When to start looking for train tickets for mid-March

Assuming you are taking an Italian train from Verona to Rome, on December 12 you'll be sure to see the full schedules and all fares both on trenitalia.com/en.html and italotreno.it/en . You can also look up now and/or in late November if you have nothing better to do and you want to buy before any other passenger for whatever reason.

Who runs the train from Lugano to Verona? Is it a EC direct train to Verona or are you changing in Milan? I think EC trains that cross the borders are already available both on SBB.ch and on trenitalia.com Of course on the 12th you will see many more non-EC trains on the two sides of the border.

When a train's departure station is in another country, It's always better to use that country's railway operator webpage to get tickets.

those are short distance trains, relatively. I don't suffer from FOMO and I'd want to know that there would unlikely be things which could affect my plans, such as airline difficulty, health, issues at home, etc. so I'd probably go for it around the first of March. Actually given the chance of bad weather in early March, maybe another week later. I'd rather pay a few Euro more rather than risk losing the lot since I would be buying non-changeable non-refundable tickets - the only reason to get them way early.

I expect you will be changing in Milan for the trip to Verona, and possibly in Bologna or Padova for the trip to Rome although there are faster trains from Verona to Roma Centrale which go straight through.

There is one through train from Lugano to Verona, but it is no faster than those you change on. It is the 8:32 (started Zürich) to Verona and onwards to Venice Santa Lucia. You will change direction in Milano Centrale so if you were facing forward you will be facing backwards. Trains in the afternoon change at Milano Garibaldi instead of Milano Centrale.

Thanks for the information Dario and Nigel. My understanding is that the earlier I purchase the tickets for the high-speed trains, the cheaper the price. Also, we are three people and would like to sit together.

I do expect one train change in Milan for the Lugano to Verona route. It sounds like I should look to SBB to purchase that ticket. I will be looking for the quickest route with the least number of train changes as that just makes things easier for us. We don’t mind paying for convenience.

do you want First Class then?

Honestly, Nigel, yes, we will select 1st class when we are traveling with our luggage. 😊 And here’s the reason why. When we were in Switzerland last year for our first trip to Europe, we traveled 2nd class and had some very crowded trains. We decided it is just easier for us to pay extra for 1st class when we have our luggage (26-inch suitcases) so we have some extra room and less crowds. When I returned to Switzerland this year, I traveled 1st class and it was fabulous. I felt like I had the trains all to myself. 😊

Carrie, I am with you on First Class in Switzerland and we often choose it in Italy as well, partly for luggage and always to avoid severe crowding, especially since the pandemic.

I always buy tickets from Switzerland to Italy from SBB. As Dario mentioned, buying in the originating country is the best move. I do tend to buy as far in advance as possible but usually at a fare that allows for changes and at least a partial refund should we have to cancel. Rarely have we had to cancel or make changes.

Nigel, I was checking times and I do see the through train from Lugano to Verona. So, thanks for mentioning that. It will get us to our Verona hotel earlier than we can check in, but I do think the no train change option will be best for us. We can just sit on the same train with our luggage. Plus, we don’t have to worry about if the first train is late and we miss our connection. And it looks like we have options for no changes from Verona to Rome. So, that’s great too. We had a couple of tight connections in Switzerland that gave my sister a little anxiety so this will ease her mind.

Edited to add: Actually, in looking at dates in March for Lugano to Verona, it looks like that EC train runs 2 hours later than it currently does, so that’s nice. That will get us to our hotel closer to check-in.

Laurel, it’s too bad we can’t use the Swiss Travel Pass in Italy. 😊 I’m looking on the SBB app for tickets from Lugano to Verona (just random days in Nov) and it says “ticket purchase not available.” So, I switched to SBB website and it looks like I can purchase a ticket there. Weird.

would like to sit together.

on Italian high speed trains, if you buy X tickets in a single transaction, you receive a single PNR and you end up seating together even if you get tickets at the last minute. Otherwise conductors' life while checking tickets would be quite complicate. Anyway switching seats isn't forbidden.

On Italian high speed trains, there are only reserved seats and standing is forbidden: if you have a ticket, you should be able to find a place where to put your stuff. The most important thing is travelling with suitcases that fit in the "A shaped" space between seats, or that you can lift above your head.

Oh, Nigel, bless you for mentioning EC311! I am planning a trip to Switzerland and the Dolomites for next September with our son’s family—our two grandsons will be 11. I want to travel between Mürren and Bolzano over 2-3 days via Luzern (Brunig Pass route) and the Gotthard Pass route to Lugano, then on to Verona with an overnight there. It will be so much more pleasant if we can avoid changing trains at Milano Centrale. We had enough of that huge, noisy and crowded station on our trip this past September to last a long time.

And thank you, Carrie, for pointing out the schedule change on EC 311 to a later departure by March. I hope that continues into September. Getting those tween boys on a train at 10:32 instead of 8:32 will be much easier.

As for your March trip and timing the ticket purchases—-my husband and I will be in Italy in March ourselves, traveling from Rome down to Puglia then back up the coast to Rimini on our way to Bologna and Venice. No Milano Centrale on this trip! I will watch prices, but I don’t think we need to buy our tickets this far out to get the good Smart fares. Right now I am thinking of buying them in mid-January, or later, to leave room for our travel plans to change.

Note that for Verona to Rome you can travel with either Trenitalia or Italo. I am a big Italo fan, especially after an experience we had in September. They are not offering tickets for March yet, only through February.

As for First versus Second class in Italy, we generally travel in First (Prima on Italo). But in September, even the First/Prima cars were completely full. Italo has even higher classes of service (Club Executive and Salotto) that probably are less crowded, but very expensive, with very limited discounts for advance purchase.

