Hi!
So I land at 8:30am at malpensa and know that we need to take the Express into Milan Centrale station to catch a train to Venice.
How much time should we allow to get the train to Venice. Can we reserve a 1145am train from Centrale or is that not enough time?
\Do we need to book a ticket in advance? @ adults 2 kids
THANK YOU
If your arrival to the Schengen zone is Milan you will need to clear passport control etc.. How long that takes...? Hard to know what it might be the day you arrive. Essentially an hour on the train to Milan Centrale. The trains run every 30 minutes so if you just miss one, you have 90 minutes for the trip
If all goes well its a snug fit. I would look for a later trip.
If you will have entered the Schengen zone somewhere else then, assuming the flight arrives close to on time, you are good, as you just head for the train from the plane.
Arriving from where? Checking bags?
If arriving from another Schengen country (most of Europe), then you won't have to go through immigration. If you do, that's a big variable: how long will the immigration line be?
And then - how long until you get your bags?
What if the plane is late?
The safest thing to do without paying last-minute prices is book an even longer layover at Milano Centrale - and just plan to hang out there an extra hour or two.
OR, forget about saving money and just book your tickets as soon when you get there and pay the expensive last-minute prices for the fast trains. Then you'll get to Venice as soon as possible.
A third option is to take regional trains from Milano Centrale to Venice. These trains don't have reservations but don't cost more last minute. E.g., there's an 11:25 regional train out of Milano Centrale that connects to another one in Verona and gets into Venice at 14:48. It takes longer than the fast Frecciarossa trains for sure. (And the connection is only 6 minutes in Verona.) But the adult fare is only 20.70 Euros per person, even if bought at the last minute. (You can take the same regional train connection an hour later too.)
You can always decide which train to take when you arrive. Maybe you'll be super tired and just want to get to Venice ASAP and not care about the price at that point. Just know what your options are when you get there, what the schedule is.
THANK YOU FOR THE QUICK responses!
Frazzled mom planning here!
We are coming in from Newark, landing at 8:30am - with checked luggage.
If we buy tickets and we miss a train, can you catch the next train or are we out of luck?
Do we need to buy fast train tickets in advance? or are there seats available?
im with a 6 and 9 yo so the cost versus getting there fast - cost is no (ha) object!
Thank you
Hi - this website : https://www.seat61.com/ has really helpful information about train travel. The site will give you links to websites where you can see ticket prices and buy advance tickets. You can take a Trenitalia train (govnt train) or an Italo train (the private line).
jen,
Many of us here don't recommend buying rail tickets to connect with an inbound flight. The tickets for the express trains (Freccia, Intercity) have compulsory seat reservations which are specific to train, date and departure time. If you miss the train you've booked because your flight is late, the queue at immigration was long or whatever, your ticket is worthless. Therefore it's not advisable to book advance tickets.
The method I'd suggest is.....
How will you be getting from the station in Venice to your hotel? Will the trip involve a Vaporetto?
Hi!
Thank you, especially Ken for clarifying that when you miss the train, you are out of luck!!!
I feel much better knowing that there will be availability and dont have to book ahead. It would be a lot of pressure on an already long day after an overnight flight from the US.
I will take the Express, I have taken it in to Milan many years ago but wouldn't have any memory of specific details.
Thank you for the reminder to take the train to the furthest point in Venice! We will be taking a vaparetto from the train to the hotel, which is about 5 min north of St marks Square. Rick Steves book had fairly good instructions but any other helpful hints are always welcome.
While I am here - should book the train tickets now from Venice to Florence or wait until until we are in country?
Thank you for all of your kind help!
Jen
If you buy a cheap fare on the fast/direct Frecciarossa train, and you miss it, you are out of luck.
Tickets can sell out at busy times on the Frecciarossa trains no doubt. I'm guessing it's unlikely - there ar a lot of daily trains between Milan and Venice. I don't actually know how likely it is you would be able to sit together when booking last-minute (Frecciarossa trains are reserved.) . I'd guess you would probably be OK.
Just know that you also have the regional train option - less convenient, take longer, a connection in Verona - but cheap and can't sell out. No reservations; if you get to Milano Centrale early, get on first so you can grab four seats together. (Tip: regional train tickets (paper tickets) bought at a train station MUST be validated in the yellow machines. Watch what other people are doing at the station. Expect a stiff fine for having an unvalidated train ticket on an Italian train. Any train like the Frecciarossa booked for a specific time and date does not need to be validated.)
You can also book tickets on your smart phone using an app like Trenit. If you will have a working smart phone in Italy, this might be easier than waiting in line - you could book tickets while on the Malpensa Express into Milano Centrale.
Andrew - thank you for the heads up, I will load the app on my phone.
