Venice to Milan

There are no luggage restrictions on trains as long as you can carry it on yourself. Remember you will be carrying your luggage up steep, crowded stairs into the train and, of course, limited passage areas. Just the physical aspect of handling a large suitcase can be a serious problem. Sometimes two smaller bags instead of one large bag has an advantage. And one small bag over one large bag has big advantages. Trains have adequate storage space in each car for luggage.

Not sure what you mean by "type of train". All of the trains except the Regionale trains are fairly similar as to seats and luggage storage. I would go with the train that best meets your schedule.

Easy: you want to take the Frecciarossa stops at Milan - Brescia - Verona - Vicenza - Padua - Venice which is a high-speed train of the Italian national train operator, Trenitalia http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en?gclid=CKDa3aD-9tECFVK1wAod-TwPow
If you are worried about luggage the trick is to book the first class where you have reserved seats and there are always less people with baggage sitting. in that cabin

If you can handle your luggage by yourself, you can carry it on board: there aren't other restrictions.
Check the schedules on www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en and book the train that best fits your plans and budget.

There isn't a real high speed service on that route, but you can recognize not-so-high speed trains looking at the travel time; they have a dedicated area for luggage at the end of the car.
Imho it isn't a good reason to purchase those expensive high speed tickets, but it's up to you.

Note that:

• except for the slow regionale trains, you always have reserved seats in Italy. The class doesn't make any difference from that point of view. It's true that first class is less crowded, but if your bags don't fit neither the overhead racks nor the space between the seats... you MUST use the dedicated area for luggage. Luggage can't "sit" on the aisles or near seats: it's annoying, dangerous and forbidden.

• you'll have to change at Milano Centrale station. The total travel time to Saronno should be a little less than 3 hours, if you take a Frecciarossa and than a Regionale.

• Milano Centrale has its own site in English with a good map, google for it.

• Trenitalia's discounted tickets can't be changed and/or refunded

• walk-up, full fares are displayed as BASE on trenitalia.com

• Even the BASE fare tickets can't be changed and refunded one hour after the departure of the booked train.

• on trenitalia's site you must use station names in Italian: Venezia Mestre and Saronno, not Venice.

• you must also enter a date before June 11 to see the complete timetable

My helpful hint is to pack lighter. Take a look at the advice here -- https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/packing-light. And here -- https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/video/travel-talks/packing-light.

I'm sure it's hard to imagine, but you can travel for almost any length of time by coordinating your wardrobe and packing for a week and a day or less. You can wash out a few things at a time in the room at night, have your laundry done for you or do it yourself at a lavanderia. My last trip, 6 weeks in the UK, I did all those things depending on the situation. Many travel this way for much longer than I do.

You don't say whose tours you are on, but if they are Rick Steves ones, you will be handling your own luggage at all times, just like getting on and off trains. If your bags are so big or so numerous that you cannot handle them yourself, you need to cut back.

For me at 71, I figure that I will stop traveling when I can no longer manage my luggage on my own, getting up and down those stairs at the train station or those often very steep ones on and off the trains themselves.

I second the advice to travel light. Are you sure all your hotels will have elevators? Not all in Italy do. Depending on how close your tour bus gets to your hotel, you may be pulling/carrying your suitcase across cobblestones, and that is no fun even if the suitcase isn't heavy.

Have to join the chorus on packing lighter. Cutting back to two medium suitcases will add smiles to your trip.

How much does each suitcase weigh, packed? Can you lift it over your head, or carry it up and down a flight of stairs?

If you are packing full-size grooming items, many familiar brands are available in Europe. Take travel sizes and buy what you need there.

Disclaimer: I take a 20" rolling carryon plus a Civita or Ravenna daybag for 90-100 days.

Are there elevators at train stations to use instead of stairs?

Sometimes in the larger stations and when they are working. But in most station getting from one platform to another generally requires going down one set of stairs, walking under the tracks, and back up a set of stairs. In that case, no elevators. You should never depend on elevators being available. Sometimes it is walking over the tracks but still involves climbing two sets of stairs.

Are there elevators at train stations to use instead of stairs?

Usually not at stations which are not main stations. And sometimes if there are they aren't working like my trip through the main station of Genova PP (Genoa) last year. Every platform had an elevator and not one single one was functioning - just a painted piece of plywood over each door.

But you are lucky. Oh no you're not. I was going to say Venice Santa Lucia is a dead end station with level access to all platforms from the end (or head, depending which way you are looking) of the train and a ramp down to the Grand Canale. But I've just noticed that for some reason you are starting at the armpit of Mestre. That very busy through station has never had escalators or elevators - or at least after many visits there I've never found them. It does have narrow sottoportegos which are underground passageways linking all platforms to the station and is only accessed by busy stairwells to every platform. Mestre also has a nasty habit of changing platforms at the last minute.

Milano Centrale is easy, it is a true dead end station and the various levels are linked by very long and very slow escalators if you are tempted to go up or down, to get refreshments for example.

I was surprised when I looked up photos of Saronno to see one with an indication of an elevator as well as the stairs. It didn't indicate if it was working, though.

If you travel lighter you will thank yourself over and over.

Thanks for the info. I'm piggy-backing on this thread because we will be going back and forth between Milano Centrale and Venice (Santa Lucia) with our luggage, so I gather from the replies that these 2 stations will not have many steps to deal with> Is that correct? Thanks so much!

San Lucia has steps in the front, but it also has a ramp for people to roll their luggage up and down. Once inside the station the trains are all on ground level.

OP: Your first tour ends in Venice (Mestre) - does that mean you're going to get to see the real Venice like in the picture postcards? Mestre is not that at all. You must cross the causeway to get from Mestre (mainland) to actual Venice Island. Please make sure your tour is going to include that. Hopefully your hotel is also on Venice Island and not in Mestre.

Are you sure all your hotels will have elevators? Not all in Italy do.

Just echoing this secondary reason to lighten the load!
In general, steps are a fact of life in Italy. :O)