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Smoothest way to Train from Genoa to Lake Como?

Smoothest way to Train from Genoa to Lake Como?

Old Sep 13th, 2015, 11:09 AM
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Smoothest way to Train from Genoa to Lake Como?

Hello all you experienced train travelers!!….Your help is priceless!!! What is the smoothest way to get to Lake Como from Genoa? We've done research and we're still confused? We want to end up in Lake Como near an area where we don't have to once again get on a boat or whatever with our luggage. We're hoping to find a hotel near the train and start enjoying Lake Como vs dragging luggage on boats, etc. We're planning on being in Lake Como for two days then heading to Lake Lucern. Thanks so for your help!!!

Grafeful in Sacramento!!
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Old Sep 13th, 2015, 01:25 PM
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Varenna has a train station (called Varenna-Esino) on the Treno Nord line. You can get there from Genova with one change of train at Milano Centrale. The trip takes about three hours.

The Varenna train station is an easy walk from the lakeside, and there are boats to Bellagio and other lake towns. The town is attractive but very small, and a bit dead at night.

You can see schedules at http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en . For complete information about prices, use a date in the upcoming week.
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Old Sep 13th, 2015, 01:48 PM
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Thanks so much for the response bvlensi! So, just for clarification, if I may?….When we get to Milan for the one change of train at Milano Centrale , are we actually changing train stations or just lines? Thanks again for your help!!
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Old Sep 13th, 2015, 04:03 PM
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Neither station or lines. Just a different train going to a different place. There is only one set of train lines in Italy.
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Old Sep 13th, 2015, 09:00 PM
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While Varenna has a train station, it won't be so easy to reach Lucerne from there without taking a boat or a bus. There is no easy train connection from Varenna to Lucerne.

Como would be the easiest connection for both. Not sure you want to spend your lake time there though.
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Old Sep 13th, 2015, 11:58 PM
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You'll be changing lines, but you'd hardly notice. Both services use Milano Centrale.
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Old Sep 14th, 2015, 12:13 AM
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We went from Varenna to Lucerne in June. It wasn't bad at all. We had to change trains in Monza and in Arth-Goldau. I didn't see any easy connections through Como; all the ones I saw required a change of station.

By changing "lines" I meant changing train companies. Tren Nord and Trenitalia are different companies, although they sell each other's tickets.
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Old Sep 14th, 2015, 04:32 AM
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There's an EC train from Como S. Giovanni to Lucerne without any changes - 3 1/2 hours.

For some reason, Trenitalia is not showing any of your options bvlenci (even selecting a date this week). From Varenna, it only shows going back to Milan and changing to the EC train (same train you could catch in Como without going back to Milan). From Varenna, that route takes 5 1/2 hours.
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Old Sep 14th, 2015, 07:26 AM
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Well I spent a few days in Como and loved it - a real town and a nice town often overlooked by tourists seeking more touristed towns like Bellagio, which is often during the day way way overrun with tourists day tripping in - one of the biggest tourist mob scenes I've ever seen - in high season at least.

Como is a really neat city IMO.
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Old Sep 14th, 2015, 08:02 AM
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The 3 big lakes north of Milan are all similar. The easiest solution would be to stay at Lugano, Locarno or Stresa instead of Varenna. There are direct trains from Milan to Varenna, Lugano and Stresa and from Lugano and Locarno to Lucerne.
Varenna - Lucerne implicates 2 train changes, at Monza and Arth-Goldau, but both changes are easy (small stations).

Journey times:
Genoa -Varenna: 3 hrs
Genoa - Lugano: 3 hrs
Genoa - Stresa: 3 to 3 1/4 hrs

Varenna - Lucerne: 5 3/4 hrs
Lugano - Lucerne: 2 1/2 hrs
Stresa - Lucerne: 3 1/2 hrs
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Old Sep 14th, 2015, 08:17 AM
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Trenitalia may not be showing a connection through Monza to Lucerne, but there is the possibility, and it's the most convenient. All of the trains from Varenna to Milan stop in Monza, and all the EC trains from Milan to Switzerland (at least the morning ones I checked) also stop there. If you go to Milan to change trains, you'll pass through Monza coming and going.

We took that route because the trains from Varenna to Como S. Giovanni took a lot longer, mostly with a change of train in .... Monza. I don't know how I found this route, but I do remember that it didn't pop out when I first searched. I didn't have my laptop with me, so I probably found it using the Trenitalia app on my phone, and I probably went through a bit of trial and error.
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Old Sep 15th, 2015, 07:34 AM
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Thank you all so much! I hope to share some of my learned wisdom with other travelers!
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Old Sep 16th, 2015, 12:34 AM
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"For some reason, Trenitalia is not showing any of your options"
Best solution for travel to and within Switzerland: use the Swiss timetable http://fahrplan.sbb.ch/bin/query.exe/en
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Old Sep 16th, 2015, 01:07 PM
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Interesting, the Swiss rail site does show the connection through Monza. Maybe that's where I found it.

The connections in Monza all have a fairly long layover, and I've noticed in the past that Trenitalia's search engine deprecates long layovers. However, the alternative they offer is to take the train to Milan, where you connect (with a shorter layover) to the same train you could have caught in Monza. It makes no sense.
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Old Sep 16th, 2015, 01:46 PM
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The 3 big lakes of northern Italy may all be similar in the sense that they all have water, but many people (myself included) think that the most beautiful is Lago di Como, and that the pretty areas of Lago di Garda cannot be reached by train at all.
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Old Sep 16th, 2015, 01:49 PM
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Sorry -- I see now that the suggestion is to pick one of the 3 lakes north of Milan that is easier to get to than Varenna, suggesting either Lake Lugano or Lago Maggiore. If your intention in going to the lakes is to see memorable, breathtaking beauty, be careful which one you pick to avoid disappointment.
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Old Sep 17th, 2015, 07:16 AM
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Sandra: I know all 3 lakes very well (I walked and biked around all 3 in all seasons, I visited tons of botanical gardens, castles, churches, monasteries, nice restaurants and grotti, alpine huts, mountains in flowers, etc.), but I've really no preference.
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Old Sep 17th, 2015, 08:47 AM
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. If your intention in going to the lakes is to see memorable, breathtaking beauty, be careful which one you pick to avoid disappointment.>

ditto to what neckervd says - I've explored all three lakes and can't see most folks being dissapointed with any of them - not saying they are peas in pods but all enchanting and go to the one most convenient to your Switzerland plans.

another way to go between Varenna area and Lugano is to take the boat to Menaggio and bus from there to Lugano - may be the quickest way depending on schedules.
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Old Sep 18th, 2015, 01:51 AM
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"another way to go between Varenna area and Lugano is to take the boat to Menaggio and bus from there to Lugano - may be the quickest way depending on schedules"

That's what local people do. They would never make the detour via Monza.
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Old Sep 18th, 2015, 04:03 AM
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"another way to go between Varenna area and Lugano is to take the boat to Menaggio and bus from there to Lugano - may be the quickest way depending on schedules"
That's what local people do. They would never make the detour via Monza.
But non Italian speaking foreign people with luggage may have some problems with the transfers
from ferry to bus stop at Menaggio (not really far away, but one must know where to go to and where to buy the bus tickets),
from the Lake Como bus terminal at Lugano Cassarate to Lugano railway station (by Lugano city bus, the city bus stop is not far away neither, but you must know where it is, how you can buy the tickets (in CHF), which bus to take and where to leave it).
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