Train tickets - Buy in advance or as you go?

If you know for certain the dates of your travel, and if you know you can get a discount by purchasing early then why wouldn't you? Paris to Lauterbrunnen can be bought as a whole from www.sbb.ch/en or in parts with French Paris->Basel (www.sncf.com) and then Basel->Lauterbrunnen (www.sbb.ch)

Lauterbrunnen->Venice all on www.sbb.ch or you may want to break it up into sections with the www.trenitalia.com which will also be the site for the rest of your travels.

Psyche,

Buying advance tickets can save money if you're willing to commit to a specific train, date and departure time. However, that's not true in all cases. A few thoughts on each of the routes you mentioned....

• London to Paris - sounds like you've got that sorted. Buying EuroStar tickets will save money, but the cheapest tickets are non-refundable and non-changeable.
• Paris to Lauterbrunnen - on that route, you'll likely be travelling from Paris to Basel SBB via TGV. You can buy that ticket in advance at www.captaintrain.com. From Basel to Lauterbrunnen, you can buy online at sbb.ch. Tickets for the Swiss portion of your journey may not have any discounts, but at least you'll have the tickets so won't have to stop and buy them on route.
• Lauterbrunnen to Venice - buy the tickets for the Swiss portion of the trip from the sbb website. From Brig to Venezia S. Lucia, you should be able to buy from Captain Train. There likely won't be any discounts on the Swiss portion, but may be some on the Italian portion, depending when you purchase. The final segment to Venice will likely be a EuroCity train, which has compulsory reservations.
• Venice to Cinque Terre - you didn't say which town in the C.T. you'd be staying in, so I can only provide a general idea. The specifics will depend on which trains you choose for that trip. If you travel through Florence, the first segment from Venezia S. Lucia to Firenze S.M. Novella will be via high speed Freccia. From there to the C.T. will likely involve two more segments, possibly both via Regionale. If that's the case, purchase the Freccia segment at Captain Train and buy the Regionale tickets after you arrive in Venice, a day or so prior to travel (buying at the Kiosks is easiest). DON'T forget to validate Regionale tickets prior to boarding the train on the day of travel.
• Cinque Terre to Rome - The quickest travel on that route is to use one of the high speed direct trains from La Spezia Centrale to Roma Termini (travel time ~3H:45M). There are several of those each day, and others that take longer and have multiple changes. You'll first need to take the local Regionale train from the C.T. town you're staying in to La Spezia. Buy the ticket for that a day or two prior to travel at the local station in the C.T. For the final segment to Rome, purchase the ticket in advance at Captain Train.

Happy travels!

You should find this site helpful:>http://www.seat61.com

Yes, you can buy all your tickets at Captain Train. But the national railsites like www.bahn.de, www.sbb.ch for Switzerland, www.sncf.com for France and www.trenitalia.com for Italy will get you the super discounted early bird seats when Captain Train can't. Trenitalia especially has those specialized sale fares for example last year we cashed in on their deal for 4 kids <16 year to travel free with a paying adult. Since we had a group of 16 year olds we saved lots of Euros.

I tried booking Paris - Interlaken on sbb.ch but got the following message:

Unfortunately it is not possible to calculate the entire route for all
the various products. Please select an available option.

This journey cannot be booked online. You have the following options:
- You can order your trip using the offer/order form.
- Please contact Rail Service, tel.: 0900 300 300 (CHF 1.19/min. from the Swiss fixed-line network) or your nearest SBB sales outlet.

Which is weird because I could find a Interlaken - Venice trip ticket on that website just fine. The cost is 119CHF or 85CHF (non-refundable). Are these good prices?

Outward journey Interlaken Ost - Venezia S. Lucia Via Spiez - Brig
Fri, 20.05.16, 08:00 - 14:40 Hour Duration: 06:40, 2x Change(s)

Btw, I've never been on a train before and the idea of missing a connection change freaks me out. How easy it is to change trains? I see no information on the site about which train I should head to next, where said train is and how much time do I have to embark.

I also tried to search for a direct Lauterbrunnen - Venice route but got this message:

Train temporarily blocked

That entire Switzerland part of my trip gives me the jibblies.

I'll try trenitalia and fully read Ken's post later today when I have more time.

