I am having a hard time understanding how to make train reservations and how early i need to make them. Thus far I can find that certain trains (say from Malpensa Airport to Venice Santa Lucia) require "compulsory reservations" but do not offer a means to reserve them. So far all that I can figure is that you have to make the reservations via a touch screen terminal at any train station/ airport while in Italy. My main 2 questions are: 1.) Is there a way to book reservations online beforehand?
2.) What kind of advance reservation is needed for these trains and could I wait until landing in Italy to reserve my seats? Thank you ahead of time for any advice/help!
Posted by
Grand Falls-Windsor, NL, Canada
307 posts
Stefan, I recommend using The Man in Seat Sixty One for everything you ever wanted to know about the train system in Europe. It has tons of information, including specifics related to Italy, how to make reservations, etc, etc. See the Italy page for details that should help answer your questions. As a last resort, you can simply pay the reservation fee on the train when you show your railpass, although this will be a bit more expensive ( I learned that one the hard way...lol ).
Posted by
Texan in CA
4415 posts
RonInRome has some info on this; notice the option "Global Pass" on the pictures of the screens. His info is always up-to-date; there's a lot of good stuff on his website! Also, upon arrival in Italy you can hand over a list of desired reservations to a ticket agent at a window; I'd suggest a time and place that isn't so terribly busy, if possible. Generally, you should be able to wait until you're there to make reservations. If you're flexible with which trains you take, and don't need (over)night train reservations, you should be fine. For overnight trains, I'd really suggest going to Rail Europe for those; they sell out quickly in advance, so I wouldn't advise waiting until I arrived in Italy!
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23626 posts
A couple of other points. All trains except regional in Italy require a seat reservation so don't forget. Very expensive if you do. Your pass will NOT be good for the Leonard Express from the airport to Termini unless you have a first class pass. Since train rarely, if ever, fill up you can wait till the day of travel to get a reservation.