We are flying out of MP at 12:55pm on a Friday and are wondering at the wisdom of remaining in Bologna until that a.m. I see train from Bologna to Venice Mestre is about 1 3/4 hr and then adding on bus to MP - another 1/2 hr? Are we taking too much of a chance and should we just stay in Mestre that last night?

Technically, you have enough time, but I wouldn't recommend it. Let me tell you my story of the last time I decided to spend a night in a different town from the one I was flying from in Italy. We were scheduled to depart FCO (rome) at noon. We decided to spend our last night in Orvieto, which is only a little over an hour away and has very frequent train service into Rome, and then into the airport. We had planned on leaving Orvieto early. We get to the train station at around 7:10, planning on taking a train that left fairly soon. The woman kept shaking her head at us, and I thought that that particular train was full, so I asked for the following one. She kept shaking her head, and finally wrote down one word on her piece of paper: STRIKE (in Italian of course). When I read the word on my translator, my heart sank. It was Sunday morning and the car rental places were not scheduled to open until much later. So, the woman at the station called a cab for us, who charged us over $200 to take us to FCO. It was an expensive lesson. Italian train strikes are not uncommon. Additionally, delays can occur, especially around busy periods. If you decide not to sleep in Mestre, I would stay somewhere closer than Bologna.

Yikes! I think we'll opt to stay in Padova!

Hi L,

Although you might have no trouble, I would choose Mestre over Padova.

leahinsc, you do NOT want to depend on trains in Italy the day you are flying home. Unless you have someway other than the train to get to the Marco Polo Airport from Padova I too would strongly suggest you stay in Mestre or a hotel in Venice proper.

Hi Leah - Padova looks a good choice to me. Certainly a more attractive option than Mestre.

There is a convenient bus (SITA) direct to the airport from Padova bus station.

Here's the link:

http://ro.autobus.it/ro/asp/RicercaOrari.asp?User=SITA

Hope this helps ...

Steve