Bergamo has been described as hidden gem and photos indicate that it is. We've been to Milan twice and looking for alternative. We enjoy smaller towns/villages and being close to airport is a plus. Looking for recommendations for hotel in Bergamo and best area to stay. We will be in Italy in May. Any other tips would be appreciated. Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences.
Posted by
Los Angeles
980 posts
Hi Kyle,
Jean on this Board is an expert on Bergamo. I know the upper town is a gem and supposed to be charming. Hopefully Jean or someone else who has been there will chime in.
Posted by
OP
Richmond, Virginia, USA
116 posts
Thank you CaliMom. I saw her fabulous post after I had posted. Great information on Bergamo. Makes me want to repeat so many of the places on itinerary of Jean (Hayden, Idaho, USA) on 06/25/22 04:29 PM. Jean is truly is an expert on Italy. Thanks for responding to my post.
Posted by
314 posts
Locando Mimmo was just wonderful. Room was lovely, staff was outstanding and breakfast was a feast. Highest recommendation. You would be missing out on a treat if you did not stay here.
Posted by
Los Angeles
980 posts
Kyle, how long do you plan to stay in Bergamo?
And Janet, how long were you in Bergamo?
I am looking at it for an extended stay.
Posted by
314 posts
3 nights. In Provence at the moment and if I were more Tech friendly would post some pictures of my breakfast. If you had around table the size of a card table you might be able to imagine that it was filled with all sorts of treats for breakfast!
Posted by
44 posts
We stayed in the Alta Cita of Bergamo last year for 2 nights. There are two parts to Bergamo- the 'new town' down where the train station is and the old town up the hill. We traveled by train, caught a taxi up to the Alta Cita hotel we stayed at, Gombit Hotel. It took about 20 minutes to get a taxi, there aren't very many that come by the train station, and there were 2 other couples ahead of us waiting before we got there. The Gombit hotel was lovely, in an ancient building/tower in the center of the old town. Our room was really big, with a good sized bedroom & bathroom and a hallway to a sitting room with a view over the main street. It was a great combination of modern furnishings in a medieval building, with stone walls and arched ceilings. There was no noise problem from the street as it is 99% pedestrian with only an occasional taxi on it. The breakfasts were very good.
The old town area is quite compact, you can easily explore it and all of it's churches, castle, etc. in 2 days. The food was delicious everywhere we ate there. Walking the old town ramparts is beautiful, and we walked down to the new town, taking the funicular back up. It is a very charming small town, but rather busy with day-tripping tourists mid-morning to evening. The evenings are peaceful, and fewer tourists, and lovely for walking around. Like most smaller towns, alot of the businesses and even the gelateria in the old town shut down earlier than they would in a bigger city.
Although it is well located to take day trips to other towns by train, I wouldn't recommend it if you are thinking of staying in the Alta Cita. It is quite a long walk (30 min) or you wait just as long for a taxi to make it up to your hotel and train station to pick you up. We stayed longer in Bologna, which is a much larger but also very lovely city, with much easier walking from our hotel in the city center to the train station.
Have a wonderful vacation!
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
16623 posts
There is a bus (#1) which runs frequently between Bergamo's train station and Città Alta, Been awhile since we used it but I see it's still operating and it worked well for us. :O)
https://www.atb.bergamo.it/en/atb-network/routes-and-timetables
We loved Bergamo! Wish I could recommend a hotel but we stayed in Città Bassa on that trip and made runs to/from Città Alta by funicular, foot or bus. Next time I'd choose Città Alta. Be sure to take the 2nd funicular from Città Alta up to San Vigilio for great views, the previous site of a castle, an interesting church, and some less-visited places for eating/cocktails. We did this with a small group of fellow international travelers we were in town to sightsee with and enjoyed an afternoon poking about San Vigilio very much.
https://www.visitbergamo.net/en/object-details/3369-s--vigilio-funicular/
https://www.visitbergamo.net/en/search/?searchText=San+Vigilio+
A favorite restaurant experience in Città Alta; get a seat outside under the vines! Not fancy; lots of locals.
https://www.visitbergamo.net/en/object-details/428-il-circolino-di-città-alta/
Website in Italian: use online translation function:
https://www.ilcircolinocittaalta.it