The validating the tickets at the yellow machine brought back a memory from a hundred years ago where my best friend and I didnt validate our tickets and the conductor came through and fined us ALOT of money (all we had with maybe 5 euro left) about 100 euro or so and kicked us off at the next station if i remember. hahahahaha. You would think i would remember that!
I am adding everyones advice into my printouts for the trip.
I hope I can be this helpful one day!
One last question - for my kids they are 6 and 9 - boys - I will try to get them to murano (we only have 1.5 days) would they like Burano (I have always wanted to go)
Thank you all so much
jen
Burano is a long boat ride - I wouldn't do it with only 1.5 days in Venice. Murano is a lot closer.
We did the same thing two years ago except we were going to Florence. What we did was reserve a mid afternoon train to Florence which gave us plenty of time. No worries about missing it. (Did the same thing on a trip to England last spring except there we had extra time in London.) As it turned out, we cleared passport control quickly and were in Milan by 10:30 am. That just gave us some time to have lunch and to tour the Cathedral. You can always make good use of some extra time.
Thank you fro all the advice! I wish I could swing a visit to the cathedral in milan, its beautiful. with my kids in tow and luggage we will be exploring the train station!!!!!!!!
Do you think i need to book Venice florence train now?
Thx
There is a staffed luggage deposit under Milan central station and a metro station under the Cathedral Square.
You never need to book Italian trains, you can do if you want to save money. Unfortunately discounted tickets can't be changed. Both Trenitalia and Italotreno have published schedules and fares of high speed trains up to October 4; check how much you can save if your plans are set and you get one of those discounted tickets.
Yes, I should have included that we checked our luggage at the Milan Centrale train station.
I’d recommend just buying your train tickets on arrival. Flights can be late, immigration could be busy, and baggage claim can be slow. Underestimate, and you gave worthless tickets. All too much time you are jet lagged Hanging out at the Milan train station.
I’ve found the ticket windows at Malpensa to be helpful, not all that long and they speak English. I’d recommend just buying your ticket from malpensa to Milan and Milan to Venice at the same time. The ticket lines at Milan Centrale can be very long and are two levels below the trains. Don’t forget to vailidate your tickets at the top of the escalator for the train to Milan.
But allow about 20+ minutes to make your connection in Milan, so you are not stressed or rushed. The malpensa train arrives on track 1 or 2, and set back, so longer to walk). and the high speed trains are in the other side. And then you have to navigate through crowds of people waiting to see what track their train will be on. And depending on what your assigned car is, it may be a ways to walk.
jen,
I haven't read all the previous replies but in answer to your questions, here's my usual boilerplate on taking the Malpensa Express......
TRAVEL FROM MILAN / MXP TO MILANO CENTRALE
The quickest and easiest way to get from MXP Terminal 1 into Milan is to use the Malpensa Express (train). There are several departures each hour and the trip takes 52 minutes. You can buy tickets at the airport station either from a Kiosk or staffed ticket office, and the cost is currently €13 PP. Note that some departures have a change at Milano Nord Cadorna, so try to choose a train that goes directly to Centrale, unless Cadorna is your desired destination. There are a few important points to note. First, the M.E. has two routes, one to Milano Centrale and one to Milano N. Cadorna, so be sure to board the correct train! Next, it's necessary to validate (time & date stamp) your tickets prior to boarding the train, or you'll risk hefty fines which will be collected on the spot! You'll arrive at Milano Centrale on Track (Binario) 1 or 2, and will then have to walk into the main hall to either connect with another train or exit the station.
Regarding the Freccia trains from Milan to Venice, you do not have to validate your ticket for these, as you'll have compulsory seat reservations specific for that train. Be sure to note the Carrozza (coach no.) and Posti (seat no's.) which will be listed on your ticket.
The reason I asked if you'd be using a Vaporetto upon arrival in Venice, is that these tickets have to be validated also, but that's a bit different than with the trains. The ticket is electronic so all you have to do is hold the ticket against the machine. If you get a green light, you're good to go. You may find this useful - https://quickvenice.com/transportation/actv-tickets.htm .
From your post at 06:50.....
"Do you think i need to book Venice florence train now?"
As I mentioned in my earlier post, that's not advisable. The ticket is specific to train, date and departure time and if you miss the train you've booked, your ticket is worthless. While it will cost more to buy a Base Fare ticket on the day of travel, it's a safer option (IMO).
If you know your schedule and are ok with committing to a specific train, you will save money booking Venice to Florence ahead of time. It works for me, when there’s not an incoming flight involved.
THANK YOU! We are off tomorrow! Notes taken! you all are the best!
jen,
Hope you have a wonderful trip.
Buon Viaggio!
