JTPC

My husband and I will be concluding a nearly three month trip (Italy, France, Spain) in the middle of November. Our plan has been to spend our last two nights in Milan before we fly out of Malpensa (10am). However, Milan is not a place that we are really interested in going and since it's somewhat of a trek to get to the airport from the city anyway, we thought maybe we would look into some alternatives. I've been staring at a map a lunch and was thinking about Lake Orta or Lake Maggiore. We're really open to just about anywhere!

We would love to end the trip somewhere beautiful, somewhat calm and maybe a bit luxurious. Most of our trip is going to be AirBnb type situations, but would love to end on a high note! We are happy to rent a car for a couple days-- would just rather a short, simple (approximately 30 minutes) drive to the airport on the morning we leave. If public transportation is possible, even better.

HappyTrvlr

Hotel Il Sole Di Ranco in Ranco on Lake Maggiore's east side. Short drive to MXP.

Jean

A small town on any of the lakes in mid-November will be quieter than "calm," and a 30-minute-drive radius is pretty small. There are trains from central Milan to Malpensa that only take 30 minutes...

What exactly do you hope/want to do with your one full day? If you just want to look at scenery, Ranco's probably as good a place as any, but I wouldn't expect to be walking around much.

sandralist

You can take an airport bus from the small towns of Stresa and Baveno on Lago Maggiore to Malpensa Airport. The ride is just under an hour and the bus begins running very early in the morning (pre-dawn) so if you have an early flight out, the bus is usually an easy way to catch your flight. Your hotel needs to book you a seat on the bus 24 hours in advance.

Although November is not an optimal time for visiting the lake for 2 days, I think you would do better to stay someplace where you can take public transportation to the airport rather than drive yourselves there. The general territory around Malpensa can be quite foggy at that time of year, and it is best left to experienced drivers.

There are some very old and very grand hotels in Stresa. You should read reviews and see if any of them would be the kind of experience you are looking for. Some of them now are so old and grand they have fallen into decline, so you want to be careful. I believe there is at least one luxury-type modern hotel in Baveno.

If the weather is fine you might want to take boat rides around the lake or hire a driver to take you to Lago d'Orta if you can negotiate a favorable price. If it is miserably rainy, you might change your mind about visiting Milan and take the one-hour train ride from Stresa. (Baveno doesn't have a train station but it is fairly short taxi ride to and from the station.) Lunch and a special museum like the Pinocoteca Ambrosiana, plus a hot chocolate after in an historic caffe, can be a nice excursion.

astein12

We got married in Orta (at city hall, by the mayor), so I'm a bit biased. It's a small town and would be a great place to relax and spend a couple of days.

Nice to just hang out, visit the island (nice little restaurant), see a little of Italian life.

330east

Stresa- Hotel La Palma

neckervd

Middle November along the Lakes means: all big hotels and many restaurants closed, almost no boat traffic.

Wheater: everything will be possible, foggy, rainy, bright sunshine.
All trains and buses in the area will run, because local people need them. Frequent trains from the train stations of Verbania Pallanza, Baveno, Stresa, Belgirate, Lesa, Meina, Arona to Milano Porta Garibaldi resp Milano Centrale.

You will have to leave Stresa etc. around 6.30am in order to arrive at MXP towards 8am (Alibus or train plus Gallarate citybus)

sandralist

I got curious and did a test search on booking.com for hotels in Stresa and Baveno for the last week in November and quite a few of the very largest grand hotels were open for booking.

neckervd

..but if you try to book directly with Regina Palace at Stresa, it's not possible. ...whereas booking.com tells you that the hotel is fully booked, even in January 2015!

PalenQ

Stresa at that time of year would be a good bet - smaller towns tend to close down - and just offshore in Stresa are the three famous Borromean Islands - each with a different delight to see - boats go there from Stresa - Stresa is not a luxurious resort but it is not shabby either.

And yes direct airport buses to Malpense - Stresa is about as close to Malpensa as in Milan.

nytraveler

In the middle of November a lot of places in the lakes (hotels and restaurants) will be closed for the season and I don;t know how "lovely" it will be. I's just a likely to be chilly and rainy with not a lot to do (we've only visited in May/June when everything was open, days were warm and long - not short.

neckervd

I've been at Stresa in all months of the year. November is just unpredictable. From thick fog over the Lake und non stop rainfall during days to rather warm weather and cloudless sky with fine views to the Alps, everything is possible.
The castles and botanical gardens on the Borromean Islands (Isola Bella, Isola Madre) are closed from Oct 20th 2014 until March 2015.
Only one thing is certain: there will be almost no tourists, except some weekend daytrippers from Milan if the weather is fine.