Hi,
We're going to Rome for 8 days but our flight from NY is in and out of Milan (for numerous reasons).
We're taking the train to Rome on the arrival but on the way back we were considering taking a flight.
Our flight out of Malpensa to JFK is at 15:00. We were either going to take an early train into Milan and then switch to the airport train (like the way down) or take a flight to Linate and then a shuttle bus to Malpensa.
Anyone try this? Any advice?
Just my opinion, but it seems to me that more can go wrong when flying is involved than when taking a train.
Timewise, getting to the airport(s) in time for bag check, security, boarding will probably take as long as a train trip.
We are landing in Rome early April this is our third trip. We are catching the train from Rome to Milan the next day. i purchased the ticket 4 months in advance so 4/12/16 and paid 179.80 Euros for the 2 of us in economy business. it takes 3 hours. We love travelling the trains in Italy as we don't have fast trains in Australia. We then go onto Como which everyone should visit ...it is stunning. Hope this helps.
I agree with Zoe's take on it. Direct Rome-Milan trains take only 3 hours and depart every half hour. And especially since the flight you're considering is not to Malpensa.
I also agree with Zoe.
You can buy discounted (Super Economy ) train tickets from Rome to Milan for € 49,90, up to 120 days in advance on the Trenitalia website.
I'd also suggest getting to Milan the day before your flight, if you want to explore Milan for a few hours.
The Duomo is magnificent!
Have a wonderful trip!
The train will get you to Milan Centrale station (and eventually to Malpensa) faster than the flight no matter what.
From Roma Termini to Milan Centrale it's a 2h45m train journey on a FrecciaRossa.
You need 45 min just to get to the airport from the city center of Rome, add 90 min for check in+security, then 1h15min for the flight to Linate, and that's 3 hours before you can even deplane. After that you have to make it to Malpensa (there is actually also a bus that connects Linate to Malpensa) and that is 90 min without major traffic interruption.
Flying to Malpensa directly from Rome is not a viable option since Alitalia discontinued that route. EasyJet is the only airline that serves that route, but the only one flight from Rome arrives too late for you.
One more note. As a matter of principle I like to stay closer to the city I depart from, if possible. I realize that your flight is in the afternoon, however I'd probably work my way to Milan the day before, and take advantage to spend a few hours in Milan the afternoon of the day before the flight. There are some nice things to see in Milan.
Then in the morning you have plenty of time for a nice breakfast. Remember that you need to be at the airport no later than 2 hours before the flight home, and that Malpensa is about 45-60 minutes away from the center of Milan (depending on the mode of transport). You should take the Malpensa Express train from the Cadorna station sometime after 11am.
Thanks all for your advice. Train it is. I've been convinced. We're not super keen to go to Milan the day before and may just opt for the train that leaves Rome at 6:30 am, which should give us plenty of time to get to Malpensa in enough time.
We've already got our hotel booked in Rome for that night, although it is a refundable rate.
Thanks again!
Check the website of the airline you are flying, to see what it says about check-in times. I thought it was 3 hours for transatlantic flights rather than 2, which would have you due at Malpensa at noon.
Although the odds are good that you'll make your flight by leaving Rome at 6:30 AM, there is some risk, however small. Not long ago one of the posters here mentioned an experience she had on a TGV train speeding toward Paris. There was a suicide on the tracks and the train was 5 hours late. There were many people on the train heading toward CDG airport. They missed their flights.
As I'm sure you are aware, if you miss your flight out of Milan you will have to pay for replacement tickets home.
We're not super keen to go to Milan the day before and may just opt for the train that leaves Rome at 6:30 am, which should give us plenty of time to get to Malpensa in enough time.
Do you really want to get up so early in order to catch the 6:30AM train on the same day you will have a very long flight home?
I, like Roberto & Acraven, and many others, also prefer to be closer to the airport the day before my fight home.
Up at 5-5.30, then a 3 hour train ride to Milan, then on to the airport and have lunch and hang around for an 11-hour-plus flight home.
If you go to Milan the day before, you'd have most of the "travel day" to sightsee in Rome, then relax on a late afternoon train and still have time in Milan for dinner and a walk around after dark (the duomo, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II), then have leisurely morning, even time to go back to the duomo, go up to the roof and wander among the spires.
