Hello: I have been hoping to use the Trenitalia.com website to book a trip on a sleeper from Rome to Syracuse. I will be traveling with my wife and we would like a 2-bed private compartment. When I select "Double Seat Compartment – Complete Compartment," the best fare I get is the base fare of 258 euros total. When I select "Double Seat Compartment – Man," I get a better fare: the "Mini" promotional fare of 206 euros total. Question: Can anyone explain the discrepancy? If I book "Double Seat Compartment – Man" for me and my wife, will we have our own 2-person compartment? And would there be any problem caused by the fact that my wife is not a "Man." Many thanks for any help anyone can provide. The Trenitalia website has proved to be a supremely frustrating experience.
Posted by
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
do you have the Italian names for that offer? I know sometimes Trenitalia translates their terms in very confusing ways.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17440 posts
You and your wife will only be together in a private 2-bed compartment if you choose the "complete Compartment" option. If you choose the "Double Seat Compartment" and then "man," you will each get a bed in a 2-person all-male compartment. Not only will you not be together, your wife will be pretty embarassed. Apparently the mini fare is offered only for beds in the shared unisex compartments on that date. The mini fare for the private (matrimonial) compartments is either not offered or is already gone.
Posted by
OP
New York
4 posts
Thank you for the response you certainly sound as if you know how this works. I would be interested in what you make of the fact that, when I try to make a dummy reservation for two passengers under the "Double Seat Compartment Man" rubric, I get two beds that appear to be in the same compartment, i.e., seats 32 and 36 in Coach 2. Or am I interpreting this wrong? See below. Many thanks. Train: Espresso 1963 date 07/04/2012 from Roma Termini 23:35 to Siracusa 11:20 Class: 2ª | Passenger/s: 2 | Double seat compartment (Male) - Coach: 2 Seat: 32 , 36 Fare: Mini (Adults:1) 65,00€ ; Mini (Adults:1) 77,00€ Night ticket names for train Espresso 1963 date 07/04/2012
Fare: Mini - Adult; Coach: 2; Seat: 32 (Low); HUSBAND Fare: Mini - Adult; Coach: 2; Seat: 36 (High); WIFE
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17440 posts
It does indeed look like they put you in the same compartment. But I wonder if this is a "male" area? When I run through it as a couple booking the whole compartment, I get seats 41 and 45. When I run through it using the "man" option, I get seats 32 and 36 like you did. Maybe someone else who has actually done this can answer better. The only time we've taken a night train was years ago, and it was an international train from Florence to Munich, so the booking was different.