Train travel in Italy

You can book your train tickets on the Trenitalia website up to 120days in advance for discounted (Super Economy) non refundable tickets.
You'll need to choose the following train stations (in Italian):

• Rome = Roma Termini
• Florence = Firenze S.M. Novella
• Venice = Venezia Santa Lucia
• Monterosso = Monterosso, NOT Monterosso Marche

If you haven't booked your flight tickets, you may consider reversing your itinerary. The reason being that most flights from Venice depart very early in the morning & it takes longer to reach this airport vs the one in Rome.

Enjoy!

Edit to add...
You may find this website helpful, as it explains everything you need to know about traveling in Italy via train.

Remember that Florence-Lucca is all unreserved Regionale trains whose price never changes and can be bought right up until departure. There is no 1st class on these trains. Florence-Monterosso is mostly Regionale trains, but a few InterCity and Freccia trans that can be booked in advance.

Sam makes a great point.

Keep in mind that Regionale train tickets need to be validated prior to boarding the train, unless they were purchased online, in which case they are prevalidated.

There's no need to validate high speed ( freccia) or Intercity tickets as they are train & time specific & you have a reserved seat.

For me the following routing is the most efficient. Take a direct train up the coastal route from Rome to La Spezia and Cinque Terre.

Rome to Monterosso, Cinque Terre
Monterosso to Lucca
Lucca to Florence
Florence to Venice

I personally see little advantage to first class so it is rare for us to be in first class. Do not purchase Regionale train tickets on-line. Purchase those tickets the day of travel or day before if convenient. There are three levels of fares in Italy - Super Economy, Economy, and Base. The SE and E tickets come with restrictions - basically no change, no refund. These tickets are purchased on line around the 120 day mark. The numbers of discount tickets available depends on the time of the train and day of week. When gone, they are gone. The Base is your standard, walk up ticket. All trains exception Regionale come with a mandatory seat reservation. Regionale are open seating. If you cannot find a seat you stand till someone gets off at the next stop.

It is a little easier to fly into Venice and come home from Rome. Your return options from Rome are better. Venice is a small airport with no direct international connections.

There are no direct trains from Roma to Lucca so you'll be switching from a high-speed to a regionale either in Florence or both Florence and Pisa, depending on the train you take. As your ticket will cover both trains - if purchased as a single journey on Trenitalia - you won't have to validate your regionale ticket. Buy these in advance for best price if economy or super-economy pricing is available.

Just be aware that the super-economy tickets are non-refundable and non-changeable so you must catch the specific train/time they're for or buy a new, full-fare ticket. Economy tickets may be changed once but you have to make up the difference between bargain and full-fare price.

As mentioned, Lucca to Florence will be strictly a regionale train so you will have to validate those tickets. You also do not need to purchase them in advance; do it on the day of your journey.

Florence to Montetrosso may be any combination of fast and regionale trains, or may be ALL regionale trains depending on time you want to depart but you'll have one to two changes in Pisa, La Spezia or both.

Monterosso to Venice will also involve a combination of regionale and fast trains, and involve a minimum of one to three changes depending on time you want to depart. As with Rome to Lucca, buy in advance.

We've always traveled 2nd class on the fast trains as the carriages are plenty comfortable enough not to warrant the extra price. And of course when timing works, it's best to choose the ticket options with the fewest station changes and shortest total journey times.

Forgot to mention...
You have a lot of destinations here for 12 days, and I'll agree with a previous poster that it would be easier to fly into Venice and out of Rome. Would you be kind enough to share your detailed itinerary so we're sure we're not missing something? What date do you arrive, and what date do you depart, and how many nights you intend to spend in each place?

Editing to add: we may need to give you a few pointers about the May 1 national holiday in Italy, and first Sundays of the month (May7) at the State Museums.

When purchasing regionale tickets, you must now buy them for specific dates, and validate them.

I would also suggest that you change the order of your route to the one suggested by David above, as it's more efficient and will minimize travel times. Should you decide to do that, a few comments on each segment.....

• Rome to Monterosso - the easiest and quickest solution will be to use one of the direct trains from Roma Termini to La Spezia Centrale (about 4 hours), and then a connection via Regionale to Monterosso (23 minutes). If the schedules stay the same, a departure at 09:57 is probably the best choice. Some of the other trains on that route have 2 changes. You'll only be able to book first class on the first segment via InterCity train.
• Monterosso to Lucca - that will also likely involve an InterCity and then Regionale train, with one change at Viareggio. If you use a departure at 11:07, travel time will be 1H:20M.
• Lucca to Florence - if you use one of the direct Regionale trains, travel time will be 1H:19M. No first class is possible so you'll have to sit with the hoi polloi.
• Florence to Venice - the high speed trains are the best option on this route and there are numerous departures to choose from. Travel time is 2H:05M and first class is available. On this route you can use either the Freccia (Trenitalia) or competing Italo Treno high speed trains. Note that your departure station in Florence will be Firenze S.M. Novella and your arrival station in Venice will be Venezia Santa Lucia.

While you can certainly book first class seats if you wish, I've found that second class on the InterCity and Freccia trains is perfectly comfortable. Your choice.....

You can buy tickets for all trains online, either using the rail networks websites or at https://www.trainline.eu/ .

One point to clarify.....

"When purchasing regionale tickets, you must now buy them for specific dates, and validate them."