Thanks all for the help!

The trip departing Paris is the most expensive, after Eurostar, and so the most important to book soon for the first, reserved leg by TGV, which is usually Paris to Basel.

You could consider a Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Card for your time within those borders. Those work with any trains departing Basel and most Swiss trains don't need reservations.

Do not buy a ticket departing Switzerland on the Italian web site; international legs are not sold there as e-tickets and can only be picked up in Italian train stations. Since there will always be a connection in Milan, use the Swiss site to buy a ticket just to Milan; they don't sell connecting trains that are completely inside Italy; let them know if you have a pass; or buy the ticket at a Swiss train station. The Italian tickets are easy to buy as you go, and not as expensive as your earlier journeys.

Psyche,

Regarding purchase of the ticket from Paris to Lauterbrunnen, it's not surprising that you had difficulties with that purchase on the SBB website, as you were trying to purchase tickets on a French train from a Swiss rail website. While that is possible in some cases, I'm not sure that's true on that particular route.

As I suggested earlier in my second bullet point, buy the tickets for the TGV from Captain Train (or SNCF if you wish) for the Paris - Basel segment, and buy tickets from SBB.ch for the Basel - Lauterbrunnen segment. This is not really that difficult.

I purchase 8 major train tickets all in advanced. In fact I purchased them literally the minute the became available. Which was usually about 6 pm my time so not bad. Ours was always a set of 4 tickets, 2 adults and 2 kids. Most of the time I purchased directly on the train website: Virgintrains, Eurostar, Trenitalia, SNCB, Thalys. I did use a 3rd party site, Loco2 to purchase our Milan-Paris because it was easier for some reason.

When using Trenitalia be sure to input a Italian phone number or it won't work. We used our hotel number.

Buy purchasing in advanced we saved a lot. Of course we were stuck to a schedule and that may not work for some. But it worked out great for us.

If my train tickets savings are in the hundreds of Euros I'm totally open to adhering to a schedule for arrival and departure!

Psyche, Regarding purchase of the ticket from Paris to Lauterbrunnen,
it's not surprising that you had difficulties with that purchase on
the SBB website, as you were trying to purchase tickets on a French
train from a Swiss rail website. While that is possible in some cases,
I'm not sure that's true on that particular route. As I suggested
earlier in my second bullet point, buy the tickets for the TGV from
Captain Train (or SNCF if you wish) for the Paris - Basel segment, and
buy tickets from SBB.ch for the Basel - Lauterbrunnen segment. This is
not really that difficult.

As someone who never rode a train in her life I think it's complicated. What if the first train gets delayed for whatever reason and I miss the booked time for the second one? I'd feel more comfortable with one single ticket that would get me to my final destination no matter what. But is that even possible? Captain Train only has the daily direct Paris-Interlaken that leaves after 18pm and arrives way too late.

I made an account on the Captain Train site. Do they issue e-tickets that I can print at home and take with me like the Eurostar? This one Paris - Basel train I'm trying to book says I need to print the ticket at the station. It also didn't offer me an option to assign a seat for the 3rd and last connection. How do I find out what is my seat in that train?

Also how earlier do I need to arrive at the station for these departures? It's at least 1 hour like the Eurostar or is the security less tight within continental europe?

Bought a Paris - Basel on Captain Train for 49 euro and a Lauterbrunnen - Venice on sbb for 93CHF. I'm freaking out right now with that half ticket for my France-Switzerland journey but the price seemed good.

This is how both tickets look, please help me understand this.

Paris-Basel:

http://i.imgur.com/NSrwGEz.png

Lauterbrunnen-Venice:

http://i.imgur.com/E2CP1Rn.png

http://i.imgur.com/DANhcjt.png

http://i.imgur.com/roY8DdS.png

Notice how the last pic says three connections, but I only got two tickets. Does that mean I should use the same ticket for Lauterbrunnen-Interlaken, Interlaken-Spiez and Spiez-Brig? Also, in all of those three train rides there is no seat or carriage number shown anywhere on the ticket so how do I know where to embark? I just enter from any door and sit anywhere?

In the last pic, why do some trains have two platform numbers?

The Eurostar ticket is way more clear, I know exactly how the train looks and where I'll sit.

