Driving Milan to Portofino & parking for a few hours
 

I'll arrive in Portofino on June 1st via cruise ship. My son from Melbourne flies into Milan that morning, will rent a car & drive to spend a half day with me before going on to Florence. How long will it take him to drive to Portofino? Where can he park? Where should I arrange to meet him, in case he can't find a parking spot? Would the tourist information centre be a good meeting place?
Might we have better luck with parking if I took the ferry to Santa Margherita to meet him?
Thanks!

Assuming your son is flying into Malpensa International which is northeast of Milan, hopefully he can miss a lot of the commuter traffic. I am going to Portofino in about a week. I am planning about 2.5 hours for the drive between Milan and Portofino.

Once you past Genoa and leave the Autostrada (highway), the last segment of about 4 miles past Santa Margharita is a famously narrow, one-lane winding road following the coast. If you are the front car you are supposed to honk at the blind corners (I plan not to be the front car!).

There is no driving in Portofino itself, but there is a municipal parking lot at the entrance to the village.

You can take the ferry, but there is also a public bus that leaves for Santa Margharita every 30 minutes.

Very helpful info, scottnajima - thank you.
Makes me wonder if we should meet in Santa Margherita to save my son that difficult 4 miles driving (after a 22 hr flight) & maybe find easier parking (I read that 80 parking spots cn be reserved in SM). I'm thinking we could meet at Villa Durazzo in SM. Grateful for advise....

We parked in a covered garage in Portofino..We were directed to park there by a ploiceman. Santa Margherita is a lovely small city so a nice option too.