emckeeve

We're flying into Milan and would like to spend 3 days in the Lake Como area before boarding a cruise in Venice. We are planning on renting a car unless there is enough public transportation (trains, boats, buses) in the area. The cost of rental cars is quite high. I have found some dicussions on these boards about the various areas and places to stay at Lake Como, and it sounds like Bellagio is the best choice although we were investigating Villa d'Este. (Again, quite pricey.) Any thoughts? Also, what is the best and/or easiest way to get to Venice and the cruise docks from Como or Milan. I know Venice is a complicated city and would rather not take a rental car there to drop off. Any suggestions would be appreciated. We'll have a fare amount of luggage due to the cruise and an post cruise extension in Athens. Thanks.

elaine

see also this thread

elaine

sorry, the thread url didn't copy

here are two now

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34681059

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34694155

WorksforTravelMoney

Hi,

Two years ago a group of four of us rented a car and drove around northern Italy, including the route from Venice -> Lake Como (Bellagio) -> Milan. It was a very easy drive on the Autostrada and parking in Venice was a snap, just park at the railroad station (I don't remember how much per day, but it couldn't have been that much) and then just walk into the city.

If you do decide to drive in Bellagio, be careful! The roads are the most narrow that I've seen in my life - they're barely one car width wide and passing cars coming the other direction is fun. But, we did survive and it was one of the prettiest drives ever. The view of the lake is amazing.

Unfortunately, we didn't spend the night, so I can't give you any hotel recommendations.

Have a safe trip!

Voyager2006

I suggest you decide on a final location before worrying about transportation.

You can rail to Varenna from Milan (1 hr 20 minutes) and ferry over (10-15 minutes) to Bellagio; or rail to the town of Como and take a ferry from there.

In other words, there is plenty of transportation to get you there without the need to rent a car.

I suggest you return to Milan and take the train from there to Venice since all you are doing is going from point A to point B, renting a car would be time consuming, more hassle than it is worth, etc., when you can get there by train in a couple of hours.

elaine

My understanding is that there are trains that run directly from Como (town) to Venice

SheilaM

I live in Como.If you have alot of luggage-best to take a taxi.Bellagio is better for a day trip as it is not very central.Villa D'este is fabulous but it's a destination in itself.I would recommend staying in Como at the Hotel Terminus; very nice and central and has a cozy restaurant.I always put my family there when they come to visit and if you want to take a stroll or do a little shopping,it's perfect .I wouldn't drive to Bellagio on my own as it's terrifying-but the bus ride is great. The boat or hydrofoil ride there is fabulous.But you might want to rent a car and drive around for a day-drive up the lake road Via Regina where George Clooney has his place-it's a beautiful drive,and yes,narrow but not too scary.To get to Venice from Como is very easy by train and I wouldn't drive it if I were you-there really isn't much to see unless you get off the autostrada and in the train you can relax and enjoy the view.

emckeeve

Thanks so much for your responses. In taking train from Como to Venice, do you have to change trains? And where is the station in Venice in relation to the cruise ship terminal. Easy to get to? As you can tell, I'm not very familiar with northern Italy, although I was in Venice many years ago. I hope to rectify that with this trip.

CU

I was in northern Italy few weeks ago and stayed in Bergamo. Got a train from there to Venice and I had to change to get on the main line to Venice. I was advised not to hire a car and I was glad I didn't. When you come out of the station there are boat taxis there which will take you to your cruise ship.Saw some mighty cruise ships there during my stay. Enjoy.

Cicerone

Let me give you my thoughts and suggestions. You might go to your local library or buy a guide book, as this type of information is pretty basic and is found in most guidebooks:

1. What time of year are you going? Como is beautiful, but I would not go after late September through late April. As you are cruising, I am assuming you are not going in the winter months. If you are, I would stay in Milan as there is a lot to see and do there for 3 days.

2. IMO the best way to see the Lake Como area is by ferry, as the lake is very long and thin and has two fingers (get a map) . If you drive you won't be able to cover nearly as much area and won't really get the great views which you can from the boats. It's also more relaxing and fun to take the boats and you won't have to deal with Italian roads which are not really that much fun, IMO. Also, parking in some of the smaller villages will be hard to find. Remember that in addition to the high rental prices, drop off charges and insurance costs in Italy, gas is over US$6 a gallon. Finally, some places like the beautiful garden and villa at Villa Balbianello and the great Locanda dell'Isola restaurant on Isola Comacina are only accessible by boat. Therefore, I would not bother to rent a car. I would use the money toward a private boat rental for a day (a much better way to stalk George Clooney in my experience. . . .), and then take ferries as well.

