We are spending 2 weeks in Italy, Venice, Florence, Cinque Terre, Siena, Rome in Sept. We are both over 60. I could not find a place to buy the Carta d'Argento for seniors on the Trenitalia website ahead of time. Can they only be bought when we've arrived in Italy? I also noticed that the price for a train from Venice to Florence on the Trenitalia website was cheaper than on the Rick Steves website for the exact same train. Are there additional costs or services that I'm not aware of?
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15899 posts
I think one can purchase the carta d'argento only onsite in Italy at the stations or authorized travel agencies, because they want to see your photo ID to make sure you are really over 60.
They don't give a lot of discount (maybe 10 or 15%), so if you can commit to a specific date/time of departure, you save more with a supereconomy/economy fare.
Not sure about RS website, but Trenitalia is the official train operator, therefore why not go with Trenitalia?
Posted by
Washington DC
27701 posts
I used the Carta d'Argento and managed to save a bit of money with it, but I'm not sure it was worth the hassle. The ticket-vending machines sometimes didn't recognize the card number, so I had to stand in the slow-moving ticket line to buy my tickets.
If you buy fast-train tickets well ahead of time (committing to the specific train you plan to take), you can save a lot of money. I am not sure whether the Carta d'Argento still gives you a discount in that situation, because my purchasers were typically last-minute.
Posted by
752 posts
I Googled how to buy Carta D'Argento and it says to buy this Silver card at station ticket desks or authorized travel agents in Italy. You have to show a valid ID or Passport.
This link also appears to show how to buy tickets with the card online. I've never used the card so I don't know how the card works at the machines. You can also buy tickets at the counters staffed by live agents. Sometimes there's a line.
http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en/Offers/Green-and-Silver-Cards-with-Railplus-discount
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
Our supplier, Rail Europe, does set their own conversion rate from euros to dollars. For instance, a Super Economy ticket from Venice to Florence on Sept. 20 is €30 through Trenitalia or $37 US through Rail Europe. The Trenitalia site works fine for most people we talk to, improved versus a few years back.