will be based in milan, taking several jaunts/day trips (and a few longer) from there: venice, verona, lake como, etc. would like to take either a day trip (and then possibly stay overnight for one night) via train ( or bus?) to one city in switzerland. lugano is closest to milan, and berne, zurich & lausanne are all about the same distance away. any recommendations? which is best for walking/sights/easy travel connections? (w/o involving a change of trains, etc.) thanks in advance for any help/ideas.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32352 posts
jim, Without a change of trains, Lugano is probably your best bet. If you're willing to tolerate one change, then Locarno is another possibility (one change in Bellinzona). One option you could consider would be to travel early to Locarno and spend one night there. For the return trip, there are two easy choices: > Travel by boat to Stresa (a couple of hours, as I recall) and then train back to Milan (about one hour). > Travel via the scenic Centovalli Railway to Domodossola (~1H:58M), and then train back to Milan (~1H:20M). *Note - if you decide on this option you'll be departing from the Locarno FART station, which is underground and located next to the main station. The arrival station at Domodossola is also underground, so you'll need to go to upstairs to transfer to the "regular" train. Happy travels!
Posted by
Boise, ID, USA
2301 posts
Actually, Bellinzona itself would be a great stop (I've been to Lugano and Locarno as well, but I love the castles in Bellinzona).
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33845 posts
One of your best choices would be Luzern and its vicinity. Don't understand the problem with changing trains but usually Luzern requires a simple change in Arth-Goldau.