Jill02

We fly from Paris to Milan and get in at 10 a.m. then have one night up in the air before we take the train to Venice. We are travelling with our 3 kids and I have no burning desire to stay the night in Milan. I would add a night in Venice but it is just so darn expensive. Is it feasible to take the train to a small village or lake town and stay for one night then continue the train journey to Venice? Which towns are easy access to/from the train stations? We are going in early April and don't care to rent a car. Ideally, we could find an affordable B&B because we need two rooms.

I was also wondering how you travel from Malpensa to the train station (and cost)?

Finally, when I searched Trenitialia, I could see the ride from Milan to Venice takes 2:35 hours but I couldn't pull up any fare information???

Thought I'd ask the pros! Thanks so much in advance -

Surfergirl

Go to Verona and stay the night there. Go visit Juliet's house and the arena while there. Your kids will LOVE you for it!

sarge56

I totally agree with Surfergirl. No contest. Stay in Verona. There was just a good review on here for the Hotel Torcolo in Verona. You might check them out:

http://www.hoteltorcolo.it/en/index.html

Here is the trip report if you are interested:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...gna-rome-1.cfm

sarge56

Jill02- ps Have you booked your Venice accommodations yet? Perhaps you should consider renting an apt. If you are staying 5 days or longer, it will most definitely be cheaper than most hotels or B&Bs. (and you can fix some of your own meals, saving money if you need to budget.)

Buon viaggio!

dreamon

How about Como or one of the other towns on Lake Como?

patrickjkerr

get the train from malepensa which takes you to the cadorna train station for regional trains, or the bus from malpensa which takes you to central station ofr even more trains, more of a national service though.

pavia is nice near milan, might need a car though. como is easily reached by train.

the ternitalia website is a disaster.

verona is nice too. if you plan on staying in city centres no car is ok, once you want to see the outylying areas though you really do need one.

in italy the car is king.

alihutch

get the train from malepensa which takes you to the cadorna train station for regional trains, or the bus from malpensa which takes you to central station ofr even more trains, more of a national service though.

If you heading to Como, take the train from Malpensa that goes to Saronno and change there...don't go into Milan.

Lifeman

May I also suggest Bergamo. It's a nice town with a good choice of hotels and a historic centre. It is hilly in the old town.

It has the advantage of being somewhere around half way as well.

amazingview

You could easily do Lake Como or Veorna, or even Bergamo (just outside Milan).

To get from Malpensa to Milan, you can easily take a bus or train to the train station in the city centre.

Train information and costs:
http://www.visitingeu.com/western-eu...irport-to.html

Bus information and costs:
http://www.visitingeu.com/western-eu...irport-to.html

As for prices for trains from Milan to Venice, it depends on the type of train you take (eurostar trains are the nicest and fastest, but also the most expensive), but trains can cost from 14 euros. Info here: http://www.visitingeu.com/western-eu...to-venice.html

amazingview

Also, it's worth mentioning that Milan gets a bad reputation, but is a great city. You might consider staying there instead of going somewhere else. You can visit the castle, the Duomo (gorgeous!), and the church where da Vinci's The Last Supper hangs.

NYCFoodSnob

People do crazy things when they travel, often testing and stressing family members and travel companions to their limits. I have often used Milan's city center for many years to get over jet lag with great success. There's plenty to see, do and eat there to fill an exhausting first day without adding more travel to the arrival day schedule. I love Italy in April but you could experience much rain. I prefer a less-stressful arrival day and there are plenty of decent hotels (perfectly safe) near the train station. Trenitalia's website may require a sign-up. They often don't show information beyond a certain date. Seat prices vary by train and class. Expect € 43 for First Class on Eurostar.

ellenem

It sounds to me like the OP does not want to veer off the route between MIlan and Venice for this one night, especially with three kids and no car. While a visit to Como would be lovely, it is in the wrong direction and would add a lot of travel time the next day when they head to Venice.

For both these options I describe, take the Malpensa Shuttle Bus to Milano Centrale Train Station and connect to a train there.

My first thought was Verona as well. Frequent trains, good wine and food. The arena will intrigue the kids. Don't know the time of year, but the summer opera season is the crowded time.

Another possibilty: the same train line between Milan and Venice you might stop at Desenzano, a town on the south end of Lake Garda. Also has frequent train connections.

yestravel

I vote for Verona -- a charming town and easily reachable from MXP.

Jill02

As usual, great input! So true, foodsnob, as much as I love Verona, a day to regroup after intense Paris sightseeing is definitely the smartest thing to do. We can stay at the Sheraton on points for one room and pay for the other. Seeing how I disregarded really good advice and set a crazy Italy itinerary, I better wisen up.

The Westin Palace has an indoor pool but the reviews are mixed. The Sheraton is liked for happy hour with free apps and I can get a room with breakfast included.

The links for the train info are also very helpful.

Thank all of you!

P.S. We are doing the apartment thing for our longer stays in Paris and Rome. In Venice, we are only 2 nights and are staying on points at the Westin Europa.

justfun10

Bookmarking. Tx!