ie will be going to italy for the first time on oct 24 for 12 days. My question relates to buying a railpass ahead of time from my AAA travel agent with my tickets and suying ticketseats confirmed versus buying tickets as i go. I need to know the pros and cons of both. if i miss a scheduled departure with my railpass i can make another reservation and having the peace of mind i already have confirmed first class seats. From what i have heard buying as i go is easy that time of year and gives me more flexibility regarding departure times. please advise
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23626 posts
Especially for the Italian trains, the difference between first and second class is marginal. I would opt for 2nd class.
Posted by
Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
A lot of the pass vs P2P question is dependent on where you are traveling in Italy. In most cases, the pass is more expensive. The reason is that you will pay an 18Euro fee for seat reservations for every Eurosar-category train that you will board. This makes your pass more expensive than you thought. Buying tickets in advance from your AAA travel agent will cost you more as well. Also, IMHO, 1st class is not worth the extra cost in Italy.
In reality, you won't arrive with a pocket full of reservations. You'll arrive with a pocket full of tickets. The higher category trains will have date, time, train number and seat reservation information. The lower R-Train category will have no such information. It's an open ticket. You shouldn't have problems with missed trains but if you do, you have three hours after the train departs to re-do the reservation. There may be a small fee involved. If you know that you will miss the scheduled train in advance, you can change the reservation in advance.
Posted by
dallas, tx, usa
1358 posts
I have been in all parts of Italy in Oct and Nov. You wont need reservations that time of year. Friends have advised me to compare cost of pass with point2point tickets before deciding.
You can do that on the net. I have always found the pass more costly. But it will depend on the number of days you will actually use the pass. When you buy a 10 day pass and use it only 2 days, you are not wise.
You need the flexibility when traveling so you can change plans without suffering.
Posted by
Lake Forest, CA, USA
1633 posts
Here's some info in reference to seat reservations. Using Rick's website, click on "Plan Your Trip". On the left side of the screen, under "Travel Essentials" click on Deutsche Bahn. On this page, under #1, click on the Detsche Bahn website. Once you are there (forgive me if you already know how to do this), enter a sample train itinerary. I put in a Rome to Florence trip for Oct. 28. You will then get info on trains for that particular day and at the time you put in. Under the heading "Products" you might see a red circle with an "R" inside of it. This refers to a "compulsory reservation". This symbol means you have to have a reservation. If you get on the train without one, the conductor will fine you and sell you a seat reservation. When viewing this page, you can click on "later" (on the bottom of the schedules) to see if there is a later train where you do not have to have a reservation (maybe a slower, regional train). Often times, the early morning and evening trains require the reservations. However, as mentioned by a previous poster, generally all ES and IC trains in Italy have a compulsory reservation requirement. Now, back to railpasses versus P2P tickets. If you have a railpass, and the train you want to go on has a compulsory reservation requirement, you have to purchase a seat and pay extra $ for it. If you buy P2P tickets, you automatically get a seat reservation--doesn't cost you extra $$. I'm not sure if this answers your question. Hope it helps in planning your train trips. By the way, I print out these train itineraries and take them with me. If you click on the "Details for All", you will get a list of all stops that train makes. You can use this to keep track of when you should get off the train. Have fun!
Posted by
Edmonds
20 posts
No real reason to buy a rail pass for Italy. Most of your train travel will be in short bursts (just a supposition) and very few trains in Italy are going to make a rail pass even seem desirable, especially with surcharges.
If you do feel the need to book a ticket (which you might consider for eurostar italia lines), use trenitalia's website. Most legs (once again, just assuming) will have many trains per day, allowing you to just choose the time you see fit once you're there.
Posted by
The Hague, NL (AMS)
2207 posts
Just buy P2P once you arrive, in advance if you want to save more $$ (Amica class tickets)! There will plenty of seats available and your travel time will be more flexible and enjoyable!!!We NEVER have any trouble catching a train to anywhere...
Don't worry about missing a train, another one will probably be along within the hour to most locations! So i would not consider pre-buying, don't over-plan, and and enjoy your travel experience!
Ciao,
Ron