Dario, thanks for the additional information. That’s good to know about the seats. We’ll have my brother-in-law with us so he can lift the suitcases up on the racks for us if needed.

Lola, thanks for all the info. I will definitely check out Italo. And I won’t worry about buying any tickets at least until after the Dec. 12 schedule change. Sounds like you have 2 great trips planned for next year.

another vote for Italo - Trenitalia run fine trains but I prefer the Italo, and the price is often a little more keen.

so he can lift the suitcases up on the racks for us if needed.

the racks don't hold much more than carry on. Full sized cases are much better between the backs of the seats. If balanced up there when they don't fit all the way on they can fall off with disastrous consequences to those below. Understand that unlike on planes the overhead is not enclosed. Sometimes it could be described as a rack, sometimes (often) more like a shelf.

Thanks Nigel! We lucked out in Switzerland and our suitcases fit up on the racks above the seats, but I know not all trains are the same. I’m assuming some of the trains will have the floor-standing luggage racks for larger luggage. If not, we’ll make do.

Follow-up Question: I was checking out the prices for our travel date, March 20, on the 10:32 EC train, Lugano to Verona, and SBB is 159 for three 1st class seats. Trenitalia 150. I’m not seeing on either site an option to select our seats. Are seats automatically assigned? I know Dario said they would seat us together, but it would be nice to pick seats near a luggage rack and/or WC if possible.

I’m not purchasing today. Just trying to get everything figured out ahead of time. 😊

Thanks!!

Edited to add: I thought maybe it was too early yet, but i looked at tickets for next week and also don't see an option to select seats.

Carrie,
On SBB the seat preferences are offered after you click on “proceed to booking.”

On Trenitalia, after you select the train and fare, next to the “continue” button (at the bottom on my iPad) there is a faint “choose seats” toggle. Select that before continuing.

Hi Laurel, on the SBB website, when I click “proceed to booking” I am only offered to choose a preferred compartment type: no preference, open, or corridor. And then I can pick seat request: window, middle, aisle. I’m not seeing a map of the seats that I can select. Is there not a way to select specific seats from SBB?

On Trenitalia, I do now see the “choose seats” switch that I need to select. And then I see the map of the 1st class car and can select a specific seat. If SBB doesn’t let me pick specific seats, I’ll just purchase from Trenitalia. Thanks for your help!! I appreciate it.

I tried to convince my sister and brother in law to return to Switzerland so we don't have to deal with these trains, but they really want to go to Italy. 😊

Yes, that is how SBB does seat selection, registering preference not exact seats.

Thanks Laurel. Trenitalia it is. 😊 I just bought them using the app and apple pay on my phone. Super easy. And only $137 for 3 1st class tickets. Italy might not be so bad after all. 😊

Carrie, did you get a QR code on your phone for the EC train from Lugano to Verona, or a PNR code (numbers/digits)? I ask because when we bought tickets on Trenitalia for travel from Verona to Bolzano on an EC train ( I think it was EC 84 or 86) last September we only got the PNR code. We had to use that to pick up the actual tickets from a machine at the train station. Apparently Trenitalia could not sell the actual ticket because the train was operated by OEBB, the Austrian train company. But hopefully EC 311 is different— it looks like a Swiss train.

Hi Lola. I have 3 QR codes--1 for each ticket in the app. I had an option to add them to my apple wallet, so the QR codes are there too. And i have an email that has the tickets/QR codes as well. QR codes everywhere. 😊 That is for the EC 311 train.

OK, you’re good to go.

I was a little concerned, because your first journey starts in Switzerland (Lugano). It could be either a Swiss or an Italian train:

https://www.seat61.com/trains-and-routes/switzerland-to-italy-by-train.htm

We met someone on our trip who was traveling from Austria to Bolzano on EC83, but bought their tickets on Trenitalia, along with the rest of their tickets for Italy. Like ours for EC83 and EC86 between Verona and Bolzano, the tickets had to be retrieved from a machine in Italy, using the PNR. There was no “print at home” option or QR code because it is an Austrian train. The people we met could not retrieve their tickets in Austria, where their journey started, so they had to buy whole new tickets for the journey to be sure of having a valid ticket. (Apparently the conductors are not supposed to recognize the PNR because it can be duplicated and re-used).

Maybe the system has changed, because last summer Man in Seat 61 had a warning about this on his webpage about some of the EC trains—-he advised buying the tickets for cross-border travel from the national train website of the country where your journey starts, or (gasp) from RailEurope. But I cannot find that warning now.

Thanks lola! I appreciate you checking to make sure I have what I need.

about some of the EC trains

"Some" is the relevant word here. Things may have changed, but Austrian conductors used to have no access to Trenitalia's DB, so they had no way to verify Trenitalia's PNR codes. Trenitalia's conductors, on the other hand, can't work, check tickets and fine passengers when an EC train is running in Austria. The railway version of teasing your neighbours because you had a fight 110 years ago... or a way to delay competition at home with one hand while entering foreign markets with the other.

I hope for Carrie that SBB and Trenitalia reached a better agreement, given the historically blunt&odd relationship between SBB and Trenitalia it's actually possible.

In searching for information on ticketing issues with the cross-border trains, I came across a note by Man in Seat 61 that is another example of ongoing lack of cooperation between Austria and Italy:

https://www.seat61.com/trains-and-routes/munich-to-venice-by-eurocity-train.htm

He says OEBB removed restaurant cars on the Brenner Pass route ( Munich to Venice) because they were incompatible with the Italian power supply.

I sure hope so too Dario. 😊

When I was in Austria in Sept., our OBB purchased tickets (in QR code format on my phone) worked just fine in Italy when we took a day trip to and from Brixen, Italy. That was an EC train I believe.

I have the QR codes for March, so I’m sure we’ll be fine.