Hi all, I'm trying to book for Jan 3rd sleeper train Rome>Palermo on RailEurope OR Trenitalia and it seems the bookings are still not yet available. But hopefully it doesn't mean that the trains are already booked up! "Sorry, we haven't found any tickets
The booking horizon for this journey varies but is usually at least two months before travel." is the message I'm getting, which seems to say tickets are not YET available. Help me put my mind at ease?
Posted by
Washington DC
27230 posts
You may well just be too early, though I'm not that knowledgeable about Trenitalia advance bookings.
I have, however, taken that train. I had a berth in a couchette, and I did not get one moment of sleep the entire trip. The train constantly jerked from side to side. I have no idea whether the problem was the rails themselves or the couchette car. Maybe a regular sleeping car wouldn't have that problem. All I know is that I collapsed into bed as soon as I got access to my room at my first Sicilian stop and had a severely-messed-up sleep schedule for more than 24 hours. I'd fly if I didn't have time to take day trains, perhaps stopping along the way somewhere.
Posted by
Italy
3812 posts
On December 13 the full winter schedules will be uploaded for sure. If you want to get the tickets before December 13 you'll have to check every few days on trenitalia.com
RailEurope is a re-seller, judging from what can be read online it isn't a trustworthy company.
Posted by
OP
Buffalo, NY
3 posts
Thanks for the responses! I will take this into consideration.
What's the difference between a couchette and a regular sleeper berth?
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15268 posts
You can look at the photos in the link below to see the various types of accommodations on an IN, intercity Notte (Intercity Night train).
Not sure how to find the same page in English, when I switched the flag it took me to the home page.
https://www.trenitalia.com/it/altri_treni/treni_intercity/intercity_notte.html
Posted by
Washington DC
27230 posts
A couchette car has thinly padded ledges to sleep on. I used to do OK on those back in the 1970s and 1980s, but I've never experienced the jerking around I encountered on that Rome-Sicily night train. If not for that very major problem, I think I'd have gotten a fair amount of sleep in the couchette. I have no back issues that make me picky about beds. I've spent over 20 months in Europe since 2015, mostly in low-end, budget hotels, and I haven't had a bed to complain about yet. Although couchettes are not super-comfortable, I can fall asleep nearly anywhere if I'm horizontal and have a slightly-padded surface. Anywhere except that couchette on the night train to Sicily, that is. Those with back issues and others who pay a lot of attention to comments about bed quality when they read hotel reviews should avoid couchettes. I've never paid for a regular sleeper berth, so I have no idea how much more comfortable they are.
I should have mentioned that night trains often make a lot of stops. Every time the train stops, you have braking, station noise and then acceleration. You're likely to wake up at least briefly at each stop, so it's not a normal night's sleep even in the best cases.
Roma Termini dep 19:50 ICN36175 InterCityNight
Latina dep 20:23
Formia-Gaeta dep 21:04
Napoli Centrale dep 22:55
Salerno dep 23:30
Villa S.Giovanni -- not sure of time, but train is loaded onto a ferry here and then taken off it; the section between Salerno and Villa San Giovanni seems to be your best opportunity to sleep
Messina Centrale arr 05:15, dep 05:30. It appears that you transfer here (platform may be cold).
Times for the following stops are not provided by my source:
Milazzo
Barcellona-Castroreale
Patti-S. Piero Patti
Capo d'Orlando-Naso
S.Agata di Militello
CefaluTermini Imerese
Palermo Centrale arr 09:11