In some cities, getting a cab or Uber from the airport is just a little more expensive than public transport and well worth the time and hassle you save yourself. That is not the case in Milan. Getting from either Milan airport to Milan city center can cost you upwards of 100 euros if you take a taxi or even Uber.
That’s because both of the main airports that service the Milan area, Malpensa (MXP) and Orio al Serio International Airport (BGY), are almost an hour away by car. Luckily there are a multitude of affordable and convenient options to choose from that will get you to city center in around the same as a cab.
Getting from Milan Malpensa (MXP) to city center
Aside from cabs, your main options for getting to Milan city center from Milan Malpensa Airport are buses and trains. Luckily, both of these are indexed by Google Maps, so you can determine which would save you the most time at any particular time of departure.
Train
The Malpensa Express train leaves every 30 minutes and takes about 52 minutes. The tickets are 13 euro one-way, and must be validated before you get on the train. On Google Maps, the Express train is indicated by its two routes XP1 and XP2. The one most convenient depends primarily on where you’re staying in Milan. If you’re staying closer to Cadorna Station, then you would be better off taking XP1 and if you’re staying around Milan Central station, then you should take XP2.
Bus
Several bus companies provide service to and from Milan Malpensa Airport and they run pretty much constantly. The buses terminate outside Milan Central Station and take about as much time as the train does. The Malpensa Airport website would have you believe that the Malpensa Shuttle is the “main” bus, but there are almost half a dozen bus companies that provide transfers to city center including Terravision and Autostradale, which are a little cheaper. The Malpensa Shuttle is € 10, while Terravision and Autostradale provide the exact same service for € 8.
With the buses, using Google Maps isn’t as advantageous because Terravision, for instance, doesn’t appear. So you don’t have a full picture of the departing buses until you arrive at the bus terminal. Since you can buy your tickets on board (though you may save some by prebooking it online), I recommend just walking out of the terminal and getting the earliest bus out of the airport.
Getting from Orio al Serio International Airport (BGY) to Milan city center
There is no train option that links Bergamo Airport to Milan. To take public transportation, you’d have to catch a bus into the town of Bergamo from the airport and take the train from there. But it would be more time consuming, and generally unnecessary, because you have all the transportation you need in the form of the same large coach buses that service the Malpensa Airport.
Coach bus fares from Bergamo Airport are cheaper than from Malpensa, and take around the same time. The buses are Orioshuttle, Autostradale, and Terravision. They depart every 20-30 minutes but since departures are staggered, you can pretty much always grab something leaving in the next 5-10 minutes. You can get a better idea of upcoming departures using Google Maps, though it doesn’t include Terravision buses. The trip takes around an hour into Milan Central Station. The cost ranges in price from €5 to €8.
If you exit the airport terminal into the bus terminal, they’ll all be lined up filling up for their next ride out. You’ll be able to identify the one leaving soonest because the drivers stand outside yelling trying to get riders.
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