Notice how the last pic says three connections, but I only got two tickets. Does that mean I should use the same ticket for Lauterbrunnen-Interlaken, Interlaken-Spiez and Spiez-Brig? Yes, your ticket is good on any train(s) on this route.

Also, in all of those three train rides there is no seat or carriage number shown anywhere on the ticket so how do I know where to embark? I just enter from any door and sit anywhere? Yes.

In the last pic, why do some trains have two platform numbers? The top number is the arriving platform and the bottom is the departing platform. For Brig to Venice, you do have a seat assignment on your ticket.

The Eurostar ticket is way more clear, I know exactly how the train looks and where I'll sit.

Thanks. I have another question about the first ticket. Captain Train issued me a print at the station-only ticket. But I don't want to print it on the last minute at Gare de Lyon, so can I print it in advance when I arrive in Paris at Gare du Nord from London a few days earlier? That way I don't leave all stakes on the train ride day. The machines could be inoperative then or something could go wrong with my booking reference number, etc.

Psyche,

Yes, you should be able to print your ticket a few days prior to travel (I always like to have tickets in hand prior to the day of travel). One suggestion that occurred to me is that you might check at the nearest SNCF Boutique in Paris, as they may be able to help you with that. There are numerous offices throughout the city.....

http://www.les-horaires.fr/enseignes/Boutique-SNCF-en-Paris-75,744.html

You may also find it helpful to have a look at the excellent Paris By Train website......

http://parisbytrain.com/

As you haven't travelled by train before, you'll need to give some thought to the aspect of changing trains. It's not difficult, but will take some practice. Trains in Switzerland almost always have the platform numbers listed, so it's just a matter of walking to the specified platform of your next train. In Italy and other countries, that's not always the case or can change at the last minute.

Even if the platform is specified, it's a good idea to double check that. When you disembark from one train, check the electronic display board to determine which platform you next train is departing from (platforms are also called Binario in Italy, Gleis in German or Quai in French). Look for the train number that is listed on your ticket. There are also large paper charts for arrivals and departures mounted on the platforms, which you can use for a general guide. When changing platforms, you'll often have to go downstairs to a transfer tunnel and then upstairs to your next platform.

For travel in Italy, you may find it helpful to watch THIS short video tutorial, which covers travel on the high speed Freccia trains. Note that if using Regionale trains (which don't require reservations), you MUST validate (time & date stamp) your tickets prior to boarding on the day of travel or you'll risk hefty fines which will be collected on the spot! Validating tickets also applies to Buses, Metro and other forms of public transit.

Hope this helps.

Ken, I'm reading this section of the parisbytrain site:

http://parisbytrain.com/france-tgv-train-ticket-validation-punching/

So just so I am 100% sure: I need to find a ticket machine at a Paris station, print my ticket using my booking ref. number and surname, then validate that ticket on one of those yellow things before boarding the first train on my Paris-Basel ride?

As you can see in one of my posts above the ticket I was given doesn't show which train company I got for my first train ride, just a number. It says TGV for the second, and TER for the third. So I'm not sure I need to validate before the first, unknown train, or just before boarding the actual TGV, second train.

I'm also trying to book a Basel-Lauterbrunnen train but the sbb has been incredibly slow for days. I'll finally move on to Italy and check sbb again another day.

Looks like I have two options for the Venice-Florence train:

On trenitalia, the best price and option for my day is a Frecciargento train, super economy, 29 euros.

But Captain Train has a Italo option, at nearly the same departure time and exact same travel duration (2h05), for 19 euros, highlighted in orange (which I think it means discounted?).

So should I go with this Italo train? No one mentioned it in this topic yet.

The only difference I can see between them other than price is that I can choose a seat in trenitalia, but for a 2 hour ride that's not very important to me.

Italo is fine. You could also buy at the italotreno website.

Thanks. Looks like Captain Train matches all prices on trenitalia, so I'll buy the other Italy tickets there as well since I already have an account.

Just pondering now whether I should do a quick stop in Pisa on my way to Rome from Riomaggiore before buying the last ticket.

