Salzburg to Venice via rail - preferred route?

We just got home from visiting Munich, Salzburg and then trained through the Brenner pass to Firenze (via Innsbruck and Bologna Centrale). We were in Munich and Salzburg for 6 total days and the trains and buses were always very precise. The day we left Salzburg, there were having technical difficulties and the train left 15 minutes early. Several people were going to Italy and they ended us missing their train because they didn’t give themselves enough time. I always go with a conservative 30-40 minutes between trains, just in case, so I would not recommend 6 minutes between trains.

First, do not use the Eurail site, use www.bahn.com and it will show you the track numbers. Generally (but not always) adjacent track numbers will be on the same platform so you just have to walk across the platform to make the change. If you buy a reservation at https://tickets.oebb.at/en/ticket?cref=oebb-header the reservation can be as low as 3 EUR per seat and often be for both the 1st and connecting train.

Tell us the details and we can check.

Thanks for the advice.

marie - How did you like the journey through Innsbruck?

Sam - Thanks for the site info. I saw that DB had track info and have been alternating between the DB and Eurail apps when on the move, but the prices on the other site you linked are much better! For the trip, we just need to get to Venice tomorrow night, and were looking at the 11:06 train connecting through Innsbruck.

Rule #1 - Never use RailEurope or Eurail. These are travel agencies with highly marked up ticket prices and bad information.

Rule #2 - always book train tickets in advance to save money. You’ve waited too late and the best fares are long gone.

As for scenery, either is nice. Also no need to pick an end station, just pick Venice and you’ll be fine.

Good to know not to use the Eurail site, thanks!
We have global passes (they made the most sense for our trip duration and rough plans), so the only cost at this point is the seat reservations.

We're staying in Venice, so wouldn't the other Venice station leave us with another hop to get there?

Too bad about the pass, especially as you didn’t seem to be aware of the real websites to purchase tickets. On normal websites, you just out in the city and the ticket will cover any station in that city. On a Eurail site, I have no idea because they seem to make things purposefully confusing.

It's ok, a friend and veteran traveler worked out that it would be the best option for us. We got them at a discount, and based on what I've seen for ticket fares, we'll come out ahead at the end. It's also nice to not need to buy a ticket for every journey.

AP, so sorry that you are getting flack over personal travel decisions rather than answers to your questions. I hope you are having a good trip.

The journey through Innsbruck was beautiful, there was still plenty of snow on the mountains and the grounds were very green from the recent rains. We bought the tickets ahead of time on the German train site. Again, just give yourselves plenty of time to get off train, look for next platform and get there.

The route through Villach, you have to use the below track passageway to get from Track 3 to Track 4D-E.

At Innsbruck you will also have to use the below track passageway to get from Track 3 to Track 6, but you will have 18 minutes to do this, plenty of time.

BTW, You could make the change in Woergl where both trains use the same Track 4, just get off one and wait a few minutes and then your connecting train pulls in and you get on board. There are risks from deviating from the prescribed change points, like an unexpected track change, or if your inbound train runs late and gets behind the connecting train. I just mention it as an option for the bold traveler.

If you are Salzburg now, you could just stop by the station and buy your seat reservations now at 3 EUR per person, since the train change takes place in Austria, 3 EUR will cover both trains.

Carol, if you read my messages, you will note that I am answering the questions. This is the second time recently I’ve seen you police responses, Carol. I thought that was the webmaster’s job.

Regarding the OP’s friend’s recommendation, I’d love to see that math as I’ve never seen a Global pass save money. Ever. It is a more expensive option because you are paying for total flexibility, which is completely unnecessary. I make these comments about the pass to benefit future readers of this conversation who may assume that a pass is the only way to go. I feel a bit like a Robin Hood and feel a duty, particularly on this site which SELLS PASSES, to provide a balance.

I don't mind the pass advice, as it may be of benefit to others. The advice on buying directly from the local rail vs via eurail is great and I will be doing that from now on.

We absolutely got it for the complete flexibility, as we went into this trip with only flights and our first couple nights booked. We wanted the flexibility to go wherever, whenever, for 3 weeks without having to deal with tickets, with economic benefit being a secondary goal. I'd be happy to post a list of our trains after we return and would be interested in seeing how we did vs paying for each trip in the least expensive way possible (with no pre-planning).

Thanks for the station advice too, I will book the Innsbruck one tonight (with the 3€ reservations!).

After this my most pressing concern will be where to go next!

One thing I haven't been able figure out yet - Is there a way to select a seat when booking a train reservation, or do you just get what you get?

You can pick your seats on the first leg because it is operated by OEBB. You can only make a request for the 2nd leg because it is an EC train jointly operated with Deutsche Bahn and Trenitalia. They don't have the seat diagrams in their computer. But you can ask for window or aisle, across a table, etc.