I'm thinking of taking a day trip to Lake Bracciano when I'm in Rome in September via bus (bvlenci said in another post that the bus drops you off closer to the castle than the train). I have found out that the bus leaves Rome from the Cipro Metro Station and goes twice daily. However, despite checking the castle's website, rome2rio, and the website for Cotral, who operates the bus, I can't find what times it runs. I might have missed something on Cotral since it's in Italian, but I don't usually have trouble just checking a route. Anyone know what times the bus goes?

I took a train to Bracciano and the station was a few blocks from the castle as I recall. did day trip from Rome to Viterbo - really neat old town and stopped at Bracciano just to see the castle area and lake from above.

Tourist guide says train station is in the middle of town. Says nothing about buses:

https://braccianoguide.com/tranpsortation/

Thanks, but that is a blog by an individual. I got the bus information from rome2rio. They just didn't list the times. There was a link there to contact the bus company, so I sent them an email but thought maybe I could get the answer here more quickly.

Well I have personal experience with trains to Bracciano and the station I got off at was right in the middle of town and a short stroll from the castle.

www.bahn.de shows two trains an hour to Bracciano from Rome - same train I took. I'd go by train - regional train - no reservations possible.

And this city map with train station on it is just as I recall - very close to the castle and in the middle of town. forget buses and go by dirt cheap frequent trains.

bvlenci is infallible so there must be some kind of misunderstanding.

https://www.google.com/search?q=brac...hrome&ie=UTF-8

Some trains from Tiburtina to Bracciano take less than 90 minutes, and the fare is 3,60 euros. Google Maps says the walking distance between the train station and the castello is less than 600 meters.

rome2rio is not perfect. I sometimes cross-check on Moovit which is also not perfect. Google Maps, Rome2rio and Moovit all show routes from Rome to Bracciano with at least one connection and no direct buses. Personally, I'd take the train.

Thanks for the additional information, Jean.
I was also looking at the bus because it was showing a shorter ride than the train, but maybe the train is easier.

I have found lots of erroneous information on Rome2Rio. I don't trust it without crosschecking. I prefer Google Maps for public transportation route planning, although it's not perfect, either. I've rarely had wrong information from Google Maps, but it sometimes doesn't find the best route.

In this case, I believe Rome2Rio actually has wrong information. I don't see any bus to Bracciano leaving from the Cipro Metro station. There is a direct bus leaving from the Saxa Rubra train station, or from the La Storta train station. (I found this on Moovit, by the way, and I crosschecked it with the Cotral web site.) There is no longer a bus leaving from Tiburtina, and, what's worse, the buses don't stop near the castle. So you'd be better taking the train. The trains leave either from Ostiense station or Tiburtina station, whichever is most convenient to you.

When you get off the train, walk towards the center of town, I believe in the direction the train was heading. After a few minutes, you'll come to the main road, where you'll turn left. after about 5 minutes, you'll see the castle. You have to make another left at the point where the road bends to the right.

The problem I had was on the way back to Rome, I turned right where there was a sign pointing to the station. However, I didn't see any station, and had to ask somebody, and make several other turns. It was probably the best way for a car, but not for a pedestrian. When I did get to the station, I found myself on the side of the track for trains to Viterbo. There was no way to get to the other side: neither an underpass nor an overpass. I had to walk back to the main road (by the direct route, this time) and go further down the road, go under the rail overpass, and then turn right. What should have been a ten-minute walk took me half an hour. If you go to Bracciano by train, don't turn right until you have passed under the rail overpass. Then it should be easy.

There is no way to buy tickets at the Bracciano station. You should buy your return ticket in Rome. You can get tickets in the machines (multilingual) at the station.

Thanks, bvlenci and everyone. I also did a little more searching and couldn't find a bus, so I guess train is the way to go. At least now I have the information if I decide to go.

don't neglect going down the the large volcanic lake that looms below Bracciano, which literally spills down into the lake. Can take boat rides or do lovely walks or swim and dine in an appetizing atmosphere.

Thanks, I'll check it out.

https://servizi.cotralspa.it/Orari

neckervd, yes, I had tried that site. When you put in the route, it says it's impossible.