Dal capolinea al nuovo condominio ci vogliono solo dieci minuti a piedi.

Because in Italian, certain prepositions combine with definite articles.

• da + il = dal
• a + il = al

So:

• dal capolinea = from the terminal / from the end of the line
• al nuovo condominio = to the new apartment building / condominium

This is extremely common in Italian, and you should learn these combined forms as a normal part of the language.

Capolinea is the end of a bus, tram, or train line, or the terminal stop.

Literally, it comes from the idea of the head/end of the line. In everyday Italian, it is very commonly used for public transport.

So dal capolinea means from the terminal stop or from the end of the line.

Not always exactly.

In Italian, condominio often refers to the apartment building as a whole, especially one with multiple owners or shared common spaces. In everyday usage, it can mean:

• the building
• the residential complex
• sometimes the homeowners’ association / shared property arrangement

So in this sentence, il nuovo condominio most naturally means the new apartment building or the new condo building, not necessarily one individual apartment.

In this expression, ci vogliono means it takes when talking about the amount of time or things required.

This is a fixed and very common Italian structure:

• Ci vuole
  • singular noun
• Ci vogliono
  • plural noun

Examples:

• Ci vuole un minuto. = It takes one minute.
• Ci vogliono dieci minuti. = It takes ten minutes.

The ci here does not mean us. In this structure, it is part of the idiomatic expression.

Because the subject is dieci minuti, which is plural.

Italian agrees the verb with the thing that is needed or taken:

• Ci vuole un minuto. → singular
• Ci vogliono due minuti. → plural

In your sentence:

• dieci minuti = plural
  so
• ci vogliono = plural

Even though English says it takes ten minutes, Italian treats ten minutes as the grammatical subject of the verb.

A natural breakdown is:

• Dal capolinea al nuovo condominio = from the terminal to the new building
• ci vogliono = it takes
• solo dieci minuti = only ten minutes
• a piedi = on foot / walking

Italian often puts location or route information first, then the time expression.

So literally, it is something like:

From the terminal to the new apartment building, only ten minutes on foot are needed.

That sounds strange in English, but it is normal in Italian.

Because solo is modifying the amount of time: only ten minutes.

• solo dieci minuti = only ten minutes

That placement is the most natural one here. It emphasizes that the walk is short.

You could also hear similar structures in Italian like:

• Ci vogliono solo cinque minuti.
• Ci vuole solo un attimo.

A piedi is the standard Italian expression for on foot or walking.

It is idiomatic, so it is best learned as a complete phrase rather than translated word by word.

Common movement expressions include:

• a piedi = on foot
• in macchina = by car / in the car
• in treno = by train
• in autobus = by bus

So dieci minuti a piedi means ten minutes on foot or a ten-minute walk.

Yes. Adding per arrivare makes the idea more explicit:

• Per arrivare dal capolinea al nuovo condominio ci vogliono solo dieci minuti a piedi.

This means:

To get from the terminal to the new apartment building, it only takes ten minutes on foot.

However, the original sentence is already perfectly natural. Italian often leaves per arrivare understood when the meaning is obvious.

Yes. In il nuovo condominio, the adjective nuovo comes before the noun, which is very common.

With nuovo, position can sometimes slightly affect meaning:

• il nuovo condominio often means the new apartment building
• il condominio nuovo can sound more like the apartment building that is new / newly built, with a stronger descriptive emphasis

In many everyday cases, the difference is small, but adjective position in Italian can sometimes add nuance.

Yes. Even if the meaning is already known, it helps to see how flexible the sentence is.

Possible natural translations include:

• It’s only a ten-minute walk from the terminal to the new apartment building.
• It only takes ten minutes to walk from the terminal to the new apartment building.
• From the terminal to the new condo building, it’s only ten minutes on foot.

This is useful because the Italian structure with ci vogliono often does not match English word-for-word.

Yes. That is the core idea of the verb here: to be needed / to be required.

For example:

• Ci vogliono tre uova per questa ricetta. = Three eggs are needed for this recipe.
• Ci vuole pazienza. = Patience is needed.

In time expressions, English usually translates it as it takes:

• Ci vogliono dieci minuti. = It takes ten minutes.

So the underlying meaning is related, even if the English translation changes.

Normally, no. In this structure, ci vuole / ci vogliono is the standard expression.

Without ci, the sentence would sound incomplete or would suggest a different meaning of volere such as to want.

Compare:

• Ci vogliono dieci minuti. = It takes ten minutes.
• Vogliono dieci minuti. = They want ten minutes or something similarly odd depending on context

So in this sentence, ci should stay.

It is neutral and very natural everyday Italian.

You could use it in:

• conversation
• giving directions
• real-estate discussions
• travel situations
• casual or polite speech

It does not sound slangy, stiff, or unusually formal. It is the kind of sentence a native speaker might easily say in normal life.