Please sign in to post.

Arriving at Venice Marco Polo Airport

Hello!

A bit of a conundrum to sort out here. I'll be arriving at Marco Polo airport on a Sunday morning around 11:15am from Paris. I need to catch a train immediately to Florence to meet up with a friend. We just discovered today that the Uffizi and Accademia aren't open on Mondays (when we thought we'd visit), so our only ticket options are on Sunday. Any idea how long it will take me to get through passport control at Marco Polo and catch the bus to Mestre? I'm just bringing a carry-on bag. I will buy my train ticket at the station or on the Trainline app once I know what train I can feasibly catch.

Do you think we'd be safe booking tickets for 3:45pm or so for Accademia, and then 5pm for Uffizi? They'll have to be quick visits, but we don't tend to linger long in museums anyway.

Posted by
5665 posts

Maybe. Buses run every 30 minutes or so to the Mestre station (check for links on rome2rio.com) and take about 15 min.
Trains are about hourly, and take about 2 hours. Then you have to get rid of your luggage and get to the museum.

If you manage to catch the 12:37 From Mestre, you might make it.

Posted by
23653 posts

Just to help others understand, Venice is a long ways from Florence. Why are you not flying directly to Florence? I really do not see how you can do it. Too many options that can go wrong. As a min you would have to have four hours from the time you land to Florence and then maybe another hour to get to the museums. Everything would have to click perfectly to make 3.45. For me my stress level would be sky high. Skip the Uffizi if you are only going to spend an hour. Move the Accademia back to 5 or 6.

Posted by
93 posts

I'd have rather flown in Florence, but there was a $300+ price difference at the time I booked.

Posted by
23653 posts

That is understandable but Milan or Rome could have been better choices, especially Milan. Good luck.

Posted by
488 posts

I think the 3:45 is cutting it very close. If your flight is delayed even 20 minutes, you're unlikely to make it.

Posted by
261 posts

You don't say when you're traveling, which leaves members to assume the current train schedule can help you plan. If your trip is soon, you have two choices: the 12:37 and the 13:37.

If your plane lands on time and you have no checked luggage, I don't see why you couldn't make the 12:37 train. You can always take a taxi to the Mestre station, which is a 15-minute ride on a Sunday morning. If you can't make the 12:37, then you should certainly be able to make the 13:37. If the 13:37 arrives in Florence on time at 15:30, you should be able to get to the Accademia by 15:45. The walk is barely 15 minutes, and a taxi might be less. This is not the way I travel, but a lot of people succeed with crazy schedules and have fun stories to tell after the fact.

Posted by
2147 posts

Sheena, Will you Italy be in Florence through Monday? There are definitely other things to see in Florence in Monday like the Bargello. Perhaps you could see the Accademia Sunday late and then the Uffizi early on Tuesday.

Posted by
23653 posts

Lets be very realistic - instead of blowing smoke - lets look at the actual time line --

11.15am Plane lands

1137 Train departs to Centrale - You have 22 minutes from the time the plane is suppose to hit the gate, get off the plane and run to the terminal, maybe stand in a ticket line, buy tickets, and get on the train. Most likely you cannot do it. Too far.

1207 Next train to Centrale - You will catch that one.
1306 Arrive Centrale station

1337 Train to Florence
1530 Arrive Florence
1545 Reservation/Accademia -- In 15 minutes, exit train, station, and find a taxi to the Accademia. There is no luggage storage there so I don't know what you would do with your luggage. You cannot take your luggage into the exhibit.

Even if by chance your plane is early, and you can catch the 1137 train and it arrives at 1235. You have two minutes to catch the next train. Doubt if you could do it. You have to recognize that you cannot make a 1545 reservation. Get a plan B.

Posted by
5665 posts

Frank: I wasn't aware that there was any train service between Marco Polo airport and the Mestre train station. What is this Centrale Station? Is that another name for Mestre? Wouldn't the regular bus or taxi to Mestre be a better option?

Posted by
21278 posts

I think Frank forgot it was Venice Marco Polo, not Milan Malpensa.

Posted by
261 posts

Does anyone know for a fact the OP's carry-on bag isn't anything more than a backpack? Museums seem to store backpacks all the time, since many museums don't allow you to enter carrying a bag.

I don't think anyone was "blowing smoke." No one said the OP will make it. But it is possible the OP can make it.

Posted by
93 posts

Hi guys! Sorry, I wasn't getting follow up notifications. To answer the many questions:

Yes, my flight schedule is BOI-SEA-CDG-VCE the last weekend in October. I am carrying a Tucano Tugo backpack and a smaller under the seat bag, so I can quickly exit plane. My flight is nonstop from Paris to Venice, so I guess I will go through Passport Control there. (Fingers crossed for a France passport stamp!) In looking at the Trainline.eu schedule, there's a Frecciarossa train at 12:37 that day, an Italo train at 13:12, and another Frecciarossa train at 13:37 so that's at least another option in between. My friend and I talked it over, and we decided to book tickets for 1 at the latest time on Sunday and tickets to the other as early as we can on Tuesday. I looked at the arrival history of that flight on Flight Aware, and it's all over the board within the 11am-12pm hour. Better to play it safe, I suppose. I know Florence or Milan would have been much more ideal to fly into, but the prices were just so high and it didn't seem like a 2 hour train ride would be much of a big deal. I love trains. :) Of all the days of the week for some of the main attractions to be closed, I'd have guessed Sunday instead of Monday. Lesson learned!

We would love any suggestions of what to do on Monday in Florence, inexpensive places to eat, gelato recommendations, etc.

Thank you all!