We were under the impression we didn't need to buy rail tickets in advance (we leave for Italy on Tuesday). However, in looking at schedules between certain cities, it appears that many trains or times are sold out. For instance, trains between Rome and Pompei on the 25th and 26th appear to be largely sold out. Should we be buying tickets before we leave on our trip? And are there other trains other than Trenitalia?
Posted by
Seattle, Wa, USA
663 posts
To get to Pompeii from Rome you must first get to Napoli centrale. Then you head downstairs to the circumvesuviana train to take the train to Pompeii Scavi. It won't be sold out because it is a regionale train with no seat reservations. You should be fine.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15236 posts
Sir I don't know where you are looking, but I have the Trenitalia website open in front of me. I have checked May 25th and there is not one train from Rome to Naples that is sold out, not even one.
I also checked for today, Sunday May 10th in Italy, for trains departing from Rome after 8:00am local time (I.e. 15 minutes from the time of this writing). Also in this case there is not a train that is sold out for the rest of the day. Not one!
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32219 posts
keith,
As you're leaving for Italy on Tuesday, there's no point in buying tickets in advance as all the heavily discounted tickets will likely be sold out. You'll pay Base Fare on the fast trains and there won't be any difference in price on the Regionale trains. I normally buy tickets the day prior to travel so that I don't have to waste time or contend with queues at the ticket machines on the day of travel.
Note that tickets for the fast trains are specific to train, date and departure time, and can only be used for the ONE train listed on the ticket. If you board the wrong train, you'll be subject to hefty fines which will be collected on the spot! With the Regionale trains, Metro and Buses, you MUST validate the tickets prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or again hefty fines. That also applies to the Leonardo Express from FCO into Roma Termini.
As Roberto mentioned, it's highly unlikely that any of the trains will be sold out. Even if that were the case for one train, there would be another along in a short time, so that's not a huge problem. Where were you looking for rail information?
Posted by
Toledo, Ohio, US
11613 posts
I think you may be looking at a site other than Trenitalia.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32885 posts
If you got any kind of a result for a Trenitalia train between Rome and Pompei then you are looking at the wrong connection. If you try to use the Regional train between Napoli and Salerno for Pompei you will be on the wrong side of the Pompeii scavi, and the Regionale train can't be purchased more than a week out.
You need to do as above, buy your Freccia from Trenitalia from Roma (usually Roma Termini but both Trenitalia and Italo Treno serve both Termini and Tiburtina with their various bullet trains) to Napoli Centrale, then go downstairs and get the Circumvesuviana (destination Sorrento) as far as Pompei Scavi.
You should be able to find plenty of fast trains between Roma and Napoli, and of course there is no limit on the number of people who can cram onto the Circumvesuviana.