My husband and I plan to go to the Italian lake district in September, flying in from Milan. We'd like to visit two lakes--probably, Como and Maggiore. Is it easy to travel between islands without a car? We'd rather not rent a car but also, don't want to take the train back down to Milan in order to go to a different lake.
Thanks for any insights into transportation around this region.
Wendy
Posted by
125 posts
My husband and I are also planning a visit to this area. I found the answers to your questions in the RS guidebook. It appears that after arriving to the area from Milan, there are boats that will take you to Menaggio, Bellagio and Varenna. I don't know the specifics of the boat transportation, but plan to look more on the area's web sites.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16168 posts
Milan Malpensa airport is near Lake Maggiore. Stresa is a popular town on the lake.
From the airport you can reach Stresa, on the lake, by bus (about 1hr). You can also take a taxi (or city bus): to nearby Gallarate, and then take a train from Gallarate to Stresa.
From lake Maggiore you can go to lake Como by train. From Stresa you take a train to Milano Centrale, then from Milano Centrale you take a train to Varenna-Esino on the lake. You can stay in Varenna, but Bellagio or Menaggio are just a very short ferry ride across the lake, so those choices are available too.
Bus from airport to Lake Maggiore (English at bottom half of webpage)
https://www.safduemila.com/linee/alibus-malpensa-lago-maggiore/
Train Timetable:
https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html
The stations must be spelled in Italian. The Varenna station is called VARENNA-ESINO since the station serves also the town of Esino. Train displays at station platform (and also loudspeaker announcements) show the last destination of the train. The train that goes from Milano Centrale to Varenna has TIRANO as last destination, therefore on the platform at Milan the display will show Tirano.
Posted by
OP
6 posts
Thank you Lynne and Roberto!
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16168 posts
You could also do the exact reverse itinerary by visiting Lake Como first and then Lake Maggiore before flying back to North America. You could potentially spend the last night in Stresa before the flight home if you don't mind getting up about one hour earlier. Airport transfers by private car are also available in Stresa. Driving takes only about 45 min, however a private car will cost you at least 100 euro. Not necessarily a bad deal for the convenience, especially if it's more than one person sharing the cost.
If you do lake Como upon arrival, then take the Malpensa Express train from the Airport to Milano Centrale, and from there the train to Varenna.
Posted by
OP
6 posts
Thank you so much, Roberto!