36th International Chess Festival Conca Della Presolana (Bratto Open 2016)
Official Website : http://www.scacchisticamilanese.com/bratto-2016-presentazione
Accomodation can be arranged through the organizer appointed travel agent at a very good price, especially if you register early :
Venue Conditions :
Tournament venue is on the 1st floor function room in Hotel Milano Alpen Resort Meeting & SPA, a four star hotel. Since this hotel is located in the mountain area which are normally cool in the summer and cold in the winter, there is no cold air-conditioning in the function room. In Aug 2016, when tournament was held, the high temperature were 29 deg C to 31 deg C for a few days. So the venue were a bit warm for a few days. Windows were opened to allow wind blowing in, but windspeed were less than 10km/hr, and the direction were not always blowing towards the opened windows. So, be prepared for a warm room accomodating about 80 people. See photos below.
Click here to see the venue on Google Map
Advice : Please click here to check the weather forecast for Bratto if venue temperature is a concern for you.
OFFICIAL TOILET
The official toilet for men and women is located 2 floors down the tournament venue. Not much of a concern for chess players, since the distance from the venue hall to the staircase is very near, about 10 steps away. The toilets are located next to the Spa and Swimming pool of the Hotel Milano. There are 3 compartments for each men and women toilets, including one for the disabled.
ROUNDS STARTING TIME
All the rounds started on time except the first round where the organizers were busy accepting final registration. It was only about 10 or 15 minutes delay.
SMOKING AREA
The smoking area is outside the main entrance of Hotel Milano, which is one floor below the tournament hall.
ANALYSIS ROOM & CHESS BOOKS AND CHESS MATERIALS FOR SALE
The analysis room is located in the extension building of Hotel Milano (opposite the main building of Hotel Milano), a room below Open B, C and U16 tournament venue. In this same room, chess books and chess set (chessboard and pieces) are sold.
Some chess coaches use this room for chess lessons in the morning.
Photos of Bratto Open Venue :
Magistrale and Open A venue :
 |
| Hotel Milano Alpen Resort and Spa, Bratto |
 |
| Red Table : Magistrale category, Blue Table : Open A category |
 |
| Top 10 tables with DGT boards |
 |
| Bratto Open A (blue table) |
 |
| Bratto Masters (Bratto Magistrale) 2016 |
 |
| Paralympic or Blind in Bratto Magistrale |
 |
| Chessboard for Paralympic (Brought by Paralympic player) in Bratto Open 2016 |
 |
| View from Bratto Open Tounrament venue. The church bell rings from time to time during the tournament |
Open B, C and U16 venue are located opposite the main building of Hotel Milano :
 |
| Extension building of Hotel Milano where Open B, C and U16 categories were held |
 |
| Bratto Open B, C and U16 venue |
 |
| Bratto Open B, C and U16 venue |
 |
| Bratto Open B 2016 |
 |
| Giant Chess Set in Bratto Open 2016, next to Main Entrance |
 |
| Heater control in the tournament Venue (Bratto Open) |
Photos of Lovely Bratto Town :
 |
| street at night |
 |
| This Gelateria sells delicious gelato |
 |
| Presolana Mountain |
 |
| Presolana Mountain as seen from Bratto |
 |
| Euro Hotel (4 stars hotel closest to venue) |
Euro Hotel is the favourite choice among chess players, situated close to Hotel Milano, about 3 minutes walk to the tournament venue. The price is cheaper than Hotel Milano which is also a 4 stars hotel. Euro Hotel provides full board for EUR90 for 1 player in 2016. If you are given the room facing the back of the hotel, not only you get scenic view to the mountains, but also quiet sleep at night.
 |
| Bratto walk |
 |
| Bratto - Pretty staircase |
 |
| Bratto Alimentari Supermarket, 100m from Hotel Milano |
Run by Italians, this Supermarket Alimentari only opens in the morning, closes during lunch time till about 5pm (in the Summer) and opens again from 5pm for a few hours. The shop owners are so friendly, and often seen greeting customers coming in.
To gauge the cost of living here : 6 eggs costs EUR1.80. 500ml milk costs EUR1.10. (in year 2016)
 |
| Bratto : Garden with a horse |
 |
| Bratto : The meat shop - Bottega delle Carni |
 |
| Hotel Ferrari on the first left |
Hotel Ferrari is about 10 minutes walk to the venue, down the same street as Euro hotel. Run by an Italian family, led by Hotel manager Stefano, it is a charming Italian hotel with excellent service where your needs are met at every possible way. The only limitation of this hotel is its location on the main cross road, with a slope up the hill, you can hear the car zooming up the hill at almost every minute of the day, except wee hour of 2am to 3am in the morning. It is also a bus stop location, where you can hear people talking and walking to the bus stop as early as at 4 o'clock in the morning. The noise will be reduced if you close the window. However, with no ventilation and air conditioning in the hotel room, you can feel the stuffiness in the room.
From the Bratto markets :
 |
| Doughnut peach - sweet and juicy |
 |
| It's not blueberry, it's not grape. It's chewy and sweet, like grapes. What is this called ? |
 |
| Zucchini flowers... yummy to cook |
 |
| Largest Croissant in the world ! |
Typical Italian food served in hotel or restaurant here :
Normally a meal consists of Primo (Starter), Secondo (Main course) and Dessert. Primo normally can be chosen between Pasta, Risotto or Soup. Secondo can be any meaty dish such as Beef, Pork, Chicken, Fish, Cheese or Egg dishes. Dessert is either fruits, gelato ice-cream or cakes.
 |
| Pasta with Salmon bits |
 |
| Fritto Misto (Mixed Fried Seafood) |
 |
| Chicken steak with Corn Porridge |
 |
| Caprese Salad |
 |
| Chicken with meshed potato |
Another really good dish which I forgot to take the photo : Melanzane Alla Parmigiana (Eggplant with cheese)
Flowers on the street
Generally, Bratto is nice little town great for family vacation. It is only 45 minutes drive to the nearest biggest city, Bergamo, where you can catch a train to Milan or other cities.
HOW TO GET TO BRATTO FROM BERGAMO
If you intend to travel by train and bus, the route is not so straight forward. After arriving at Bergamo Main Railway station (Bergamo FS), exit from the main door, turn right and walk straight for a few minutes to another small train station (TEB). Get a ticket of EUR2.70 from the automated machine at the train station there, then board the train to Albino station. At Albino station, you can catch the bus, at EUR4.15 up to Bratto town. The same route can be taken to go from Bratto to Bergamo Railway station.
 |
| Bus Schedule from Bergamo to Bratto |
Transport Arrangement by Chess Organizer
The Chess organizer can arrange transportation for you, which is much more convinient and comfortable. He can arrange a pick up using a mini Bus from Orio Al Serio Airport in Bergamo directly to your hotel for only EUR10.
If you arrive at Milan Malpensa Airport, you can take the Orio Express Bus from Malpensa airport directly to Orio Al Serio Airport for EUR18 per adult. The trip will take about 2 hours. The bus ticket can be bought online or at Malpensa airport.
Since it is hard to predict the time you exit from Milan Malpensa airport, after going through passport control and luggage pick up, it maybe a better idea to buy the bus ticket upon arrival. Though Summer (July - August) is peak travelling time, I didn't have problem getting the bus tickets at the last minute.
Facebook link : https://www.facebook.com/ChessTournamentTripAdvisor/Chess Tournament Trip Advisor
