Advice on train travel

Carolgrffn,
It's very easy to get to Milano Centrale via the Malpensa Express train from Malpensa Airport & it takes about 52 minutes.
You can purchase your tickets to Florence at the train ticket counter where you will purchase the Malpensa Express tickets.
Once you arrive at Milano Centrale, you have to check the board to find out what track # your train leaving to Florence will be at.
The good thing about Milano Centrale is that all the tracks are on the same level-- the ground level.

I have not been to Siena but I understand that it's better to get there by bus because the bus stops in the town center.

I have experienced that the bus schedule is different on Sundays (buses run less frequently).

As far as I know, the train schedule is not different on Sundays.

Happy travels!
Edit: The website to check train schedules is: http://www.trenitalia.com

Good answer from Priscilla: she succinctly hit all the points you asked about.
As she said, buses operate less frequently on Sundays. What I don't remember (Roberto will know) is whether trains operate less frequently on Sundays. Some research on the Trenitalia website would probably answer that question.
And, as Priscilla mentioned, the bus from Florence (Firenze) to Siena drops you off in a more convenient location than the train does.

To Kent,
Thank you!

Carolgrffn, I've been thinking about my answer (above) & not quite sure if that's the answer you were looking for when you asked this:

We'll be flying into Malpensa and will need to get to Milano Centrale to take a train to Florence. What advice do you have on getting to Centrale and how much time to allow?

If you are planning to buy your train ticket (Milano-> Firenze) in advance, it's not recommended for several reasons:

• Your flight might be delayed
• it takes time to get luggage- if you have checked it
• it takes time to get through customs & passport/ immigration check point
• you might have to wait for the Malpensa Express train.

have not been to sienna, but we took train from Florence to Pisa on a Sunday, and found that many of the eating establishments were closed.

A quick way to check the timetable for buses is to use www.busfox.com/timetable/

Make sure you use Firenze and Siena (not Florence). Also make sure you use 24hr format in the ora field. 08:00 for 8 in the morning. 17:00 for 5pm etc.

Thanks everyone! This is very helpful.
Carol

Buses will definitely have schedules affected for Sundays, trains not as much but it is possible that some will not run. You can check trenitalia.com or bahn.de for train schedules for the day you want to travel, or just pick the same day of the week if the schedule is not posted far enough ahead.

At Milano Centrale, the station is a terminus, so all trains are on the same level but it is not the ground level, it is up one level (signage to trains is excellent).

Train schedule are rarely much different on Sundays, but they are slightly different and the first departure of the morning will usually be later. If you are traveling with Rick Steves Italy guidebook, see these transportation issues summarized the end of each city chapter. Buses can be non-existant to smaller towns, but a reduced schedule does run between Florence and Siena. All of Siena's sights are open Sundays, but the Duomo doesn't take visitors until 13:30; earlier than that, you can attend mass, not walk around. Perhaps half of restaurants will be closed on Sunday across Italy; for those listed in Rick's book, the closed and open days are noted.

To Zoe,

Thanks for clarifying that the train tracks at Milano Centrale are not on the ground level-- I knew that ;-)

It's great that they are all on the same level and there's no need to go up or down the stairs!

I was just there a couple of months ago & recall going down the stairs looking for the ticket office
which had a huge line of people waiting!

Needless to say, I learned how to use the kiosks to purchase my tickets very quickly!

Priscilla--Do you need to have a chip and pin credit card to use the kiosks at Milano Centrale?

Melissa,

To answer your question, I have a chip & signature credit card & it worked in the kiosks but I always had cash on hand just in case.

My card is a Marriott Rewards card though Chase Bank.

Edit: Melissa, I will send you a private message. We don't want to hijack this post.