Bergamo Transportation

The taxi ride from Bergamo to Orio al Serio cost me 20 euros. It was a very short ride - 10 minutes.
I had to take the taxi inspite of good bus connection to the airport because it was Sunday and the first bus was leaving around 6.20 which was rather late due tu my early flight back home.

To get to the Citta Alta by public transport from the Citta Bassa below you have two options. One is to take the funicular and the other is to take the bus. It's a good idea to use both.
You can catch the No. 1 bus to Colle Aperto (which is the end of the journey), walk through the streets of Citta Alta to Piazza Mercato delle Scarpe and then take the funicular back down. There's a bus stop outside the bottom station that will take you back through the Alta Bassa.
You can also do it the other way round of course. I did it both ways and I preferred catching the bus to Colle Aperto first, only because there's a slight downhill gradient going this way. That's just a personal preference.
A bus ticket for the central zone costs €1.25 and can be used for up to 75 minutes on any bus or funicular. Unless you're in a hurry I don't think 75 minutes would be nearly long enough to visit the Citta Alta so you would need to buy another ticket for the funicular or bus in that case.
You can also buy a Tourist Ticket for 24 (€5) or 72 hours (€7). This covers the whole network including the airport (Sept 2012).

Catching the Airport Bus from the airport to the city is simple enough because there's only one bus you can catch but you need to make sure you catch the right one on your way back towards the airport because there are different No. 1 buses. You shouldn't really go wrong because there's a 1A/1B/1C and 1 Airport which is self explanatory really. Just make sure you catch the 1 Airport though because the other buses go on different routes - and not to the airport.
The Airport bus travels into the city via the Railway Station, Porta Nuova (centre of Citta Bassa), The Funicular (for the Citta Alta), and ends at Colle Aperto (Citta Alta). It's quite possible it'll be the only bus route that you will need to use if you're not staying here for too long because it follows the route most tourists will want to use.
The buses run every 30 minutes from the airport and cost €2.10 for a single journey into the city (Sept 2012). It's a timed ticket (90 mins). Tickets are bought according to zones and the airport bus crosses 3 zones. When I was here you couldn't buy the ticket from the bus driver only from the machine at the bus stop but I think that could be changing soon.
To be honest I found the easiest thing to do was to pop into the Tourist Office inside the airport and buy a 24 hour Tourist Ticket for €5 which covered the whole network.
Simple. Just don't forget to stamp it as soon as you board.

2 more images

Walking up through Citta Alta towards the funicular to Colle di San Vigilio, we spotted a bus stood nearby with number 21 on the front; this was the very infrequent service from Largo Colle Aperto which winds its way around the San Vigilio hill to the top.

ATB tourist tickets lasting 24 and 72 hours allow you to take as many bus and funicular trips during its duration as you wish; having already taken the funicular up to San Vigilio, we decided it would be nice to take the bus and see some of the other scenery. What a good decision it was! Taking you around the side and rear of San Vigilio hill, you get great views out over Bergamo and parts of the Bergamo Province.

The journey itself takes around 20 minutes, during which time you can enjoy views over terracotta rooftops, into valleys and over to distant hills.

The bus terminates at the rear of San Vigilio hill, within an easy stroll up a slight incline back to the funicular station. The terminus has a couple of benches to sit and enjoy the stunning views over an expansive valley bottom - it also appears that a small cafe may have business here during the summer months as I spotted stacks of chairs on a terrace a little below the area of the terminus.

One of the stops along the route also gives access to the castle at San Vigilio.

Services on route 21 are only in the early morning and lunchtime; full details of the route and timetable can be found here whilst the website below has full details of all ATB services.

1 more image

When arriving at Bergamo's Orio al Serio Airport, you can swiftly transfer through to Bergamo by using the ATB bus route number 1.

Single tickets to the town cost €2.00 and can be purchased at the counter in the arrivals area of the airport (see photo 1).

Exit the arrivals area and head diagonally across to bus departures area; bus 1 is an orange, local bus departing from the shelter nearest to the Arrivals door.

The journey to/from the airport (Bergamo Orio al Serio) takes approximately 15 minutes (so travelling hand luggage only can have you in the city centre very quickly).

Generally speaking, the buses to the airport are reliable and frequent, but it is wise to be at the bus stop 30 - 45 minutes in advance of needing to be when returning to avoid possible difficulties with traffic delays.

The website link below takes you to timetable information for route 1.

1 more image

One of the best bus routes in Bergamo is number 1.

This bus route is operated by ATB and services Citta Alta, Stazione Funicolare (to take the funicular to Citta Alta) as well as Bergamo's airport Orio al Serio.

It starts at Bergamo's train station and runs up Viale Papa Giovanni XXIII before turning off and heading towards the Stazione Funicolare. Some services run out to the airport as well.

This is one of the most frequent services and also has the longest service, running until well into the evening at the weekend.

A single journey from the airport to the train station will cost you €1.70. Alternatively, you can obtain a day pass which allows you on all services in Bergamo for €3.50 or a 3-day pass for Bergamo which costs €5.00 (prices correct at May 2011).

The journey to/from the airport (Bergamo Orio al Serio) takes approximately 15 minutes (so travelling hand luggage only can have you in the city centre very quickly).

Generally speaking, the buses are reliable and frequent, but it is wise to be at the bus stop 30 - 45 minutes in advance of needing to be when returning to the airport to avoid possible difficulties with traffic delays.

1 more image

Rising above Citta Alta is a second hill, atop which sits the village of San Vigilio, which offers great views over Citta Alta and the province of Bergamo.

To get to the top of this second hill, you can take a funicular from just outside the walls of Citta Alta. If you head along Via Bartolomeo Colleoni, through the square, across Largo Colle Aperto and through the gate (Colle Aperto) itself, you will find the second funicular station on your right.

If you hold a 24 or 72 hour ATB tourist ticket, you can travel on this funicular for free (as well as the town's buses and funicular between Citta Bassa and Citta Alta).

This upper funicular runs slightly less frequent than the funicular which connects Citta Bassa and Citta Alta and ceases service slightly earlier in the evening.

Single journey tickets can be purchased for a cost of €2,00.

This funicular first began operating on 27 August 1912; after a period of over sixty years, service was suspended in 1976 at the expiration of the government concession for the service. With a need to upgrade the line to meet new safety regulations, radical plans for a revamp of the service were prepared in 1984 and work began in 1987, with the line re-opening in 1991.

The funicular runs a line of 630 meters and has a single carriage with a capacity of 55 passengers.

OPERATING HOURS :
Monday to Friday : 10:15 - 19:50
Saturday : 10:15 - 23:00
Sundays and Holidays : 09:00 - 22:30

Bergamo has a good bus network.

You can explore the upper town by foot. It isn't large. You can take n. 1A bus some meters out of the train station to get there. There is also a bus from the airport that goes up to the upper town. It is n.1.

Bus tickets are sold at tobacconist's, newsagents' and from the vending machines you find near some bus stops.

There are special tickets for one day, 36 hours and more which allow you unlimited use of buses.

Note; bus tickets (also special tickets) are valid for the funiculars rides too.

Always remember to validate your ticket with the machine once in the bus.