Driving from Alba, IT to Milan Airport

Is the flight from Milan to a US destination, or non-Schengen country?

If so, I would not want to be 2 hrs from the airport, have to gas and turn in the car and catch a 1030 AM flight. Just too many opportunities for something to go wrong.

I would turn in the car the night before and stay at a hotel near MXP. Many hotels have free shuttles

You would have to leave Alba very very early(3 am?) for an International flight, . Spend the day in Alba and drive to an MXP hotel with shuttle for the night. We stay at Villa Malpensa adjacent to MXP as it has an excellent restaurant.

With a departure at 10.30 you have only two options, stay in Milan and leave very early, probably no later than 6.30am, or stay by the airport and leave just a little later. Usually you are advised to be at MXP 3 hours in advance, if you are there during the Linate closure you could consider to be there even earlier.

Driving from Alba to Milan, fog is a concrete possibility. It is more probable in the mid of the winter, but in October you cannot rule it out. Another point for sleeping in Milan.

Yes, there is a reason one of the most renowned wine grapes grown in Piedmont is called Nebbiolo, after the Italian word for fog. Fog in October in Alba and environs would be more than a possibility, and I wouldn’t dream of starting out for Milan airport from there at oh-dark-thirty in October.

We dropped a Hertz rental car at Malpensa last October after driving in from Alba via Stresa. Despite looking online for the location of Hertz, it was really unclear where to go. I think we set the record for laps driven in and out of Malpensa (5) before we finally figured out that "rental car return" is actually "car hire" in Italy. Unless the directions have changed: When you are on the departures level before the main terminal, stay in the right lane and look for a large large sign with lots of destinations around the terminal to exit to. Look very closely because the words "Car Hire" are buried on that sign (I think it was on the left half of the sign) and that is the exit you need to take. All of the airport rental cars are at that location. Fortunately, we stayed at the Sheraton that night and flew out the next morning, so we were not rushed. Good luck!

I have missed a flight home from Europe by staying two hours away from the airport, couldn't find the correct car rental return in the dark, flight check-in closed 5 minutes before we dumped the car in the wrong company's lot and made a dash for it. It was Geneva, not Milan, but I learned my expensive lesson and am passing it on for your consideration.

The rest of the story is we retrieved the car, returned it to the correct place, spend most of the day rebooking flights, stayed in an airport hotel and caught the 4 minute shuttle to the terminal the next morning. It was all fixable but heated up my credit card considerably. I believe your experience would most likely be similar. And even if not, why end your vacation with that much stress?

A HUGE Thank You to all who replied so quickly to my question. I was hoping to eek out an extra day in Alba but it does seem like getting to Malpensa the night before my flight is the most prudent thing to do.
To each of you, your tips and suggestions are indispensable and I am very grateful. No sense adding drama and hysterics to my last day in Italy. Pam

Stay in Milano or near MXP the night before to reduce any unforeseen problems. The night before an international flight to home we never stay more than an hour away from MXP or FCO. Some hotels provide shuttle service or use a private car service.

Buon Viaggio,