Plane to Train quandary

Gk,

Since there may be unforeseen delays (flight, airport, etc...) it's best to wait to get your train tickets for travel on day of arrival in Italy.

Train seat reservations hardly ever sell out.

If 2nd class seats are not available (since these are less expensive they sell faster) then just upgrade to 1st class.
Seat reservations are only required for the Freccia (high- speed) & Intercity trains (Rome to La Spezia) NOT for the Regional trains
(La Spezia to Vernazza)

I have not had to travel to the airport that early before, so can't help you with that one.

Enjoy your trip!

I would stay near the airport if possible that last night. Things can go smoothly for an early taxi, but I have done it and there was a bit of stress worrying whether the Italian driver would show up on time. Have a nice dinner in Rome then make your way to the airport.

I agree with buying the train tickets when you arrive. Pre buying you might save some money, or you could lose it all.

Thanks Priscilla & Terry kathryn,

I appreciate the advice. I wasn't really concerned about buying tickets in advance for the benefit of saving money... I was simply worried that if I didn't make reservations and purchase the tickets in advance that we would not get seats on a high-speed train to La Spezia.

So, if I understand you guys right, there should be little to no problem getting to Vernazza in a timely fashion if we wait until we arrive at Roma Termini to buy our tickets. So, my follow-up question is.. do we get euros out of an ATM at the airport to pay of said tickets, or hope they will take my credit or debit card?

Many people have early flights such as yourself, taxis are definitely a great option, and can definitely reliably get you to the airport, the trick is for your hotel to pre-arrange a taxi.....many people travel to the airport so early in just that manner.....I would advise against staying overnight in the terminal....

I would stay in a hotel in the city so you can enjoy your last night in Italy with one last gelato on an evening stroll....

and yes, buy your tickets when you arrive in Italy for that first trip, so you won't be rushing or waiting around for a pre-purchased ticket......or miss it altogether....

I have occasionally had trouble finding a working ATM at the Rome airport, but never had trouble using my credit card to buy train tickets. Just make sure you tell your bank and credit card company that you are traveling to Italy, so they don't block the transaction because it raises a fraud flag.

One other note for your plans. The train from Rome to La Spezia Centrale leaves from Roma Termini, the main Rome train station. You will need to take a separate train from Roma Fiumicino, the train station that serves the airport to Termini (13 euro, takes 32 minutes, several / hour). For whatever reason, I've never had trouble finding an ATM at Roma Termini.

You need a reserved seat to ride that route (fast trains), but you don't need to buy the reserved-seat ticket in advance, you can do it at the station. Don't stress over missing a train and having to buy another ticket - just buy the ticket when you get to the Roma Termini station. You'll arrive in La Spezia in the evening/night.

On your last night, have a nice dinner and a last look around Roma, go to your hotel, have them reserve a taxi for you for the next morning to get you to the airport in time. I do this often and I've never had a problem with a no-show taxi.

Whew! You guys have eased my mind a great deal. I really do appreciate it.

Rachel, You said "You will need to take a separate train from Roma Fiumicino, the train station that serves the airport to Termini (13 euro, takes 32 minutes, several / hour)."

Would that be the Leonardo Express?

And is all of this pretty self-explanatory once I arrive? In other words, when I get to the Rome airport (Roma Fiumicino) from the US, do I immediately look for someplace to buy a Termini train ticket? Would I be able to purchase tickets to Termini AND also from Termini to La Spezia at the same time, or once in Termini station would I again look for a kiosk to purchase tickets from Termini to Vernazza?

Just trying to get all my ducks in a row before we leave. This is our 20th wedding anniversary (as I've mentioned before in other RS Forum posts) and I want it to go off without a hitch.

gk,

Your trip will actually be fairly straightforward, but it's going to be LONG and tiring travel day. I have a few comments to add to the others......

If your flight arrives at 13:45, you could end up at the airport rail station at about 14:30. When you get there, buy tickets for your entire journey (FCO to Rome and Rome to Vernazza). L.E. Express tickets will be €14 PP so you could either pack along some cash or use a credit card. The most likely Leonardo Express that you'll be able to connect with is a departure at 14:53, arriving 15:25. A few points to note - first and most important, DON'T forget to validate your L.E. tickets prior to boarding the train, or you'll risk hefty fines, which will be collected on the spot! Also be aware that there are two trains servicing the airport, the L.E. and the FM/FR1, so be sure you board the correct train!

As this is your first trip to Europe, IMO it would be better to keep the trip as simple and easy as possible, especially as you'll be in a jet-lagged state. With that in mind, I'd suggest buying tickets for a departure at 15:57, arriving Vernazza at 20:40 (time 4H:43M, one change at La Spezia Centrale). The first segment of that trip will be via InterCity which is not exactly "high speed" but it will still be fairly quick. The last segment from La Spezia to Vernazza will be via Regionale, and with all Regionale trains be sure to validate the ticket prior to boarding. That last segment is only 18 minutes, so it will be very easy. The benefit of this train is that it's reasonably quick and more importantly there's only one change (and La Spezia is an easy station to navigate).

Note that tickets for InterCity, Freccia and other higher speed trains come with compulsory reservations, which are specific to train, date and departure time, so you can only use the ONE train specified on the ticket. The ticket will specify your Car No. (Carrozza) and your Seat No's (Posti). If you board any other train, even by mistake, you'll be deemed to be travellling without a valid ticket and again, hefty fines! There are no seat reservations on Regionale trains.

When using Metro, Buses or whatever in Italy, it's always necessary to validate tickets prior to use on the day of travel, in order to avoid fines.

