Buying Train Tickets Before I Go - yes or no?

Both strategies are correct, so you have to decide whether the money or the flexibility are more important to you. The actual routes do contribute to the equation.

• The longest routes offer the most potential advance-purchase savings, and the fewest departure options, so if you were taking a train from Munich to Venice, that's one that I would commit to in advance.
• Your routes are pretty affordable, even at full fare, such as $50 per person Venice-Florence (or advance booking could cut that in half, if that amount sounds significant to you).
• Siena to Camogli requires a few connections, mostly by regional trains that don't offer advance discounts.
• Camogli to Lauterbrunnen is a long travel day with connections, but most of it not offering advance discounts.
• Depending on the length of your stay in Switzerland, you might want a Swiss Travel Pass, such as the version for 3 or 4 consecutive days, which would kick in when you cross the border from Italy.

If your not held to any schedule I would buy as I go, but on my planned trip to Italy in May I went ahead got the train tickets from Milan to Monterosso online because we wanted assigned seats in first class. Usually I always just go buy the ticket on the day of travel but we are going to be on a tight schedule and I don't want to get stuck in a long line at the ticket counter or the ticket machines.

I'm not going to advise you per travel outside of Germany/Austria/Switzerland. However,

From Salzburg, I'm assuming " a trip two two" means a trip for two. If you don't mind using regional trains from Atnang-Puchheim to Salzburg, you can get an Einfach-Raus-Ticket from Austrian Rail for 33€, which is valid for travel for 2-5 people all day on regional trains.

Salzburg to Munich, use a Meridian Guten-Tag-Ticket, 26€ for two, for regional trains between Salzburg and Munich. They're only about a half hour slower, and depending on when you want to leave Salzburg, could get you to Munich sooner.

Both tickets can be purchase for that price at the station on the day of travel.

Judy,

One question to begin with - how are you planning to get from Munich to Venice?

I won't comment on the trains in Austria and Germany as you've already received great advice on those. However some comments on the others....

• Venezia S. Lucia to Firenze S.M. Novella - you can save some money with advance purchase Super Economy or Economy tickets, but the fast trains have compulsory seat reservations so you must be willing to commit to a specific train, date and departure time. If you want more flexibility, just buy the tickets at the station in Venice, either from a Kiosk or staffed ticket office. If bought locally, you'll likely be paying Base Fare, which is the highest pricing tier.
• Florence to Siena - this is easier by Bus as you'll be dropped in the main part of town in Piazza Gramsci rather than at the bottom of the hill where the station is located. The Bus station in Florence is only a short distance from Firenze S.M. Novella rail station. The Corse Rapide (Express) Bus only takes about 1H:15M on that route. DON'T forget to validate your Bus ticket before boarding.
• Siena to Camogli-S. Fruttuoso - that trip is going to be at least 4.5 hour with 3 or 4 changes. Many of the trains will be Regionale so it's just as easy to buy the tickets there as there won't be any savings with advance purchase tickets, and the savings will be minimal on the one fast train you may use. DON'T forget to validate Regionale tickets prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or you'll risk hefty fines! I'd suggest buying the tickets a few days before travel.
• Camogli-S. Fruttuoso to Lauterbrunnen - this trip will be a bit longer. One of the shortest solutions is a departure from Camogli at 08:30, arriving Lauterbrunnen at 14:56 (time 6H:26M, 5 changes). Many of the other solutions are considerably longer. The simplest method would be to just buy the tickets from Camogli to Spiez at a local station in Italy, a day or two before the trip. If you want to save some money, buy advance tickets (I'm not sure the savings will be that much). From Spiez to Lauterbrunnen, I'd just buy the tickets when you arrive in Spiez (I've done that in the past). There won't be any discounts on the Swiss portion of that journey, unless you're travelling with one of the Swiss passes such as the Half Fare card.
• Lauterbrunnen to Basel - Buy tickets locally at the station. It's very easy.

You can see all the train details at the Bahn.de and Trenitalia websites.

Since your hotels are already reserved, the only flexibility you have is the time of day to take the train. How much difference can that make? You can go in the morning directly from your hotel or you can go later after returning to your hotel to pick up your bags. Unless you take a train that arrives late at night, you'll have to go to your new hotel to drop off your bags before going out to sightsee or eat. You can plan to have a picnic meal on the train. Just make sure you allow enough time to get from your hotel to the train. Allow for traffic and a few minutes in the station to find your train. For instance, your hotel in Florence is probably going to be just a few minutes by taxi (maybe even just a few minutes on foot). But it can take an hour to get to the Venice train station from the Dorsoduro or San Marco by waterbus - and taxis are exorbitantly expensive.

If you wait to buy tickets, you'll need [1] to make a trip to the train station to buy tickets a day or more in advance; or [2] use a secure internet connection to buy tickets online; or [3] wait in line at the station before getting your train; or [4] buy your next ticket when you arrive at the station.

If [1], you have to make a special trip to the station. If [2] you may put your credit card infomation at risk if the connection isn't secure and you may need a printer. If [3], you need to allow plenty of time at the station before your chosen train leaves. Ticket lines can be long, even at ticket machines (which don't always take cash and may not accept your credit card). If [4], you have to choose your next train before you've started exploring the new town, so you probably won't know any better then than you do now just what time of day you want to travel.

