Milan to Cinque Terre

deb,

Where did you see these reports that hiring a driver was a good method of travel to the Cinque Terre? The quickest and easiest method is to use the excellent rail system, so that suggestion is absurd.

There are numerous trains each day from Milano Centrale to all of the five towns, including some direct trains (no changes) to Monterosso. If you need suggestions, post another note. There are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of when using trains or other public transit in Italy, so if you need information on that, I can send you a PM with my usual "boilerplate" on the subject.

For travel on 2 September, I'd suggest getting lodgings booked ASAP (it may already be too late). You'll probably have a better chance of finding a vacancy in Monterosso as it's the largest of the towns and therefore has the greatest number of hotels, restaurants and other tourist amenities (as well as the best beaches). Monterosso has more "conventional" hotels, while the other towns are largely small B&B's or private rooms. There are lots of lodging suggestion in the guidebook, but if you need suggestions I'm sure the group here will be able to provide them.

OK, thanks for that information. I am waiting on responses from a few hotels and in the meantime, am looking at the trains. If you wouldn't mind to send the PM you mentioned, that would be great. I am trying to figure out if we need to buy and 8 trip ticket or each one individually. Milan to CT, to Florence, to Rome to Naples to Venice to Lake Como and lastly to Lugano.

Thanks
Deb

if you keep waiting for hotels to get back to you you may be sleeping on the streets. Go to Booking.com, decide which town to stay in and search that town,quick.

It is not as difficult as it seems. When you arrive in Milan, I assume you are flying in, take the Malpensa express to Milano Centrale. Follow the airport train signs to get to the airport train station. Buy your tickets there . Once at Milano Centrale buy your tickets to what eve town you are traveling to on the Cinque Terre. Read Rick Steve's advice on taking trains. Go to YouTube and look for short videos on train travel in Italy. Check out the man is seat61.com. check schedules in advance at trenitalia.com.

deb,

Regarding your last post, I have some additional comments and questions.....

• Which part of Milan is your hotel located in?
• How were you planning to get from the airport to Milan?
• Could you clarify "and 8 trip ticket"?
• Which of the five C.T. towns are you staying in?
• The order of cities that you listed is a bit "convoluted" and inefficient, however if you've already got hotels booked you'll have to deal with that order.
• Where on Lake Como are you planning on staying?
• Do you need to travel from Lugano back to Milan for the flight home?

It will be easier to provide more detailed information if the above points are clarified.

1. Milan hotel is located 30, Via Boscovich. It is an airbnb and will be ther 2nd and 3rd.
2. Will take van or bus to the apt
3. Train ticket that allows up to 8 destinations that must be used within 30 days once it is activated.
4. I wanted to stay in Vernazza but at this point would probably settle for what I can get. Am starting to think 3 nights are too many.
5. I can change the order of cities listed. we only have one tour booked in Milan. Cannot change flights which are in and out of Milan for us. Daughter leaves out of Naples on 16th.
   
6. We have not booked. hotel in Lake Como or any place else yet.
7. yes we go back to Milan to come home

3 nights are definitely not too long in Vernazza! We were there for two, and it was way too short! Definitely not enough time (with really only one full day) to see everything we wanted to see!
We did the same route (Milan to Vernazza) back in May, and I was overwhelmed at first, too. But, I was given a tip about a website describing the train system there, and it was awesome! We had no issues, other than our train being delayed (they couldn't close the back door, so stopped out in the country somewhere for close to an hour), and we missed a connection. But, it was a local train we were connecting to, so no problem catching the next one.
Also, in Vernazza there's a great restaurant El Pirate - Two twin brothers own and run it (and do all the cooking). Best food we had in Italy! Breakfast and dinner.
If you have any questions, let me know. Here's a great website for train travel - It definitely saved me and made me much more comfortable before heading over! http://www.roninrome.com/transportation/train-travel-italy

Theresa

You really need to get your hotel booked. I booked my room for mid September last week and the choices were small. I actually booked the last room available at my hotel in Monterosso.

Kathi

Naples to Venice by fast train will of course be your longest, most expensive train ticket. Prices for mid-September start about €62 per person if you reserve tickets soon at www.Trenitalia.com, but don't do it before you are ready to commit, and don't let this add to your stress. In the same, standard class of service, (equivalent to 2nd class) regular fare goes as high as €106 per person. There's no deadline to buy a ticket or a passholder seat reservation but it is possible for a particular departure or a class of service to sell out.

