Paris to Venice

http://www.seat61.com/Italy.htm This is a great site that deals with train travel from the UK to Italy, but has a substantial portion on Paris-Italy and Paris-Venice. Scroll down a bit to see the details. In short; Your train is run by Thello, but can be reserved on the Trenitalia Italian rail site 120 days ahead. http://www.trenitalia.com/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=ad1ce14114bc9110VgnVCM10000080a3e90aRCRD If you order as soon as that window allows, you can get "Smart" fares in a 6-person couchette for 35Euro or 55Euro in a 4-person couchette. They might have an option for 3, but I wouldn't be too worried about sharing a couchette. Most people are pretty accommodating. As long as your expectation for sleep are modest and you are looking more for an interesting European travel experience that doesn't eat up a sightseeing day, you should be fine. You'll probably sleep, but not a normal night's sleep in such an unusual situation.

Train cabins can be quite "cozy" in terms of personal space. We booked an entire compartment for our family of 4 for our overnight train experience. Doubt you would be happy with 3 other persons in the compartment, tho only one other might not be so bad, I personally would not like it. Take earplugs & an eyemask, and snacks/ beverages.
Wear something comfortable!

There are 3-bed compartments on the night train. If you book in advance, you can get a Go fare of €112/person. However, Trenitalia allows booking up to 90 days in advance, not 120. Thello offers booking up to 120 days in advance, but you have to be able to handle French.

Tim is correct. Thello 120 days in French, Trenitalia 90 days in English. I would be tempted to use google translate to use the Thello site if I was after an early discount fare...or find a French-speaking friend.

Thank you Randy and TIm, this is perfect. One more question about the sleeper train. I have heard on some threads that there could be a problem with security if you sleep in a couchette with out a locking door. Any thoughts ?
Shelley

Couchette and sleeper doors lock from the inside. However, if you share the couchette with strangers, it's a good idea to sleep with your valuables. All couchettes are the same size. The only difference is in how many bunks are pulled down. If you choose a four-person couchette, you'll have more room for both people and luggage.

Personally, the lack of decent sleep on the train makes me miserable the next day. I vote for a quick, cheap, intra-Europe flight. Less than 2 hours to fly.

Yes, I am on the fence about choosing a couchette with one stranger, or a 3 person sleeper. Kathy, part of the reason for a night train is the novelty. Especially for my daughter. Us americans have some trains but it seems we are always flying everywhere. I was thinking earplugs and a Benadryl? I suppose we could take a day train and see the countryside.
Lovin all the feedback here, thanks everyone.

Shelly,, get your husband, and your daughter, and all go and stand in your bathroom, or walk in closet,, now, imagine all that togetherness for hours and hours,, its not quite as romantic as it seems lol,, I think a daytime train is a better idea,,you can pack a nice picnic( actually I recomend that, train food is not much better then plane food, theres not super dining car like on the Orient Express anymore!) and see the countryside..
Myself, I would fly.

Shelley, night trains can be fun and romantic. I think people are being unusually grumpy about them in this thread. You may or may not sleep well, and that is something worth considering, but otherwise it's a perfectly reasonable, even exciting, thing to. Your call in other words.

Consider for a moment the typical flight across the ocean - a 6-10 hour flight departing late in the evening and arriving early in the morning; Consider how desperate you feel for sleep and how much you would give for a chance at one of those little uber-first-class capsule things that allow you to lie flat. Every one of us here would do almost anything (except pay $5000 extra) for that kind of chance at sleep - even if it's not a great night's sleep - just sleep. No matter that the drone of the plane engines is loud. No matter that there will still be people up and about. No matter that you don't really have any privacy. No matter that there might be a baby crying or a man snoring down the isle. Nothing matters but the blessed opportunity to lay horizontally. But we can't. Most of us can't possibly afford that "luxury" - luxury only in comparison to the alternative - sitting upright in a cramped coach seat. Now consider that a train couchette ticket bought early enough could even be cheaper than sitting in a seat on a day train - so cheap that it's cheaper than a hotel room - essentially making the transportation aspect of the trip absolutely free. Yet this is considered somehow a wee bit "low-brow", probably in comparison to a cushy night's sleep in a hotel. Now, it seems to me that it's all too easy to develop a rather warped perspective of what is luxury and what is low-brow. No one ought to be criticized for what they prefer for themselves. But giving advice to others requires an attempt to walk in their shoes, not our own.

The only way to find out if you like night trains is to try one. Just don't plan anything too taxing the next day. I personally cannot sleep on them. I've taken quite a few (mostly in 6 bed couchettes, once in a 2 bed sleeper). Since the advent of cheap flights, I never take them anymore.

night trains can be fun and romantic. I think people are being unusually grumpy about them I used to think that, too. I've used them several times around Europe (and the US in a former life). I don't sleep well, I wake up at every bang crash wallop, slow down, big noise or light in my eyes. I don't use them any more. YMMV

Nigel's story is suggestive. He used to like night trains when he was new to travel. Now he's been around and the novelty and romance have faded for him. I think an inexperienced traveler who wants to try one should. As new travelers become experienced ones they can then decide for themselves. The same principle applies to lots of new experiences. You may eventually discover you do not care for Renaissance chateaux, but first you visit some anyway to find out. You try the snails and the stinky cheeses. By the way, lots of people do sleep on night trains all the time.

How is a night train romantic,, with a kid and possibily a stranger less then 2 feet away from you? Perhaps we have differing ideas on what is romantic! lol I also don't think its low brow, I think it's over romanticisized( we all remember the Orient Express!) and often no cheaper then flying, in fact, it can be cheaper to fly depending on when you buy tickets. The cheapest tickets available are often quoted on trains, but that is not for a private 2 berth cabin, plus, the bathroom is always down the hall, and that is never romantic! I am not anti train though, I love taking a daytime train , seeing the countryside as I roll through it( even the sometimes grubbier areas as one enters a large suburban area|) and enjoying a packed picnic,, but my personal limit is about 5-6 hours.