiore, just across the hill from Stresa, is also beautiful Lake Orta with very quaint village of Orta San Giulio

Oh, phew! The fares were much better in April but I wanted swimming for the kids.
Actually I just found some great fares for the last week of August and I'm tempted to change my ticket. But from everything I've read everything is even more crowded in August than in July. Would you all say early July will be less congested than late August?

I agree with Chris and Roberto. Stressa and Lago Maggiore would be an excellent choice. The boats going between the islands would keep the kids entertained and the palace is quite incredible and probably enough open space the children would enjoy it.

As far as lodging, if you have an early flight out there is a Sheraton on site at the airport (we've stayed once and will use it two times this year). If your flight is a bit later in the morning, both Hotel Garda and Hotel Berna are within a 5 minute walk to Milano Centrale. Both highly recommended by those who post on this site.

If we were taking our kids (much older now) I would definitely consider Lago Maggiore and Stressa. Have a wonderful trip!

What is the main difference between Lake Como and Lake Stressa? I found a really nice two-bedroom apartment in Lezzano which is on Lake Como and wondering if it would make a good first stop from MXP. I haven't found anything in Stresa yet.

Is Lake Como not a great place for young kids? This apartment is part of a hotel and restaurant that is on the water so we would have water access and a water view. And with a family of four a two-bedroom apartment is ideal!

Stresa is on Lake Maggiore. In my memory the main difference between Maggiore and Como is that Lake Como is surrounded by mountains while Lake Maggiore is surrounded by mostly relatively flat lands. I prefer Como to Maggiore but I do not have any kids traveling with me. My objective is to visit some of the little lakeside towns and palaces - perhaps not very exciting for a 3 and 9 year old.

the main difference between Maggiore and Como is that Lake Como is surrounded by mountains while Lake Maggiore is surrounded by mostly relatively flat lands.

This statement is factually incorrect.

Lake Maggiore has the highest peaks of the Prealpi mountains.
The only lake that is surrounded by flat land is Lake Garda, but only on its southern side.

I've visited all lakes, and they are all beautiful. If you ask any Italians who have been to all major alpine lakes, which are the most beautiful, I bet the opinions would be equally divided among all. You have the time to visit only one, you just have to pick the one that makes the most sense for your itinerary. All of them will have spots for your kids to enjoy the water. I've swum in all of them.

Oh good, because we love the mountain-to-water scenery! A place where kids can swim, we can enjoy the scenery, take ferry boats to other towns, visit a few castles or a monastery, take short walks, easy hikes, and find playgrounds and parks, with good food to boot works for us!

You all convinced me to go to Lake Maggiore as our first stop in Italy. Now I'm trying to decide between these two hotels. Any thoughts on which one would serve us better (family with 2 kids, ages 3 and 9).

La Luna nel Porto:http://www.lalunanelporto.it/indexuk.html
This seems like it's obviously closer to MXP and will probably be closer to our next destination - some place on the Ligurian coast. Or Tuscany Also it seems more central to the ferries, beaches and restaurants.

http://www.hotelcannero.com/
But this one is $30 a night less and includes breakfast and has a pool and free parking. I realize it's a farther trip from MXP but we would be driving, and it would be farther from our next destination. Also, it's next to a ferry landing but I realize ferries from this town would be less frequent.

If anyone has personal experience with these towns or hotels would love to hear your thoughts. We would be there the first three nights of our Italy trip - after flying a red eye from NYC. Thanks!