We are traveling to Italy in June and plan on taking trains in between cities.
1) Venice 2)Florence 3) CT 4) Rome. I need some good advice from you train "experts" regarding, e.g. order tix ahead of time? Time of day? Flor-CT leg will be evening train,(nervous about nighttime arrival); discounts on Trenatalia website? & any other helpful hints. Seen a lot of posts from very helpful people so I would appreciate whatever suggestions you all have.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16894 posts
You can buy tickets in train stations as you go, or all at one stop in Venice (which could be at a travel agency), or online through Trenitalia if you are ready to lock in dates and times now. Trains run at least hourly on most routes, so you can choose the departure that works for you. Most tickets are for reserved dates, times, and seat assignments. The cheapest fares go on sale 3 months in advance of each travel date. Base/full fares are not as high as in some other countries, if you prefer to wait.
However, Florence-CT is mostly served by regional trains that don't offer reservations or advance discounts and schedules may not be published past June 13. Don't bother booking that leg online (which adds restrictions to the ticket); buy it in any train station (or travel agencies that sell train tickets).
See also http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/buying-tickets
and http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/italy-rail-passes
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15273 posts
- If you know for sure your time of travel, you can save some money by pre-purchasing online. However if you miss that train, you lose your money because discounted tickets are not refundable.
- Regional trains have no discount, so don't pre-purchase the regional legs. Florence to Pisa and La Spezia to CT will be on a regional leg. The portion from Pisa to La Spezia (basically the mid-leg in the Florence to CT route) can be on regional, frecciabianca or intercity. The latter two offer discounts, but it's a short leg, therefore the entire Florence to CT is not worth the risk to pre-purchase. Therefore buy on the spot.
- From CT to Rome you could save some money from La Spezia to Rome. (CT to La Spezia is on Regionals). It's not a large amount as the June discounts are probably gone for the SuperEconomy. At most you save 25 euro. It's up to you. But you need to make sure you won't miss the train.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16894 posts
We are also traveling by train from Florence to Manarola in June. We will be taking an early evening train. I'm feeling a little anxious about the logistics. Are we getting off the train in La Spezia and boarding another to Manarola?
Yes, you are. La Spezia station is pretty small and the procedure is usually straightforward. You may need to walk down stairs to the connecting tunnel, then pop back upstairs for the next track for the departing train. See also Getting On the Right Train and also Rick's Travel Skills TV show for a little more about navigating train stations.