I'm always one to buy train tickets as soon as they become available. To me, this is an expense that I can cover before landing in Europe, lessening the "sticker shock" during the trip. Psychologically, buying the tickets ahead of time means that I have one less detail to worry about as well.

Sounds like a great trip!

That's an easy one for me, planning-wise. While I can be spontaneous as I wander around over the course of the day, my cities, my lodging and my internal transfers are always booked from home. I just find it less stressful to have all my ducks in a row when I set out from Tacoma. I'm completely fine with committing myself to specific trains.

First off, you are all so kind, thank you for your answers and further questions. Here are my answers/thoughts:

Laura: I believe I will commit to Venice-Florence ahead of time to save the money. Regarding the Swiss Travel Pass - good idea, that is another topic I need to post about. I need to get advice on whether that makes sense for us, look for my post!

Donald: Thanks for the comment about long lines at ticket counters; that is one of my worries. But if I get a ticket ahead of time, don't I often have to reserve a seat anyway, which requires standing in a line? When are reservations made? I am uninformed on this point.

Lee: Sorry about the "trip two two" typo, I was mortified when I saw that later. In any case, the information about the Einfach-Raus-Ticket is wonderful. Is that good on IC trains as well as regional? Because I only see IC trains from Attnang-Pucheim to Salzburg. We were actually going to continue on from Salzburg to Munich late that afternoon, so that ticket would be a real moneysaver if I could use that same one. Or is it invalid for travel from Austria to Germany?

Ken: I was originally planning a night train from Munich to Venice, but we changed our minds because airfare is so cheap. So I have already purchased tickets for that leg. I will definitely buy the ticket ahead of time for Venezia to Firenze. That trip will be Monday, July 4. When will tickets go on sale? Regarding the bus from Florence to Siena, is that available ahead time, and on what site? Regarding the Camogli-S. Fruttoso to Lauterbrunnen trip: I considered buying the ticket from Milan to Spiez section ahead of time because it's an EC train, but worry the regional trains might be late. That trip is on a Sunday, July 10 so don't know if that makes a difference. Regarding Spiez-Lauterbrunnen - I am considering various Swiss passes, and will post on another topic about that. THANK YOU for your reminders to validate tickets, something I hadn't considered. You provided really great information, thanks.

Chiani: You are correct in that we don't have a lot of flexibility. I was planning to buy my next ticket when I arrive at the station, and in that case you are correct that I won't know any better than I do now. Quite honestly, I would choose all my trains now, except that I am worried that my late-sleeping teenage daughter would make us miss them!

Traylaparks and Valerie: I think I will go ahead and purchase most of the tickets, given the discussion here. I can't quite figure out when they are available. We are traveling June 29-July 14.

Thanks everyone, it is much appreciated. Judy

When you purchase a ticket for any train that requires reservations, it is only sold for a reserved date, time, and seat assignment; reservations are not a second step.

You can use the local German tickets to travel roundtrip in the same day between Munich and Salzburg (Salzburg being the designated border town).

Faster-train tickets are already available at www.trenitalia.com through early July. Some slower-train tickets may not be yet, as they work our final details of the June 12 schedule change.

Another train option between Venice and Florence is through Italo, http://www.italotreno.it/?sc_lang=en, my friend and I used them between Rome, Florence & Venice in 2014 and will be doing so again in Oct. Enjoy your trip.

The Einfach Raus Ticket is only valid for travel on regional trains inside Austria. There are hourly REX trains leaving Attnang Bhf at 56 minutes past the hour. They take 1h22m to Salzburg. Salzburg is the last stop in Austria and a border station for German Rail. They recently changed the Austrian Rail website (www.oebb.at), and I am not yet familiar with it, so all it gave me was IC trains, but if you look on the Bahn website you can see the regional trains (even in Austria). Put in Hallstatt to Munich and your date and time in Eurpean format. Open "Change other detail" and select "Only local transport" to limit the selections to regional trains.

If you use the Einfach-Raus-Ticket from Hallstatt to Munich, you should use a Meridian Guten-Tag-Ticket or a Bayern-Ticket and regional trains from there to Munich. It might be less expensive to purchase in advance, a discounted ticket from the Bahn website. Open "details" and select Salzburg Hbf as the stopover. Put in the amount of time you think you want to spend there. DO NOT CHANGE MEANS OF TRANSPORT to local, leave All checked. Then you will be offered a ticket using a regional train from Hallstatt to Attnang-Puchheim (that's all there are), an IC from Attnang to Salzburg, and a Railjet (RJ) or a EuroCity (EC) from Salzburg to Munich. That price might be less than the Einfach-Raus plus either the Guten-Tag- or Bayern-Ticket. However, be careful. You will have to take the exact IC and RJ/EC specified on the ticket.

Update: after playing with the OeBB website, I see you can specify only regional trains. When you get the listing that shows all ICs, click on the "gear" (settings?) icon. A menu will pop down, allowing you to select "Only regional trains". Click the option, then click the gear again. This time it will show you all of the regional trains leaving Attnang Bhf for Salzburg Hbf.

Hi Lee,
Thank you so much for the very detailed suggestions on the Bahn and OeBB websites, such as the "gear" icon, etc. After investigating options, you are correct that the Bahn ticket, purchased in advance with a stopover in Salzburg, is going to be the very cheapest option. I would have never figured out the stopover option without your advice. Thank you so much - and we will be certain to be on those exact trains!

I've found in the past that the stopover function actually allows you to schedule an overnight stopover for no extra fare.