miranda

Need to head straight out of Milan for Florence. About how long does it take to go through customs upon arrival in Milan, then how long to go the train station? If time is of the essence, about how much would a taxi be from airport to train station? Thank you so much!

Wayne

Miranda--<BR>If you have a schedule crunch that allows you only a certain amount of time between plane arrival and train departure, I'd suggest you change the train for a later one. Although you can usually get your luggage, get through customs and get out of the Malpensa airport in about a half hour, you certainly shouldn't count on it. Also you can't rely on an on-time landing in case of airline schedule delays. On the other hand, if all you are doing is simply trying to get through all the wickets as fast as possible, it's certainly fastest to take a taxi to the Milan train station. Unfortunately, the cost will be rather high--probably between $50 and $65. If you have enough time to take a bus, the time to the train station will be about 30 minutes of driving and up to 30 minutes waiting for the bus at the airport. Milan has many train stations; the one you want is the Centrale station.

Dayle

Hi Miranda, also, there is the Malpensa Express train which runs frequently & direct from Malpensa to Milano Nord Station. Takes about 50 minutes & is very inexpensive. You could then take a taxi from Milano Nord to Milano Centrale if that works better.

zz-top

You should only be so lucky to hit on Wayne's timetable (altho it is possible) -- from my experiences in getting from Malpensa (& we're all assuming you are flying into MXP and not Linate ???) is that from the time you land until time you end up at Stazione Centrale is closer to 2 1/2 hours. Shuttle bus takes 45 minutes, not 30 and possibly a tad longer depending on time of day. Also, if you're arriving first thing in a.m., you'll have to haul butt to get on to a bus as it can get busy when everyone's trying to do same. I've also taken the train, Malpensa Express, and it's a great way to get into the city. BUT as Dayle noted, it does arrive into another station (Cadorna Nord) and so you'll need to then taxi over to Centrale. There is a subway connecting the two, but with luggage it's a pain (I've done it, won't do it again). <BR>Of all your choices, if time is the most important issue, go for the taxi. Taxi driver should easily be able to get you from MXP to Centrale in 35 minutes.

miranda

Great feedback; thanks!! It's helped me realize it's just too crazy to try and catch the 8pm train at Centrale (there isn't a later train), after a 5:30 arrival at Malpensa. And that's if all the travel & airline gods are in my favor w/no delays, etc. Looks like an unplanned evening in Milan, and then can be stress free in the am.

GAC

What about the Eurostar train leaving Milano Centrale at 20:35 and arriving Firenze S. M. Novella at 23:59 (I checked today's schedule)?

Walter

Miranda: I stayed at a very nice 3* hotel close (200m) to the train station. If you're interested "Text Search" canova click-on "Italy" & "Find". From where the bus drops you at the station you would have to add ~100m more to this hotel. I would opt for the Malpensa Express Train and then taxi to whatever hotel. Waiting for my luggage at Malpensa took almost as long as the bus ride into the city. Regards, Walter

elaine

Miranda<BR>When I did it three years ago, the bus ride from Malpensa to Milano Centrale station took 90 (as in ninety!) minutes due to heavy morning rush hour traffic.

Dayle

Hi again Miranda! As you can see the Fodorites are never short on input. Isn't it great! this site greatly helped on our last trip to Italy. I flew into Malpensa, actually arriving right on time! Then it only took about 30 minutes to get luggage. Waited around an hour for my friend to come in on another airline. She even arrived on time and we found each other with no problem. Again, her luggage only took about 30 minutes. We hoped on the next Express train which was leaving in 10 minutes and caught a taxi to our hotel in Milan. In case you' re interested it was the Antica Locando dei Mercanti and we really liked it. Very reasonable for Milan ($90 US for two May 2000), great location just a couple blocks from Duomo, on a tiny & quiet side street. Devine beds & linens, extremely helpful staff. Very small rooms & bath, but that's to be expected. Buon viaggio!

miranda

Thanks for all the input everybody. Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you.<BR><BR>Isn't getting into Florence at midnight a little too late? Will a hotel even be able to check me in at that hour?

elaine

miranda<BR>if you are arriving that late be sure you notify your hotel, AND be sure that their front desk is staffed 24-hours.<BR>I once arrived after midnight in London, and my hotel front door was locked tight<BR>and there was no one around. This after telling them I was arriving so late!

beth

why don't you just fly - theres an evening flight from Malpensa to Florence - $118.00 one way - spend the night in Florence - less checking in/out

miranda

Thanks for the suggestion Beth, but a flight wouldn't be worth the extra expense. For me it would defeat the purpose of getting such a great deal on airfare from the west coast in the first place!<BR><BR>I'll either get into florence on the late train, or stay in Milan for the night, and catch the early train to Florence the following morning.<BR><BR>Thanks so much for all your tips everyone!