personal safety around the Milan train station
I`ve read in Rick`s Italy book(pg 296)that Milan`s thieves(pickpockets etc) target tourists.(Like many big cities in Italy.I`ve been to several and it seems they all have this problem,but I never have had one) True (he says)especially around the central train station(also in and out of the subway and around the Duomo)They can be dressed as tourists, businessmen, beggars or gangs of youths( actually children.)We(wife and I) were thinking of staying in the train station area(within a block or so) for convenience of departure the next day.And it would seem that two people wheeling suitcases to a hotel across the street etc would be likely targets.(Maybe checking our bags at the station and just bringing a small bag of overnight essentials with us to the hotel would be better.)
Comments?
Thx.
Jack
.
jack
georgetown, texas 11/10/12
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jack,
While there can certainly be pickpockets and scammers in or near Milano Centrale (or many other places in Europe), I wouldn't be too concerned with being victimized in the station or walking to your Hotel. If you practice "situational awareness" and take reasonable precautions (wear Money Belts, keep your luggage locked, be wary of "distractions"), I doubt whether you'll have any problems.
I've spent some long "layovers" waiting in Milano Centrale (including in September), and so far haven't had any issues with pickpockets. However, I've been approached numerous times by people asking for money, but I just tell them "NO"! Some of them can be quite persistent (especially if you pretend not to understand them), so I sometimes have to use more forceful language and a change of demeanor. That usually gets the message across!
Happy travels!
Rick's advice is primarily to make sure that when you travel you use common sense and you keep your eyes open wherever you are. Milan is a very big city but very safe by American standards, including the area near the station. I never had problems in Milan. I checked the crime statistics and crime in Austin, near you, is 5 to 10 times (depending on the type of crime) worse than Milan. That doesn't mean you should be less alert than when you walk around Austin.
I've lived in Italy for 27 years (more than half of my life) and travel there yearly, including the infamous Naples. Yet so far I've been ripped off only twice. Once in Chicago and once in Los Angeles.
So just be alert of your surroundings, use common sense, but don't worry too much. Buon viaggio.
The previous 2 answers are right on.
We stayed recently at the Hotel Berna just across the street and around the corner from the main station in Milano, with no issues. As always we have our belongings out of sight in a money belt and just walking steadily with our small luggages. We used the surface and the tunnel, both fine.
There are always people hanging around stations, some bad perhaps, the vast majority good of course; we know where we are going because we have planned and we just go.
The most trouble can arise when you stop to gawk, with backpacks behind you and nobody watching them, and on crowded transportation - tram, bus, narrow pavement or subway.
Just prepare, plan, and execute.
Jack, I agree with all the advice so far. I travel alone and have wheeled my luggage between Hotel Garda (same street as Berna) and the train station many times, at all hours of the day and night, with no problems. If you are walking at a reasonable hour (7am to 10pm or so) and have a hotel on Via Napo Torriani (where Berna and Garda are), for example, you'll probably have other travelers in front of you and behind you with their luggage, too. Your greatest difficulty will be the vendors of cheap toys (low flying remote control tiny plastic helicopters).
We have been through Milano Centrale countless times on our way to Hotel Berna on Via Napo Torriano and never have had any problems. We are aware of our environment and stay alert as we walk to the hotel. There is a police presence and other travelers coming and going.
Additionally, before I met my wife I traveled through there many times by myself without incident.
Go and have fun, but be conscious of your surroundings.
Buon viaggio,
Jack, you are over thinking the problem. We have stayed in that area several times and never saw a pickpocket. Since it is a train station you will see lots of people, mostly locals, going to and from with luggage of all types. Unless you are waving the Texas flag I doubt if anyone will notice you. Sorry about that.
Don't check the bags. There were a couple of shady characters just hanging out in the tunnel, just like in NYC, but by far the more stressful situation was trying to cross the streets. Read the stenciled sign high on the tunnel wall to find the route to the Berna's street through the tunnel ( head towards the McDonalds and when it's in front of you go right and turn the corner).
Thank you all for you replies.Kind of what I expected.Just wanted to fimd out( given Rick`s comments) if this was a "special" area in this regard.(Have never been to this part of Italy.)If I was alone, no problem. I`m not a neophte.Was born and raised in NYC,have been to many countries in Europe, lived in a few,and speak Italian fairly well.
Many thanks to all.
We had no problem but witnessed the cardboard box scam-not quite sure how it exactly works but police nabbed the culprits (20 something males in a group of four) immediately. The boxes were flattened and maybe the idea was to conceal pickpocketing/purse grabbing, etc. This did occur in the train station.
Jack,
Just wear your money belt or neck wallet like you would anywhere else in Europe and you'll be fine. I can't imagine, or have never seen anyone grabbing someone's roller bag. I used to live in Milan, and I was pickpocketed once -- when I was carrying a wallet in a coat with big wide pockets.
You'll be fine -- just be sure to explore some of Milano while you are there. Very underrated city as a tourist destination I think.
Ross