Malpensa Express to Florence train

It has been a few years but as I remember Centrale it is all on one level but it is a big station so it could take a few minutes to walk from one platform to another. Thirty minutes would be a very comfortable margin and 15 mins adequate.

You can probably purchase the ticket to Florence at the Malpensa station if you have time there. Also, if you will have a working smart phone in Italy, you could use the Trenit app to buy a ticket to Florence on the fly, to save yourself from needing to buy one at Milano Centrale. Trenit is a great app anyway if just to check train platforms and departure/arrival times.

Milano Centrale station is huge with multiple levels, but the tracks are all on one level (the other levels are shops, restaurants, etc, as well as the ticket selling hall, which itself is big). So, changing trains there is a matter of going to the front of the train you just got off, finding the departures board or monitor (make sure you're not looking at an arrivals monitor by mistake), finding your next train, and going to that track. Unless you need more than the standard amount of time (slow walker, planning to get food, etc), 15 minutes should be fine.

Paul,

Could you provide a few more details on your trip? For example, why are you going to Milano Porta Garibaldi if your desired destination is Milano Centrale? Are you arriving at MXP after an international flight from the U.S.?

If arriving on a flight, I'd suggest taking the Malpensa Express direct to Milano Centrale. There's no need to go to Pta. Garibaldi. The trip is ~52 minutes and you'll arrive on one of the outlying Binari (platforms) 1 or 2 (as I recall). You'll have to walk from there into the "main" hall to connect with your train to Venice. When buying tickets for the Venice train, your destination will be Venezia Santa Lucia.

Milano Centrale is what I refer to as a "terminating station", where all the tracks enter and stop in the same place. The tracks are all on the same level so changing trains is as simple as locating the correct Binario and walking to your assigned Carrozza (Carriage No.), boarding and locating your assigned seats (Posti).

I've done it going to Venice. I bought the Malpensa Express tickets out of the Trenord vending machine, then stepped over to the Trenitalia machine for the tickets from Milano Centrale to Venice. Make sure you get the train going to Centrale, not Cadorna. There will be more trains to Florence running from Centrale.
The Malpensa Express train does stop at Garibaldi before Centrale. At Centrale, the platform head is to NW side of the station and set back about 100 meters (yards) from the other platforms, but it is still an easy transfer.

Thank you so much to all of you for both your information and for the clarity you have provided.

Ken...I will be arriving at MXP from NY at 12:25 PM (fingers crossed) and should be one of the first few people to deplane and I specifically will have avoided any checked luggage.

The main reason for Porta Garibaldi is that 3 hours after scheduled landing, there is a train from there to Florence.
Should I not be able to connect with that train, the next few options for trains move to Milano Centrale.

It is nice to know that the malepnsa express comes in on the same level as I remember from my last visit there just how large the station actually is.

Paul,

Whoops, I only glanced at your post and when I replied I somehow assumed you were going to Venice. Thanks for the clarification. In this case, your destination station will probably be Firenze Santa Maria Novella.

Depending on how quickly you can get through Passport Control and to the Malpensa Express, you may be able to connect with the 14:20 departure from Milano Centrale. You didn't say what date you'd be travelling, but there should be hi-speed departures about every hour from Milan. I wouldn't bother with Porta Garibaldi.

As someone else mentioned, there are two routes for the Malpensa Express from MXP - one to Milano Centrale and one to Milano N. Cadorna. Be sure to board the correct train! Also BE SURE to validate your ticket prior to boarding, or you'll be subject to hefty fines, which will be collected on the spot!

As you may be aware, tickets on the high speed trains are specific to train, date and departure time, so it's important that you connect with the train listed on your ticket. If you board the wrong train by mistake, more hefty fines!

We just got back from Italy. The line to go through Passport Control at Malpensa was extremely long, and we were in the front of the plane. Took us a full hour, if we were further back in the plane would have taken even longer. We landed early in the morning, and I almost felt that perhaps no one was at Passport Control that early to work. So, even if you're not checking bags, it would be hard to know what train you'd be able to make.

We took the train back. Yes, all the tracks in Milan Central are on the same level, so the transfer was easy. However, I personally would allow for more than 15 minutes, because according to what I saw on the boards, there were delays on some trains. 15 minutes is enough time to walk from one track to the other, but if the train is late, 15 minutes won't be enough time. If you miss your train from Milan Central to Florence, you might have issues getting another train. The reverse direction is not an issue - if you miss your train from Milan Central to Malpensa, the ticket is good for 4 hours for any train.

A few years ago, we were going from the airport to Genoa. Since we are never sure what time our plane will actually arrive and the time needed to go through passport control and getting luggage, we didn't pre-purchase our tickets. Turned out when we got to Milan Centrale, all the seats on the next 2 trains to Genoa were sold out. So, not buying tickets in advance can be an issue. Probably should have bought tickets Centrale to our final destination once we knew what train we were making from Malpensa.