Ken:

Sorry to flood you with questions, but you mentioned in one of your bullet points a few days ago that Regionale train tickets must be validated. Is that the case for e-tickets? And Is that the case only for Regionale, or do I need to validate for Freccia too? I'm getting all tickets as e-tickets except for the Paris-Basel train which didn't give me such option.

Psyche,

Are you buying E-tickets for Regionale trains also? There's no reason to do that, as those tickets are easily purchased in Italy a day or so prior to travel and there are no price breaks for advance purchase.

I don't believe E-tickets for Regionale trains have to be validated, however they will come with restrictions such as they must be used within four hours of the departure time specified on the ticket. However if you buy Regionale tickets at local stations, these must be validated prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or you'll risk hefty fines.

Freccia tickets do not need to be validated as they're specific for one train, date and departure time and can not be used on any other train. If you miss the train you booked, the tickets are worthless and you'll have to buy more at full price.

One comment about your trip from Venezia S. Lucia to Firenze S.M. Novella. You can use either the Freccia high speed trains or Italo Treno on that route. They both use the same stations and have the same travel time. Pick whichever one has the best price and the best departure time that fits your situation. In some cases, Italo uses different stations (ie: Roma Tiburtina rather than Termini on some trips), so you'll need to know that when considering which train line to use.

I'm buying the tickets whole. I don't really see the benefit of buying the rest of the journey in Italy? It takes extra time and it needs to be validated. Price is not really why I'm buying everything in advance, I just want to arrive at the stations with my ticket ready to go and not bother with anything else. To me the 4 hour restriction is a non issue because my trip has fixed dates. It's barely even a restriction, it's good to know I have a 4 hour flexibility for Regionale. I thought they were all specific to one train and one time. But what happens if, for example, my Regionale train gets delay or breaks and I miss the Freccia connection? They won't put me in another train even if I missed the connection because of their fault?

This is how my Florence - Riomaggiore ticket looks like so you can understand better:

http://i.imgur.com/jicLyDK.png

Can you also help with my previous question about the TGV train? That's the only one I'll need to validate but there are multiple connections and I'm not sure at which one I need to do that.

Thanks a ton!

Psyche,

Thanks for the additional information on the tickets. That's not a method I ever use with Regionale tickets, but it should work fine.

I've found that while trains can be late at times, I've never had one "break". The route you're travelling from Florence to Riomaggiore is relatively short and fast, and I wouldn't anticipate any major problems. However, there can certainly be delays with any trains, including the high speed trains. For example, last year I experienced some delays due to some kind of issues on the high speed tracks between Rome and Florence, which affected trains north of there also. Both Freccia and Italo trains were delayed as a result. Especially in Italy, one has to be prepared for things like that (although thankfully they don't seem to happen often).

If there was a delay and you missed the Freccia train that you booked, I'd suggest speaking with a Conductor or someone at the ticket office. That's a situation that you'll have to "play by ear". The segment from La Spezia to Riomaggiore is only about 9 minutes, so that will be the easiest part of the journey.

Have you been to Riomaggiore before? From the station plaza, you'll reach the main part of town via a short tunnel that parallels the tracks. Depending on where your accommodations are located, you'll probably have to turn left at the end of the tunnel and walk up the main street.

Sorry, I missed your earlier question on the TGV. If you have to pick up your ticket in Paris at a Kiosk, I believe that will have to be validated prior to boarding the train. If you're using a ticket which was printed at home, I don't believe those have to be validated. The website link you provided was dated 2008, but is probably still accurate. Have a look at the excellent Man In Seat 61 website, and scroll down to the Collecting Your Ticket part and the section on Ticket Validation......

http://www.seat61.com/France-trains.htm#Travel%20tips

The paragraph after that states....

"All French train tickets (except print-at-home e-tickets) must be validated just before you board your train, by putting them into the small yellow machines marked Compostez votre billet at the entrance to each platform, see the photo on the right. There may be a fine if you don't!"

Hope this helps.

It really helps, thank you and everyone else!

I've never been to Europe at all. I'm staying at Mar-Mar in Riomaggiore, I hope it's easily accessible from the station. Google Street, which I've been using as a preemptive orientation tool, is very limited in the Cinque Terre and I actually couldn't figure out yet how to go from the station to the hotel. There seems to be quite some terrain differences. Can you give me some directions?

