Italian rails

ALL trains in Italy EXCEPT the Regional trains require a seat reservation that comes with the ticket. There are two limited discount fares - super economy and economy - that are available on all trains except Regional and should never be purchased on-line. The price for a Regional train ticket never changes and never sells out. The ONLY reason to purchase in advance is to take advantage of any discount ticket that might be available but discount tickets lock you into a specific train , date, and time. It doesn't get a whole lot simpler.

PS Just noticed from your earlier posting that you bought a Eurail pass so you must be asking about making seat reservations. You must purchase a seat reservation for each and every leg on your trip except for Regional trains. Seat reservation fees are about 8 to 10 euro per leg. DO NOT get caught on a train without a seat reservation and playing stupid is not going to get you out of a huge, on the spot fine. It is not scam. It is the rule. A Regional train is the only train that you can walk on and just show your rail pass.

For other readers - a Eurorail pass is generally not recommended for Italian trains since Italian fares, especially discount, are fairly cheap.

All you need to know about Italian trains https://www.seat61.com/Italy-trains.htm

If you tell us where you're going we'd be happy to help you out : )

Any highseed trains ( Frecchia) require a reservation. The type of train is specified on the Trenitalia website for each train trip. Regionale trains don't not require a reservation. Note that all Italotreno trains are high speed.

What app are you using? The Trenitalia website may provide better information than you're getting now.

I am using rail planner app

I don’t know what rails I need to get tickets for in advance and which are considered high speed that need to be booked a couple months in advance . Can I just buy tickets when I arrive at the station or am I risking them selling out?

Here are our routes

Milan to Venice
Venice to Verona
Verona to Florence
Florence to cinque terra
Cinque to Siena
Assisi to Rome

Thanks for any help I don’t know what I need to book ahead of time or what I can just show up to !

So can I make a seat reservation the day of with my Eurail pass or do I have to book ahead of time

At 3:57 you ask about buying tickets at the station just before travel, then two minutes later you say you are using a Eurail Pass. We cannot answer the question until we understand which you will be using. Rail tickets and passes are two different things.

As for the "rail planner app", it sounds like it is not helping you much. Which app are you talking about?

I am confused.

Yes, I bought a Eurail pass but don’t you use the Eurail pass to purchase your tickets ? I’m asking if I arrive at the train station with my Eurail can I just get my tickets then or do I need to book these train in advance for the trains that I need seat reservations .

And how do I made seat reservations ? Can I just do that when I buy my ticket with my Eurail pass at the train station?

Perhaps you have the Eurail app since you bought a pass.

I didn’t download it but did take a look. It seems like when you search a route, it tells you whether or not reservations are required. From reading the description, though, it does not appear you can buy your reservation using the app. It only gives you options for routes.

I think you must go to the actual rail site to make and pay for reservations.

Edit*: For the train companies who participate in the pass, you don’t need to buy tickets - just make the reservations when required.

ulfsaxa12, from the top.

There are two ways of paying for your travel.
1) Buy tickets for each trip.
2) Buy a pass

If you have a pass you don't need to buy tickets. it is either or.
We could argue about what would have been the best (cheapest) option, but that is water under the bridge, you have your pass now.

There are two types of trains in Italy

A) Regionalle. These are short and intermediate distance trains. For these you do not need to do anything else, just get on the train with your pass and show it to the on-train staff when they ask.

B) Long distance trains. These include the high speed trains. When travelling between big cities (Rome, Milan, Venice etc.) these are the trains you will be using. For these trains you have to buy a reservation for each train on top of your pass.
If you have a ticket (option 1 above) the reservation is included, so buying one separately is not a normal purchase.
I suggest you go back to whoever you bought your pass from, and buy your reservations from them.

Most trains are run by a company called Trenitalia.
Their website: https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html
You can use that website to look up train times. It also says which type of train it is (Regionalle or other).

"I’m using the RAIL PLANNER APP" -yes, but WHICH ONE? There are many, some good, some not so good. Please tell us which app you are using.

Chris F

Thank you this really helps. The app is just called “Rail Planner” and it says it’s the app for Eurail .

Last question since I will have to make seat reservations with my pass since most of our routes are long distance how far ahead of time so I need to make seat reservations or can I do this the day of ?

There are several types of trains in the app. The ones codes green say RE
the ones coded red say reservation required and say FR or FA, INI or NJ
Which one is considered the high speed train ?

and it says it’s the app for Eurail .

Aha, its the Eurail App, from the rail pass company NOT the Trenitalia one.
Travelmom above says you cannot get reservations with this App.

I suggest you get your train times direct from Trenitalia: https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html
They also have an App. Train times past the beginning of June are not yet published, but they will be mostly unchanged.

There are several types of trains in the app. The ones codes green say RE the ones coded red say reservation required and say FR or FA, INI or NJ Which one is considered the high speed train ?

RE = Regionalle = No reservations.
Everything else needs a reservation.

I am not familiar with buying a reservation only, as I never buy a pass, only normal tickets. Buy as soon as you are ready to commit, from the Eurail website.

P.S. re-reading your last post. I hope you are not under the mis-impression that Eurail runs any trains. it does not. It is a travel agent in North America that sells this pass.
The trains are run by mostly Trenitalia plus some smaller mostly local companies. AFAIK you pass is only valid on Trenitalia trains.

You may be confused but you are not listening -- understanding - our prior postings and recommendations.

......YES I bought a Eurail pass but don’t you use the Eurail pass to purchase your tickets ?...... NO !! The Eurail pass is your ticket. However, you need to take your Eurail pass to a ticket window in the station to purchase a seat reservation or reservations. The EXCEPTION is the Regionale trains. Just get on and find a seat. If no seat available, then you stand till a seat becomes available.

.....I’m asking if I arrive at the train station with my Eurail can I just get my tickets then or do I need to book these train in advance for the trains that I need seat reservations ....... NO, it is rare for any train to be sold out and if it by an odd chance complete sold out, then wait 30 minutes or an hour for the next train. Or you can go the day before and get your seat reservation. Then when the conductor checks you show him a properly validated Eurail pass along with the seat reservation and he will thank you and move on.

Dump the app and look at trenitalia.com That is the only site you should be using. Plug in Milan and Venice and you will see all the trains and routes listed including the trains -- For that route it is primarily a Frecciarossa direct or a Regionale Veloce -- BOTH require a seat reservation.

For the Assisi to Rome run you will see mostly Regionale (no reservation, just get on) and a couple Intercity and Frecciabianca - both requiring reservation. Anything other than a Regionale train needs a reservation. Or the other way around if it is not a Regionale train, get a seat reservation. I know this sounds like a broken record but it is really that simple.

I provided a detailed answer in your other thread. It's usually best to only start one thread per topic, so that you keep all replies in the same place.

RE (regional) and RV (regional velocity) DO NOT have seat reservations. You can sit anywhere or stand if the train is crowded.