If you buy tickets for Regionale trains online, these will come pre-validated but must be used within four hours of the stated departure time. If you buy Regionale tickets locally either at a Kiosk or staffed ticket office, you must specify the day of travel (the tickets will only be good for that day) and you MUST validate them prior to boarding the train on the day of travel. Failure to do so may result in hefty fines, which will be collected on-the-spot!

The most logical sequence should be:
Arrive Venice Marco Polo (VCE) by plane
VENICE > FLORENCE > LUCCA > MONTEROSSO > (via La Spezia-Pisa) > ROME
Depart Rome-Fiumicino (FCO)

You can also do the exact opposite, but for the reasons expressed above, it is best to arrive at Venice and depart from Rome. The Venice airport is far and hard to reach from the middle of the water on the morning of departure.

The following segments:
Venice to Florence
La Spezia to Rome
may make sense to pre-purchase as there are discounts available if you buy in advance, since they use high speed trains. However discounted tickets (Economy and SuperEconomy fares) are not refundable or changeable, therefore you must be firm on your plan once you book a specific train at those fares.

I don't see a big reason to go first class. 2nd class (or standard, as it's called on a Frecciarossa) is already better than business class on an airplane.

The Florence-Lucca-Monterosso is covered by Regionale commuter trains, which are supercheap and offer no discounts. It is best if you buy those locally at the station on the day of departure. There is no first class on these trains.

For those portions of the trip that are served by fast train, you'll have more than two classes of service or seating areas from which to choose. Luckily, Trenitalia lays out all the price options on a clear grid, for any particular date and time that you select.

Nice job Ken with the expansive reply with helpful details. I'm getting all too brief in my old age. Thanks.

Whatever routes you end up taking, my advice is to buy and print as many train tickets as possible online before you leave, as long as you are certain of dates and times of your train travel. Not only will you save money on the Freccia routes, but you won't have to remember to validate the Regionale tickets. Sometimes if travelers are rushed, not used to train travel or are unfamiliar with the layout of the larger stations, forgetting to stop at the validation machine is easy to do. But most importantly, to me anyway, is that the larger stations are ALWAYS crowded and the ticket lines can be quite long, and although the lines at the machines may be shorter, sometimes the machine won't take your credit card or there's some other glitch. And then you're in a panic trying to get on a particular train without enough time to make it. Having the tickets in my bag that I printed at home are guaranteed peace of mind, no worries. Otherwise for peace of mind, prepare to be at the station 30 minutes ahead of your desired departure to make sure you have time to buy a same day ticket, in Florence and Rome especially. In Rome some of the platforms are a very long distance from where you would buy a ticket. They even have signs with the number of remaining meters you must walk, I suppose so people won't think they're lost! Not meaning to say this is all difficult, just to be aware. My opinion of the train system in Italy, especially Trenitalia, is that it is absolutely stupendous!! Have train traveled by myself around the country and had a blast. And never first class since 2nd class is almost exactly the same, clean, comfortable and full of very nice people.

The time of year you are traveling is shoulder season. I would not buy tickets beforehand..just get them when you arrive. Not much price difference between second and first class and I like traveling by first class when available.

Karren, you're not talking about the long-distance Frecce tickets, are you? There's quite a price penalty to be paid for buying those after arrival. I buy last-minute tickets myself, but that's because I don't establish my itinerary ahead of time and am mostly taken short trips on regionale.

" I would not buy tickets beforehand..just get them when you arrive. Not much price difference between second and first class"

Especially in Italy, tickets will cost substantially more if you buy them shortly before travel as you'll most likely be paying Base Fare which is the highest pricing tier. Buying at the time provides spontaneity, but costs more.

However, if you buy tickets well in advance and get the discounted Super Economy or Economy tickets, you can save some money. However you MUST be able to commit to a specific departure, as tickets for the high speed trains have compulsory seat reservations which are specific to train, date and departure time. You can ONLY use the tickets on the ONE train listed on the ticket. If you board any other train, even by mistake, you'll be subject to hefty fines which will be collected on-the-spot!

I always travel First Class where I can, even on Regionale trains if available. First Class has more space for people and luggage, and is a lot more comfortable, I think.

For me, I've never yet sat down in coach on a Regionale train, i've had to stand in the vestibule between train cars. Regionale are full of locals working and visiting friends and family, students going to university or home, and lots of tourists with luggage.

First Class has also provided protection from predators who stalk me on the train, they don't buy First Class tickets and so I can shake them! So when and where I can I travel First Class, it's so worth it!

I think the new regs for regionale tickets will help with "predators" (such a strong word!).

I have only had to stand in second class two or three times in 40 years, and that was Firenze-Roma in July.

Many fast trains now have "quiet cars" in first class. That would be nice on some routes.

For me, I've never yet sat down in coach on a Regionale train, i've
had to stand in the vestibule between train cars.

We've yet to have to stand on a regionale in Italy. The only time we've ever had to do that was a train between Brussels and Bruges. We've never been "stalked" on ANY train in Europe.

I can attest to the savings by buying Freccia tickets ahead of time on Trenitalia. Just booked a Rome/Naples leg for early March for my wife and myself, paid 22 Euro apiece, second class. They designate the car, you can pick the seat. For the heck of it, I looked at Friday of this week for second class and it was 59 Euro.

Did the same thing last year through France, Switzerland and Italy, buying 60-90 days in advance, and saved at least 60%.