From Malpensa to train station
 

Flying into MXP airport and then taking train to Florence. What is best way to get to train station? Is there a local train or bus that's cheaper than a taxi?

Take the Malpensa Express train directly from MXP to the Milano Centrale train station. There are frequent departures, the ride takes about an hour. http://www.malpensaexpress.it/en/

It cost something like 11€ last spring. There are better deals for families.

Buy your ticket when you arrive at MXP.

Clean, comfortable trains.

Have a great trip!

Thank you!
12 Euro now according to website. 45-52 minutes depending on number of stops

You're welcome. It looks like a roundtrip ticket is 18€ if you return within a month.

Be aware that the ticket machines for train tickets only take chip-and-pin cards or sometimes cash, so you may need to buy from agents at MXP and Milano Centrale.

Have a great trip.

Malpensa Express train is located inside MXP, terminal 1, plenty of signs. I took it last week. I think it was about 12 euros, and took about 50 minutes. I used to take the bus and think it was a little cheaper, but I found it to be a real pain, especially when there is traffic, as it stops and goes along ugly industrial areas, highways, and outlying residential areas.

Just follow the signs to the train, go to the Malpensa Express window, and buy the ticket. Be sure to ask which binario, or track the train to Milano-Centrale is leaving from, because when you take the escalator down there will be several trains saying Milano, going to very different places in the city. In my jet lag I mistakenly got onto a train Milano-Cordona, and didn't realize it until just before the doors were about to close. Milano Centrale is the last stop, and you can certainly get a ticket to Florence from there.

The machines at the airport station should offer onward tickets to Florence.

Thanks for the above information - very useful. Not to highjack your thread but I have a similar question. I will be flying into MXP and need to get to Sarzana, then onwards to Lucca and Florence. Is the train feasible? Looks like it will take upwards of 5 hrs from MXP to Sarzana by train (only 2-2.5 hrs by car).

What are your thoughts on car rental vs. train? Am I missing something really obvious here? Would rather the train given the high cost of an automatic rental car/gas.

Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks in advance :)

I'm not at all surprised at 5 hours plus. Going by car would indeed take half the time.

I would just point out that it's about 160 miles to Sarzana, so what Google Maps says about 2 hours and 36 minutes to 2 hours and 56 minutes with no traffic, which may be right once you are in the car, and there is no traffic. It will take some time for you to get in the car.

Most of the car rental agencies are in Terminal 1, where I assume you will be arriving, and there may well be a line, then you will have to deal with the clerk for 10-15 min, then walk 10 minutes to the garage where the cars are kept. So you might want to add a half hour or so to get into the car

However, if you book an agency that is only in Terminal 2, or one that is "located" at Malpensa but does not physically have the cars in terminal 1, you may want to add half hour or more. I've waited up to 45 minutes for hotel shuttles at MXP on several occasions, including a week and a half ago.

Depending on your arrival time, you may hit traffic. In Milan the traffic is bumper to bumper terrible. To get from MXP to Sarzana you basically have to head straight towards Milan, so if there is any traffic, you will be caught in the middle of it, both heading towards and driving away from Milan.

In your economic considerations in addition to gas and rental fees, remember that you will also most likely be on a toll road.

Finally, in totaling up the time it will take by rental car, consider the time it will take to return the car. First, you have to find the rental agency in Sarzana. That may, or may not be close to the center of town. It is possible that you will have to take a cab from the car rental agency to your hotel. Add 30 minutes for the time you will spend waiting for the cab to show up. You'd probably have to add time for a cab if arriving by train, but unlike rental car places, the train station is always downtown, and there are always cabs waiting at the train station.

Finally, the last time I rented a car in Italy was this past July. It took close to an hour to return it once I got to the travel agency. Why? Because they were closed. They were on "pausa," the Italian equivalent of a siesta. Most businesses close between 1-3:30, and Avis was closed, after I had driven 4.5 hours to get there.

You can do the equivalent of an after hours drop-off, and just park the car in the street, shove the keys through the mail slot, and walk away, but then again, you may not be comfortable doing that. It's what I did after I got tired of waiting and started banging on the door enough to determine if they were in there, which indeed they were, but they wouldn't interrupt the pausa and come out and accept the car.

Then, I did not have the phone number of a cab company in that town to take me to my hotel, and I since I couldn't ask the Avis people to call one for me I walked from store to store, asking people to call a cab for me, and of course, nobody knew the number. Finally I arrived at a hotel, and they called a cab for me, for which I waited about 30 minutes.

Overall, train versus car is a judgment call. Google Maps says it's 2 hours and 36 minutes without traffic, MXP to Sarzana, but these are some other things I'd consider in making your decision that Google Maps does not include.

Just make sure you get on the train to Milano Centrale as most of the trains from MXP go to Cadorna station.

Train is certainly more comfortable and easy. From what you describe, it sounds like you'll eventually drop the car in Florence and, if so, going to a place like Sarzana a car might make more sense. Last summer, we went from MXP to Barga (further than you would be going initially as it is north of Lucca) by car. There are a couple of routes - the one I took was A1 to A15 going right by Sarzana. Google says 2:48 to Sarzana and that is doable but it is probably a brisk drive and the last part down A15 is pretty twisty. If you are comfortable with brisk driving, it's fun. If not, slow down and take an extra 30 minutes. BTW - descending from the mountains to the coastline is a quite beautiful view.

I did the drive to Barga in about 3:40 (Google says 4 hours) and the last part at dark. To do it quickly required focus and concentration.

I assumed you'll be dropping the car off at Sarzana. Not much point of it. It only an hour train ride to Lucca. You definitely don't want to drive in Florence. And the train ride Lucca to florence is also short.

And don't forget about the highway tolls! One way Malpensa - Sarzana will be near 20 € if I remember correctly...

Thank you all for the very helpful comments above. Here is my itinerary:

Fly into MXP around 7am and head straight to Sarzana where we have friends who will show us around by car. Then onward to Lucca, Florence and back to Milan (where we will fly out of). I do not want to rent a car as I would rather take the train but that 5.5 - 6 hr train to Sarzana is going to be brutal after a 8 - 9 hr flight.

Once we leave Sarzana, the train is definitely the way to go (although a bit afraid about getting around Lucca as I've heard a car is the way to do it).

Your point about traffic in and around Milan is certainly a good one. We will 100% hit traffic at 8am on a Wednesday morning.

I certainly like the flexibility of having a car but the trains run often enough where we shouldnt run into any issues.

I am trying to get some quotes on a hired car from MXP to Sarzana. Any good options on the cheaper side? I dont need to have a luxury car.

Thanks again for all the help!

I generally search Auto Europe and Kemwel for inclusive car rental rates. It looks like La Spezia is the closest place to Sarzana with rental offices.