Every so often, even the quiet villages of Italy need to step aside for progress, and right now Varenna is facing just such a moment with its transportation system. While the town’s train station usually hums with travelers excited to wander its scenic streets, the summer of 2024 is different.
Major maintenance work is underway across the region’s crucial rail corridor that connects Lecco to Tirano, and that means trains are less predictable than the weather—at least until mid-September. This isn’t a continuous blackout, but scheduled feel-like-a-game interruptions, with entire stretches going dark at planned intervals, all carefully timed to fit around Olympic preparations and improvements in regional infrastructure.
Varenna’s railways face a summer of unpredictable closures, all choreographed to Olympic upgrades and regional rail improvements.
During some closure windows—like the one from June 6-8 and the long haul from June 15 to September 14—direct trains from Milan to Varenna are simply unavailable. Trenord, the company running most of these trains, has embraced its inner juggler by providing a mix of replacement buses and closely studied workarounds. Replacement bus services are reportedly being provided when trains are canceled, but information on exact schedules and stops can be difficult to find, making advance planning a challenge.
For example, travelers first ride a train to Lecco, catch a bus to fill the rail gap, and—if they’re lucky—hop a schedule posted on the Trainline app, which tries to bundle the whole trip together. Buses run not just between Lecco and Varenna, but sometimes even from Milan to Lecco itself, giving passengers a taste of Italy’s bumpy roads and hillside views.
Still, people excited for more adventure can opt for Lake Como’s iconic ferries, which keep Varenna connected when land routes get complicated.
Information has proven to be trickier than the reroutes themselves. Trenord’s official schedules often lag behind, and travelers find tips on Reddit and travel forums faster than official updates arrive.
Google Maps, in a surprising twist, offers more reliable train and bus times than some local websites, showing technology’s odd sidekick status in Italian travel. And just when things seem to settle, a regional strike—like the one scheduled for February 2026—can toss every plan in the air, leaving even Malpensa Airport passengers dependent on replacement buses.
Through it all, Varenna keeps adapting, proving that even paradise can flex with the times.