Psyche,

What type of accommodations did you book through Mar-Mar? If my memory is correct, once you turn onto the main street (which runs uphill) after exiting the tunnel, it's only a very short (50 feet?) walk to the Mar-Mar office, which will be on your left. If you haven't found it by the time you reach Bar Centrale, you've gone too far. Once you've checked with the staff at the office, they will likely walk you to your room. I'm not sure if this is still the case, but I vaguely remember that they required guests to arrive prior to 17:00 or make special arrangements (that's when their office closes, I believe).

It's the worst accommodation of my trip, a 10-bed mixed bedroom ensuite. But it was the only option inside of the CT within my budget.

I'll be arriving around 11AM so it's no problem.

Psyche,

A 10-bed Dorm is a bit much, but you might find that the accommodations aren't too bad. Mar-Mar seems to provide clean and comfortable accommodations, albeit not luxurious. I've only stayed in their apartments so can't comment on the Dorm, however I have stayed in one Hostel that had more than 10-Beds and that was reasonably tolerable. It's possible that not all 10-Beds will be occupied, so it may not be that crowded.

If you haven't stayed in Hostels before, be sure to pack Ear Plugs in case one or more of your room mates snores like a Gorilla (I've experienced that). You'll also need a small Padlock for Lockers (assuming they provide those) and a Towel and Flip-Flops for the shower.

You'll probably find that most of the "action" at night is at Bar Centrale. Last time I stayed there, someone brought a Guitar and a group got into a song-fest with Eagles songs, which became a bit obnoxious after too many Mojitos! As I recall, they may also provide breakfasts.

Buon Viaggio!

Thank you very much.

One last thing (I promise) about my Paris - Basel ticket: The 2nd and 3rd trains have a train company and a number, but the very first train only has a number. How do I know which one is my train? Will it be on the ticket when I print it out? Seems odd that they would put a number, but not a train company on this reservation I made on Captain Train.

And it looks like I'll only be able to buy a Basel - Interlaken ticket 1 month prior to my travel date, on the sbb site. Oh god, I hope this turns out well.

Psyche,

The train numbers are listed on the screen print-out you posted earlier. The first train is most likely a TGV, so just look for the number "9261" on the electronic board when you arrive at the station. Ditto for the other trains. These numbers will also be printed on the tickets. The train company will likely be SNCF in all cases, so no need to print that separately on the ticket. If in doubt, ask a Conductor as there will likely be at least one standing on the platform beside the train.

When I first had a look at the print-out you provided of the Paris - Basel trip, I was surprised to see such a convoluted route on what is normally a very easy direct trip. I'm not sure why the Captain Train site would have provided that solution? For example, there's a direct departure leaving Gare de Lyon at 10:22, arriving Basel SBB at 13:26 (time 3H:04M).

One minor point to mention. The final segment from Mulhouse to Basel will be via TER (Regional) train, according to your print-out. That may arrive in the "old" part of the station, so you'll have to walk from there to the SBB section. It's an easy walk. Once you arrive in the main entrance hall, walk up the stairs and then along the hallway and down to whichever platform your next train leaves from. One other thing to mention is that WC's at Basel station are pay-per-use at the McClean facilities, so you'll need Swiss Francs to access those.

"Oh god, I hope this turns out well."

Time to chill - this is all actually rather easy. If necessary you could simply buy your Basel - Lauterbrunnen ticket at the station in Basel when you arrive there. You may have to wait for an hour or so for the next departure, but you would still get there.

If you have other questions, feel free to post them.

Thank you again.

Two reasons I chose that convoluted route: It was the earliest option on this day, and also the cheapest (very tight budget here as the BRL is worth peanuts right now). This route takes one extra hour, but I arrive 1,5 hour earlier because I leave 2,5 hours earlier. And I paid only 49 euros. Currently the same ticket is costing 60, so it looks like I got an early bird. And the direct one you mentioned costs 89. I like convenience, but for almost double the price the difference must be huge.

Psyche,

Thanks for the additional information. I can understand your logic. There are earlier and easier departures, but if that was the cheapest price that's always a benefit. I can appreciate your concerns about currency values, as I'm also dealing with the same thing (although not as severe as the BRL).

I always buy them at he place to be more flexible.