3. SheilaM's comment's above notwithstanding, I would not stay in the town of Como itself, as I don't find it that charming a town, and certainly not compared to a place like the Villa d'Este, Bellagio or Varenna. The town of Como has a wonderful cathedral and is worth an afternoon visit, but is too large and crowded for my taste. I am a huge fan of the Villa D'Este and that would be my first choice, but a hotel in the little town of Bellagio or Varenna would certainly be nice as well.

4. It is very easy to get to the Lake Como area from Milan by bus or train. I believe you can take a bus directly from the airport, you might search here or check a guidebook. If you take a train, you would first have to take a taxi or bus from the Milan airport to the Milano Centrale train station in downtown Milan to get the train to Como. (It is possible that buses for Lake Como may depart from here as well.) By taxi from Milan Malpensa airport (where I assume you are arriving) to Milano Centrale station is about 30-40 minutes with no traffic. Trains run to Como very frequently and a bit more infrequently to Varenna, the trip takes 30-60 minutes depending on what train you get, most trains require no changes. If you are staying at Villa D'este or Bellagio, you would take a train to the town of Como (station is Como S Giovanni) and for Villa d'este take a taxi or hotel car to the hotel (about 15 minutes), or a ferry to Bellagio. For Varenna, you can take a train from Milan to Varrena (stop is Varrena-Esino). Go to treinitalia.com for schedules, or a better site IMO is the Swiss Rail site at rail.ch (they give schedules for all trains in Europe, not just Switzerland, but they don't give fares). Alternatively, as there are 4 of you, you might consider hiring a car and driver to meet you at the airport and drive you to Lake Como; it might be about the same cost as 4 train tickets, esp. once you add in the cost of getting from the airport to the train station in Milan, and from the Como train station to your hotel. I don't have reccos for Milan car services, but can recco one in the Rome area which might have a contact in the Milan area: positanocarservice.com
Also run a search here or post a new question.

5. It is very easy to take the train from Como to Venice. The train takes about 4 hours from the town of Como and 5 from Varenna.. Most trains require a change in Milan. Note that there are TWO TRAIN STATIONS FOR VENICE. Check with your cruise ship as to which station is closest for your pier. You may need to get off at the Venice Mestre train station, which is on the mainland, rather than the Venice Santa Lucia train station which is in Venice proper. Venice Mestre is the port city for Venice and your cruise ship may be docking there. Your cruise line should be able to provide details on getting to the dock by public transport or taxi, and which train station is closest to the dock. If not, write back with the exact location of the dock and others here can provide more precise advice.

Website for Milan Malpensa airport is http://www.sea-aeroportimilano.it/eng/ (English version). This will give info on getting into Milan.

ANUJ

I visited Lake Como during our holiday in Italy this September, so here are some tips:
- Varenna and Bellagio (in that order) are the prettiest lakeside towns - either of them would make for a delightful stay regardless of which hotel you chose!
- Since you'd have to abandon your car outisde Venice and ferry is the best way to explore Como, I'd suggest relying on public transport
-From Malpensa Airport, take the Malpensa Express to Stazione Nord or the Malpensa Shuttle to Stazione Centrale and take a train to Como
- At Como, there are a host of ticket options for boats (Navigazione Laghi is the operator) criss-crossing the lake, depedning on where you want to go
- Onnce you're done with Varenna or Belaggio, you could take a ferry back to Como, return to Milan by train and take a comfortable Eurostar or IC to Venice (Venezia Santa Lucia NOT Mestre)
- Venice can be easily explored on foot or using the traghetti

schnauzer

We recently stayed in Varenna at the Hotel du Lac, which was fantastic. Loved Varenna, liked Bellagio but were glad we were actually staying in Varenna.

However, we had a hire car and then drove to Rome. (I know different direction to Venice) As we were hurtling down the autostrada, trucks hogging the road, maniacs passing us at breakneck speed, knuckles white on the steering wheel my husband says "Remind me, why are we driving?" Could only answer, wish we weren't and wish we on a train. Unless you are doing a touring holiday take the train from A to B, it is so much more relaxing.