Rail Europe vs Italo vs Trenitalia vs Italia Rail

Sorry to muddy the waters, but I really like to buy tickets from loco2.com. The website is easy to navigate, does not charge booking fees, and you can have them email you when tickets are available for purchase if it's too soon.

https://loco2.com/

@Scythia Very helpful :) Thank you!! Yes, I have looked at different sites to get an idea on pricing but so realize I can’t book until 90 days out. Thank you again.

@traylaparks You’re not muddying any water. I appreciate people’s opinions :)

Do not use RailEurope. It doesn't necessarily list all the trains, and it sometimes (always?) charges substantially more.

@acraven Interesting, since that’s the one used on this website. Thanks :)

Reagional tickets can’t be purchased very far in advance. There is not a price advantage either. So when you are looking at routes, separate the non regional high speed segments (RE or RV) and book those in advance. On the day of, or day before you reserved train you can purchase any regional segments. You will need to validate the regional tickets before getting in the train, once validated tickets are good for 4 hours.

Three ways to purchase-

1. at ticket window at any train station (Credit or debit cards, and cash). I usually have screen shot if the trains/route I want.
2. Kiosk- it you look closely at kiosk, it will state if its credit card only, or if it accepts euros. (We’ve found US credit cards don’t seem to work, bye debit card with PIN does)
3. On line (either trenitalia, Trainline, or loco2). Credit cards have worked for us on both Trenitalia and Trainline. Since your reservation is for a specic time, the departure time on ticket acts as your validation. But Ticket is valid for 4 hours from your departure time.

If you decide to stick with RailEurope because of loyalty please confirm the train times and prices with the real rail company - Trenitalia or Italo (I personally prefer long distance on Italo) as appropriate - and if there is a difference I advise you to not take the word of RailEurope.

I have seen far too many stories here of their prices, difficulties, and especially schedule errors and many many missing trains because they only show the ones they can make the most money on.

No, that's not snarky. That's true.

Thanks Karen and Nigel! I feel no obligation to use Rail Europe. By snarky...I’ve seen lots of responders who talk down to posters Definitely not anyone here. It’s all been very helpful. Thanks!

Italo, as far as I know, only operatres high speed trains. Effectively they run on two lines that cross - one between Turin and Venice, the other between Bolzano and Salerno. (It's not quite that simple, but it gives a rough idea - the actual map is at https://www.italotreno.it/en/destinations-timetable)

From my point of view, there is not a great deal to choose between Italo and Trenitalia in terms of their high speed trains. I'd be happy to take either.

Karen, regional train tickets can be purchased up to the next timetable change, after the 10th of December this means up to June 9, or 180 days in advance.
I'm not sure I understand your advice of separating the purchase of regional trains tickets, why not getting a through ticket online? It seems easier, whereas getting tickets at the train station is always time-consuming.

LRR,

I normally buy tickets for Italy at https://www.thetrainline.com/?redirected=true as they sell tickets for both major rail networks in Italy (as well as trains in other parts of Europe). That provides one-stop shopping. Registration on the site is required, including payment details, but after that's done the buying process is very easy.

They previously sold tickets at the same prices as the rail networks, but I've seen a few comments on the forum lately that they now have a small service charge. I haven't looked at that yet, but in any case it's a convenient place to buy train tickets.

I used Loco2 today. I set an alarm for when our tickets in early October were available for purchase, woke up to an email this morning and then checked Loco2 and Italia rail (2 easiest) and Loco2 actually had better prices for the train and class we preferred. It also seemed that they were more clear on the actual seats we were booking - which was important because there are 4 of us traveling together. They emailed me the paperless ticket immediately.

Best of luck

I booked my Venice-Florence and Florence-Rome trains with Italo, directly at their website. The site was easy to use and I had no issues whatsoever (once I confirmed w/ my bank on the foreign transaction). We travel to Italy in June, so I can't speak to the actual experience on Italo yet. We booked Prima seats - a small splurge for us, which we hope will be worth it for added comfort.

Thank you! Have a great trip :)

I agree with cebing. I've used Loco2 twice now for booking train travel, easy to do. I found better prices on Loco2 and it is very simple to navigate. You can even set an alarm and they will email you when the ticket become available.

I did compare sites for availability and pricing and Loco2 has won all three times.

The similarities/differences between the companies you refer to:

• Trenitalia (national train company) and Italo (private-high speed trains) operate the trains in Italy. You can purchase tickets directly from either, either online or at the station (larger stations have ticket windows and ticket machines; smaller have machines). Trenitalia covers the entire country; Italo has more limited lines and also has bus service in parts of Italy.
• ItaliaRail, Rail Europe, Loco2, and Trainline are ticket sellers--they don't actually operate the trains. You can purchase tickets through them (online); they normally sell tickets at a slighty (or, as some note, greatly) higher price.

Just another note--both Trenitalia and Italo have apps that, in my experience, work quite well. You can purchase tickets and store them on the app, then show the conductor your electronic ticket when asked.

Hope this helps!