N. Italy first time Italy train experience.

Posted by cindy (Chester) on 04/07/15 04:55 PM

We will be arriving in Malpenia Milan Fri 6/5 and plan to take the train to Como Lago and then to Cernobbio via taxi. I could not see where I could reserve train tickets. Will I be able to get a train without reservations?

Also, we will be leaving Cernobbio on Wed. June 10th for Venice. Trains are an option but it seems we are limited on times and there are several station switches. So we are thinking about renting a car in Como and driving to Venice. There are 2 of use and the price seems the same? Suggestions welcomed.

Posted by Zoe

Toledo, Ohio, US

04/07/15 05:04 PM

11613 posts

You should not have a problem getting tickets from Malpensa airport to Lago di Como, but you need to end your journey in Como (city). Cernobbio is about 7 kilometers from Como (city).

Posted by Laurel

Forest Grove, OR

04/07/15 06:16 PM

11858 posts

What Zoe said. To elaborate. you won't need to have reservations for Malpensa to Lago di Como because they are regionale trains. Basically they never sell out. They are frequent.

To get to Venezia it isn't, IMO, such a matter of expense but of convenience. The trains are wonderful and so much less stressful than navigating across the country. Once you get to Venezia you do not need a car, so basically you are renting and paying for 24 hours for a 4 hour drive.

Posted by Laura

Rick Steves' Europe

04/07/15 06:24 PM

16895 posts

Trains between Milan and Como town are regional and don't take reservations. Schedules at www.trenitalia.com for the next 7 days. Buy tickets at each station, not online. See station locations on Google Maps, etc.

On arrival, you can take the airport train to Milano Cadorna station, from where trains run to Como Nord Lago station in 1 hour.

On departure, you can take a train from Como S. Giovanni station to Milano Central station (these only take half an hour, but run less frequently), where you'll find most connections to Venice.

Posted by Sam

Green Bay

04/07/15 06:40 PM

21467 posts

The train from Malpensa to Como Nord Lago is a regional train operated by Trenord. You change trains at Saronna. These cannot be reserved, just take the first connection available when you get to the Malpensa train station. You can also get a short ferry ride from Como to Cernobbio. They run every half hour.

To Venice, take a taxi to Como San Giovanni station (different from your arrival station). There are trains every hour that connect at Milano Centrale to Venice (Santa Lucia station). travel time is 3 1/2 to 4 hours. I don't think you could drive it there any faster, and then you would need to take time to ditch the car. When you walk out the door of Santa Lucia station, you are IN Venice.

Posted by Sherry

San Jose, CA

04/07/15 06:43 PM

1994 posts

I'm wondering what site you are using for checking available trains. If you are using Rail Europe, it is a 2nd party vendor that only shows tickets they sell, and there are usually far more options than they show. The website bahn.com is probably the easiest for seeing all routing options (enter your country as the UK; if you enter US, it will send you to Rail Europe). You can then go the Italian site to purchase tickets for high-speed segments.