Bergamo Transportation

Bergamo is divided into upper and lower cities - Citta Alta and Citta Bassa. The bus from the airport will drop you right at the funicular stop in the lower city and then a five minute ride by Funicular will bring you to the centre of the upper city. The funicular is tiny and really old-fashioned. It goes up almot perpendicularly and the views as you look back are terrific. However, when you reach the upper city at Piazza Mercato delle Scarpe you need to climb again. This time a little foot slog is involved as you have to walk uphill, right through the town, to reach the second funicular station. This second trip brings you even higher to San Vigilio Hill and the castle. On this leg of the funicular you will get some superb photos of the Citta Alta below and the surrounding countryside.

Vt member Maurizio, has just pointed out to me that you can of course get to the Citta Alta by bus as well. This is true but I think for most visitors, the trip on the funicular would be more enjoyable. Thank's for the info Maurizio.

Reading countless guidebooks, I found it hard to get up-to-date information about getting to Orio al Serio from Milan. Given the size of the Stazione centrale in Milan, I really wanted to avoid using the train and was very happy to realise that there is a coach option. To catch the coach, you turn right when coming out of the main entrance to the train station. This brings you to the Piazza Luigi de Savoia and coaches for all the airports leave from here. The Orio al Serio, Ryan Air coach is blue and yellow with the name plastered on the side in big letters. It costs EUR 8 one way and departs regularly throughout the day.

I went straight to the Orio al Serio airport from Milan, dropped off my lugage and then, unencumbered , caught the bus into Bergamo. Finding where to buy the bus ticket was a little confusing so finally I went into the Tourist office at the airport and they sold me an all -in-one ticket. This ticket costs EUR 3.50 and is excellent value. It covers the bus to and from the aiport to Bergamo, as well as the funicular train which you must take to reach the Citta Alta. It stops at the railway station in Bergamo, passes through the Citta Bassa and eventually, drops you off, right at the Funicular stop. This makes the trip remarkably uncomplicated and easy.

Important to remember that you CAN'T buy this ticket on the bus, you must buy it before you leave the airport and validate it when you get on the bus. The same ticket then does you for the rest of the day.

The details below are for the tourist office at Orio al Serio, where I bought my ticket.

Hi, just wanted to update, I had a useful reply from Francesco suggesting I get in touch with a scheme called Gardapass - tel (from UK) 00 39 045 6209 428.

I asked the owner of the apartment where I was staying to join the scheme which he did and I was offered transfers from Bergamo to Malcesine of approximately 60 E per person each way.

This was cheaper that the cheapest taxi quote I was offered which was 145E for 2 people each way (Viaggi Molinari). So great if you are travelling alone.

I think we are getting a taxi after all for arriving quicker but maybe will use the bus transfer on our return journey.

Thanks for the info anyway.

Eleanor Y

It costs one euro (in advance) from the ticket office (under the red LED sign) to ride each way on the funicular. It is worth buying two tickets per person for the return trip too.

There is a tearoom at the top and the journey time is little more than a minute or so up the steep incline.

I assume that the reason for you visit to Bergamo is a low-cost flight, so I don’t have to tell you anything about that. I will do it anyway… Bergamo, Milan/Bergamo or Orio-Al-Serio is probably the second-most busy low-cost airport in Europe (after London/Stansted). Several airlines connect Bergamo with dozens of other cities in Europe. Ryanair, Air Berlin, SkyEurope and MyAir offer most of the flights, but there are more flights offered by other airlines. The airport has most facilities provided by all larger airports, but all is kept very simple. If you want larger varierty, there’s a gigantic shopping center across the road from which you can even see the whole airport (for that, read my tip about the Orio Center). Public transport into the city is good, bus line 1C runs several times per hour.
If you want/have to spend the night at the airport, check out the review tips on the site stated below. I haven’t tried out that, but I considered it several times in my travel plans.

The public transport services in Bergamo are good, although they do not run late at night. Perhaps the most important bus lines are 1C (Airport Orio-Al-Serio – railway station – Porta Nuova – Old town), 6 (Port Nuova – Hostel) and 3 (Old town – Hostel). Like most public transport networks, also Bergamo’s is divided into zones which define the price of the ticket you need. Note that the bus driver DOES NOT sell any tickets, you have to acquire them in advance. Close to Port Nuova, there is a newspaper stand selling them. But many cafés sell them too. Oh yes, don’t forget to stamp your ticket when you board the bus!

once you get bus 1a from the airport to the train station (opposite mcdonalds) if you buy a ticket buy a 1 day ticket i think its option number 5 on the machine.
its 2euro 60 but that covers you for buses and funiculares around bergamo all day.
dont forget to push your ticket in the first machine you see on the bus to activate it or you will get fined
absolute bargain compared to uk transport costs