If your flight home from Rome is non stop, you have to be at the airport 3 hours prior to departure!
Don't try to short change this, FCO tends to be very busy.

gk, a couple of little things you may have missed on the screenshot you posted:

The query you made was "Roma Termini" to "La Spezia". That is only part of your trip. You need to do a query from Roma Fiumicino to Vernazza, then you will see the complete route and connections.

• The 14:50 involves 1 change of trains (the "chg.") column.
• The 14:58 involves 2 changes and gets there at the same time. One extra change just to start 8 minutes later? Only a dumb computer would offer that as an option.
• The 15:57 has 0 (zero) changes. The same train all the way. If you can catch that one it saves changing.
• On the left of each option is an orange square with a ">" in it. If you click on this, it shows you details about all the trains involved, train numbers, where you change and when you arrive and leave from that change point.
• If you then click on a train number it shows ALL the stops for that train with times. You can print this out, take it with you and tick of each stop to make sure you get off at the correct one.

Gk,

And is all of this pretty self-explanatory once I arrive? In other words, when I get to the Rome airport (Roma Fiumicino) from the US, do I immediately look for someplace to buy a Termini train ticket? Would I be able to purchase tickets to Termini AND also from Termini to La Spezia at the same time, or once in Termini station would I again look for a kiosk to purchase tickets from Termini to Vernazza?

You may want to refer to this website with step-by step info regarding travel from plane to train:http://europeforvisitors.com/rome/transportation/leonardo-express-fiumicino-airport-to-rome-termini-station.htm

and this one for how to buy tickets from automated kiosks: http://www.seat61.com/Italy-trains.htm#Self-service_ticket_machines

So, my follow-up question is.. do we get euros out of an ATM at the airport to pay of said tickets, or hope they will take my credit or debit card?

I always take at least €100 from home, and this way I don't need to find an ATM the minute I land in Italy.

I usually pay cash for train tickets, meals, hotels & souvenirs and only use my credit card for high ticket items such as extended hotel stays, etc... having said this, I've used my CC to purchase some of my train tickets from automated kiosks.

One key point: It's a good idea to find out what your daily cash withdrawal limit (dcwl) is & you may want to increase it (temporarily) for your trip.

I remember one of my first trips to Europe, when I forgot to do this & could not withdraw € 300 because my dcwl was only $300!

On my most recent trip, I increased my dcwl to $750 & this allowed me to withdraw €500 per day.

One more thing-- I always use an ATM attached or within a bank, during business hours. Years ago, when visiting Greece, the ATM decided to 'swallow' my debit card!
It's a good thing that the bank was open & they helped me retrieve it ;-)

Now I travel with 2 debit cards (separate accounts) & 2 credit cards--just in case!

Have a wonderful 20th Anniversary trip!

A few more tips regarding train travel...

• Once you arrive to Roma Termini on the 'Leonardo Express' from FCO Airport, (you will be arriving at platform 23/24)

• you will follow the crowd then locate the electronic board to find
  out which platform the train heading to La Spezia will be located.

• When searching the electronic board, you may not see 'La Spezia' but instead you may see, ' VENTIMIGLIA', so it's best to locate your train #.

• In above example it's Intercity (IC) train # 518 (departing Roma
  Termini @ 15:57, arriving La Spezia @ 19:52) You will then take a Regional train from La Spezia to Vernazza.

• You may want to use the official Italian Railways website: http://www.trenitalia.com to check train schedules.

• On this website you will enter: Roma Termini & Vernazza as your departure & arrival destinations.

• On the trenitalia website, once you get to screen showing the train schedules, there is a small light grey circle with a tiny " i " within the circle (bottom right of rectangle with train type & train #) when you click on this, you will see the route the train takes with arrival times.

• If you don't make the 15:57 train, there is another train (Frecciabianca # 9782) departing Roma Termini @ 16:57 & arriving La Spezia Centrale @ 20:37 (this train's final destination is 'GENOVA', so you may see this on the electronic board)

Buon viaggio!

EDIT: Here is a photo of the electronic board in Roma Termini: http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g187791-d245875-i88371566-Termini_Station_Stazione_Termini-Rome_Lazio.html

On the subject of what to do about an early flight (hotel at airport, vs. hotel near airport, vs. hotel in town and an early taxi) here's a thorough post on the subject from the excellent Ron In Rome website: http://tinyurl.com/3jr3b8z

Taxis definitely do run early, but should be booked the day before. As you'll see in Ron's post, at that hour the trip is fast, and the rate is fixed.

As for money: many like to arrive with €50-200, while others just find an ATM at the airport. Your choice. However, for most of your money needs, you will be getting cash from ATM's and putting larger purchases on credit cards, particularly if they have low or no foreign transaction fees. Here's Rick's page of links to his excellent money tips; read them all, and you'll be an expert: http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money

Thank you everyone! You have all given some great suggestions/advice/tips. I really do appreciate it.

One more thing....
is there a way to tell the high-speed trains from regular, slow trains (on the web sites, in the train stations, and by looking at them) before I buy my tickets?

Fast trains are: Frecciarossa, Frecciargento, Frecciabianca, and Inter-city. The freccia trains are sleek looking, the Inter-city not so much. The yellow departures poster or electronic board will have the Freccia symbol near the train number. The overhead board at the track number will also show the train number, destination and symbol. The trains themselves will have a carriage (carrozza) number on the outside of the door or on the side of the carriage - board the correct carriage (the number and your seat number will be on your ticket) so you won't have to push/pull your luggage through people push/pulling in the opposite direction (at least not for more than half a carriage).

The train's destination may not be yours, but the electronic boards will scroll through every stop - make sure you find your destination on it.

Here's Rick's "introduction to train travel in Europe" video: http://tinyurl.com/ac82c92

And here's a video made by an Italian (in fluent English), covering many of the same points: http://tinyurl.com/mvjjbyh