I have located several possible train routes for our upcoming trip, and have a question about transfer times. One journey has us arriving in Pisa with a transfer time of 24 minutes before proceeding on to Florence. Our next journey has us arriving in Verona with a transfer time of 20 minutes to Bolzano Bozen. Any advice from fellow travelers who have been at these stations would be appreciated. Thanks!
Posted by
Penzance
237 posts
What advice are you looking for?
Posted by
UK
20 posts
As long as the first trains don't arrive too late into Pisa/Verona respectively, you should be fine. Pisa Centrale has 17 platforms, and Verona Porta Nuova 12. It's easy to navigate your way around both stations, and they both have plenty of departure boards/monitors, and good signage to platforms.
Posted by
OP
South Carolina
73 posts
@Trelawney...I am looking to determine if those provide enough time for a transfer to our next train.
@Jonny B....thank you for your response.
Posted by
Green Bay
23472 posts
20 and 24 minutes are very comfortable transfer times. If it was Switzerland, these transfer times would be considered wasteful. 5 to 10 minutes would be the norm.
Posted by
Wengen
3892 posts
These transfer times are indeed wasteful. I have been in Pisa, and would be able to change trains there in 3 minutes. I do not think there is a station in Europe where you would need more than 10 minutes to transfer.
Posted by
91 posts
WengenK, I guess Bologna is the exception that proves the rule. In fact 15 minutes is the minimum transfer time to have a protected connection there: just like at Milan's Centrale station that's way bigger than Bologna.
@HH05, some replies may seem a little too direct because your question is a little strange. If you get a through ticket on the official sites your connections are always protected, so railway companies have no interest in selling impossible connections.
I'm sure you already know that if you miss a Regionale train and you have an old-fashioned paper ticket, you can freely take the next Regional to your destination.
Posted by
San Diego, California, USA
2042 posts
As others have said - both of those transfer times are fine. Bologna is the only station in the north that can really require long transfers. Not only does the station have several extra track areas the fast trains come in at -4 level and transfers between fast and local trains can be difficult - especially if you're not familiar with the station.
Get the Trenitalia app and you can watch the progress of your transfer train and probably even get the platform you're going to need to transfer to before you pull into the station. Always double check the track of course, but having something to check before you get into the station always helps me feel a little more in control than just showing up.
Have a great trip,
=Tod
Posted by
UK
20 posts
I forgot to mention:
If you have a physical train ticket, you will need to date/time stamp it prior to boarding your train. You can 'punch the clock' at one of the many machines found on the platforms and elsewhere at Italian railway stations. Just slot your ticket into the so-called 'obliteratrice' and you'll hear and feel your ticket being stamped. Not doing this risks a fine from a ticket inspector. If you have a digital ticket, you don't need to go through this process.
Posted by
91 posts
If you have a physical Regionale train ticket.
IC and Freccia trains tickets are train-specific and always come with a seat reservation that's included in the cost of the ticket. It's quite obvious there is no reason to time-stamp a ticket that can be used only on a specific train.
On the other hand, you must time-stamp a paper "open" ticket that can be used on any Regionale train running that route on that day.
The Regionales digital tickets are train-specific, but passengers can change them for free via app/site any time they want.