We are traveling from Rome to Venice the first week of Sept. Want to get there reasonably fast...looks like 4-5 hours...Understand from reading other posts that you can make the reservation at See http://www.trenitalia.com/en/index.html Is it advisable to make the reservation in advance? In reading Rick's book, he says to do it when you arrive at the train station. That gives the most flexibility in case plans change, but can trains fill up? We have to be in Venice and checked in for an evening tour. Alan
Posted by
Sidney, BC, Canada
981 posts
Trenitalia's web site shows the trip from Rome Termini to Venice as being 3.5 - 4.00 hour by the fast express. The train runs every hour so you should be able to get seats relatively easily without prebooking. Just bear in mind that it is often cheaper to book in advance (fares ranged from 39 to 49 Euros on my quick look at the site). Just be careful to put in the proper Italian city names - Roma and Venezia and know which station in Rome you will be leaving from (presumably Terminii). There are other trains but they involve changes en route.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32353 posts
Alan, Using the Freccia (fast) trains, the travel time is 3H:48M. It's a very quick trip, especially with the train moving at ~300 kmH! Those trains all have compulsory reservations, which are included with the ticket cost. You'll be assigned a Car No. (Carrozza) and a Seat No. (Posti). In some cases, the trains on that route leave about every half hour. I normally buy my tickets at the station a day or two before I'll be travelling using the ticket Kiosks. It is possible to get significant savings by booking "Super Economy" tickets on the Trenitalia website. However, those usually sell out WELL in advance. That also "locks you into" a particular train and departure time. If you miss that train for any reason, you'll likely have to buy new tickets at full price. Regarding pre-booking tickets on the Trenitalia website, some members here have reported a few "issues" with the website. You may find it very helpful to read the excellent Ron In Rome website. Note that many cities have more than one rail station. You'll be departing Roma Termini and arriving at Venezia Santa Lucia. Happy travels!
Posted by
Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
You can easily buy your tickets 1-2 days in advance if you are OK with the ordinary base fares. If you are willing to accept limitations on your tickets (i.e. non-refundable/non-exchangable) and you are willing to lock in on a specific train departure, on a specific date and time, you can go online now and buy the discounted tickets. They will most likely be gone by the time you travel.
Posted by
OP
Littleton, CO, United States
2 posts
thanks for the help. you gave me the confidence I needed. alan
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32353 posts
Alan, One other point to mention is that if you travel on any of the Regionale (slower) trains at any point, you MUST VALIDATE your ticket in the yellow machine prior to boarding the train. That doesn't apply to the reserved tickets (although I sometimes validate them anyway). If you're caught without the time & date stamp on your ticket, you may be fined on the spot and it won't be cheap - about €40-50 PP as I recall! You can determine the specifics of each train (ie: Regionale or Freccia) by using the German Rail or Italian Rail websites. The validation issue also applies when travelling on the Buses in Rome. The validation machine is often on the Bus. Cheers!