We will be checking out of our Bellagio hotel on July 27 for a 9:35a international flight out of Malpensa. I read in Rick's Italy 2013 book that boats go about every 30 minutes between Bellagio and Varenna, daily approx. 7:00-22:30. Is this is accurate we won't be able to take a ferry to Varenna for the train. Can someone suggest other options like when to leave our hotel in Bellagio and what means of transportation to use (bus, taxi or car hire) to get us to the train station and/or airport with time to spare? Thank you,
Bobby G
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16235 posts
From Bellagio to Malpensa it's about 90 km. If you drive, you should plan on at least 90 min since from Bellagio to Como it's regular two lane road along the lake shore and you won't be able to drive must faster than 50 km/h on average and in Como you'll have to go through some city streets as well.
Not sure what you intend for International flight. Is it a EU flight or back to the US? If it's intra EU, you could afford to be at the check in by 8:15am and easily make the flight. If it's a US bound flight, I would recommend to get there at the airport around 7:30am. Personally, I think that with a flight that early, driving is the only option (either rental car or a very expensive taxi/limo), because I don't think there are public transport options that will get you to Malpensa by 7:30am.
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23661 posts
Roberto is very correct, obviously. The only option will be taxi or car and driver. You cannot make fast connection with public transit. And, if a direct flight to US, you need to be checking in no later than around 7 AM.
Posted by
OP
Longwood, FL, USA
6 posts
Thank you, Roberto and Frank. It is a flight back to the US. Do you think it would be better to stay the last night in Milan near the airport? Bobby
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16235 posts
You should be in line at the check-in at least 2 hrs prior to departure. I don't go as early as I do in the US for international flights, 2 hrs is enough in my experience in Italy. Italian security procedures don't require agents to feel the passengers' private body parts or to sniff shoes (most people don't know that inside those machines at US airports there is a TSA agent that sniffs all shoes removed by passengers). You could stay in Milan proper and take a fast Malpensa Express train from the Cadorna station (near the Sforza Castle). It's a quick 30 min. ride.
http://www.malpensaexpress.it/ Or you could stay in a nameless boring airport hotel in the middle of nowhere at Malpensa. The latter alternative has never been appealing to me. But in the old days there was no Malpensa Express and, when departing from Milan, I wanted to be closer to the airport than Milan proper (which was 1 hr away by bus). So I always stayed in the town of Gallarate, just 10 min. from Malpensa via taxi or bus. Gallarate is a short train ride from Milan. Gallarate is not Paris or Rome, but in summer it had a lovely evening life with lots of people strolling in the main streets downtown (I think it was called Corso Italia) and some restaurants and pizzerie to choose from that would be better than eating my last supper in Italy at an airport hotel restaurant in the middle of the fields at Malpensa.