That long route is also what could make a Eurail Italy pass a reasonable value, but I'd consider the version to cover just your 5 longest travel days ($205 per person + about $65 in seat reservation fees). If your daughter is only taking the first 4 train rides, she would not particularly save money with a 4-day youth rail pass, but it's more convenient for everyone in your party to have the same type of ticket.

Deb, don't worry! A great adventure awaits!!!!

We'll be there the same time! See you on the trail or in the bar. =)

This is a no brainer. Take the train to the CT. You'll need to get a train that goes straight through to your destination and not have to change trains in Genoa if at all possible. You may have to go to Monterosso and change trains there to Vernazza or any other of the towns. It's an easy trip and a very pretty one, especially the closer to the CT you get.

deb,

Thanks for the additional information. A few more comments (presented in the same order as in your reply).....

1. Your hotel / apartment is located fairly close to Milano Centrale, which will make transportation somewhat convenient.
2. Rather than taking a van or bus from the airport, you could also use the Malpensa Express (train) direct to Milano Centrale. One benefit of the train is that it's not affected by traffic. You can buy your tickets at the airport rail station, but DON'T forget to validate them prior to boarding the train, or you'll risk hefty fines. One other important point to note is that the Malpensa Express has two routes, one to Centrale and one to Cadorna station. Be sure you board the correct train! From Centrale, take a Taxi to your apartment.
3. I'm not familiar the the "8 ticket" so can't comment. Is that a type of rail pass?
4. NO, three nights in the Cinque Terre is not too long. That's just about right. Do you need information on lodgings in either Monterosso or Vernazza? Have a look at these two lists.....

• http://www.rebuildmonterosso.com/p/visitors-information.html
• http://savevernazza.com/visiting-vernazza/

Once you've got a hotel reservation in one of the towns, it will be easier to provide specific train directions.

1. On second look, the order of cities isn't too convoluted. An alternative would be Milan > Cinque Terre > Florence > Venice > Rome > Naples > Lake Como (via Milan) > Lugano > Milan.
2. RE: Lake Como, could you confirm whether you're planning to stay in Varenna or another town?
3. I assume you're planning to spend one night in Milan prior to your flight home. If that's the case, you can use a hotel either near Milano Centrale or near the Duomo and Milano Cadorna station (the trip from Cadorna to the airport is quicker than from Centrale).

The rail trips that you'll be taking are all fairly straightforward. On many of the longer routes, you'll be travelling via high speed Freccia or Italo trains at up to 300 km/h so those will be easy. On some routes, you'll use a combination of faster trains (ie: InterCity) and Regionale trains, which means you'll have to deal with changes. Those involve disembarking from one train, walking town to a transfer tunnel and then up to your next platform and train. It's quite easy when you've done it a few times.

Taking the train in Italy is fun and easy! There are a bunch of videos on You Tube with instructions - I found lots of fun videos on this channel (I have no affiliation and haven't done tours with this person - just found her videos cute and accessible): https://m.youtube.com/user/NadasItaly.

Get your accomodations booked ASAP and then figure out how you will get from place to place.

Thanks so far for all the information. This is what I have so far.

1. Airline reservations to Milan
2. Will take Malpensa Express to Milan Centrale and taxi to airbnb
3. From Milan Centrale will take train to Monterosso where I have hotel booked in Monterosso. (thanks for websites Ken). Only for 2 nights though.
4. Then train to Florence which I have not booked train yet. (I am leaning toward point to point trains, but not sure yet). Have booked airbnb in Florence and information says it is a 10 min. walk from Central Train Station. Yea for me. I am looking to book
   a "guided" tour of the Ufizzi Gallery and Academy Gallery. Thoughts on having a guide? And I want to do the Colleseum at night, but seems to be sold out.
   Then train to Rome for 5 days. So far the only thing I have booked there is the Vatican. Was wondering if a day trip to Sorrento worth fretting over.
   Working on places to stay in Rome now.
   

"Was wondering if a day trip to Sorrento worth fretting over."

Don't do this. It's a very long day for not much. The whole point of a place like Sorrento is relaxing and soaking in the ambiance - not spending 3 hours each way to get there and back just for a few hours of walking around.

Some do go to Pompeii for the day from Rome. This takes almost as long as going to Sorrento, so I wouldn't do it, but at least there is the tangible reward of seeing a specific sight that many consider a "must see."

Do you have Rick Steves Italy? The book not only has lots of accommodation listings, but all sorts of logistical information, like how to get from the train station to hotels in each city, descriptions of common foods, and much more. You'll be much less overwhelmed with the information it provides.