Trenitalia.it: I'm confused

First, all trains in Italy except the Regional (slowest) require reservations. So the price of every ticket includes the seat reservation. Not a separate charge UNLESS you are using a rail pass, then it is an extra charge. No sure I would call the process ticketless because at the end you print your ticket/receipt - whatever you want to call it - and take that to the train.

Frank, Thanks for your reply. There is no railpass involved, just p to p. I guess what I meant by reserving your seat, was just to choose the seats you desired....not really seat reservations, as I'm aware the seat reservations are included in the price of the ticket. It does give you the choice of a window, etc., seat, and I'm aware of the layout of the seats. I'm totally not sure about that Le Frecce site, either, so I'm just planning on using the regular Trenitalia site, even though tickets will be a little higher for the Mini fare @ 36 euro for each ticket...can't complain too much. At least I have the option for the "ticketless" method, for which I understand they email a confirmation/info page, which when printed-out, serves as a ticket on board the train. I'm just crossing my fingers for when we do the actual transaction that there aren't any snags along the way, and that Trenitalia accepts the credit card.

Hi all. the le frecce (sp?) option is a new additonal option within the trenitalia site that can be used for any of the high speed 'la frecce' trains. it gives a more advanced booking experience, including a window to actually see the train /seat layout as on an airliine and click on the actual seat you want although as i recall I couldn't get that feature to work. Once I noticed the le frecce booking option, I used it for the rest of my bookings that involved high speed trains and found it superior. Note that it will not show regular intercity trains such as CT to Milan.

Bob, Thanks so much. So I guess I'll give it another try to see if I can still get those 22 euro mini fares. I did look over the seat assignment diagrams, but didn't have a clue as to which seats would be best. Got any suggestions regarding that...front, center, or back of train...right side or left? Maybe do the reverse on the return trip. I'm sure facing forward would be preferrable.

Forgot this, Bob Is there a "ticketless" option on the Le Frecce site, where you use the emailed print-out on board the train as your ticket?

Hi Gina, - yes there is a ticketless option on both le frecce and regular sites, defenitely the way to go. - now i remember why i didn't use the seat picker tool. i couldn't tell which way faced forward. my advice, just let it pick your seats for you. when you get on the train, there will probably be empty seats if you want to switch. - for the le frecce trains, i'm quite sure the same fares are available on both le frecce and regular sites, so use which ever site you find easier! the only difference is that on the regular site, you have to click each train to see the discount fares, believe on le frecce site you can see them all at once.
- i used two different credit cards. for one (us bank) i first had to register that card on verify by visa site (easy took 3 minutes) . for the other (capital one) it worked immediately.

Bob, Thanks for this info. I think I'll use the Le Frecce site. I did another practice run and found the 22 euro fare for both forward and return trips, this time around. I couldn't find this on the regular Trenitalia site. This site seems a little more user friendly IMO; however, the only time I saw anything related to "ticketless" was a box to fill in your name and email address... I'm assuming this was for the ticketless mode. I'm hoping the cc portion goes smoothly, as well. Thanks for the tips and reassurance about this website, as I was totally clueless about it's purpose, and apprehensive about using it.

Ron, thanks for the link and all other info. I had been meaning to look on your website for info, but was running short on time. I am especially grateful for knowing that it's perfectly OK to check the "I do not agree" box when registering....wasn't sure if it would hinder the purchasing process. What are your thoughts on a return trip, Naples to Rome, leaving at 16:50, arriving at 18:00 on Nov. 21. Would it already be dark at that time? The earlier times were a bit higher in price, and this one is the 22 euro Mini fare. Also, I'm having problems reading the Circumvesuviana train schedules, Sorrento to Naples...not sure how to coordinate times, by not knowing what the reduced service schedules will be this time of year. Any hints there?

Gina, sounds like you're on the right path... This link, Booking on the Trenitalia Website , may give you more insight into buying tickets online and the La Frecce (The Arrow!) trains. It also explains the PNR code which is all you need when booking online. Many Italians download the info to their SmartPhone and show the conductor their PNR code this way - Good Luck!

FWIW, if you choose a particular train and click on "Continue", you'll also see any MINI (and other) fares available (including the ones you've found). Depending on the type of train, also try clicking on "More Fares" (although that only works on certain types of trains, and that type escapes me right now...when the choices are in English, and they are called "GO", "Smart", etc., you can choose from those - look carefully at the restrictions, though!). The benefit in this method is that you can see ALL trains available; often, a slightly slower (or faster - yep!) train is drastically cheaper than the 'fast' train, and this is certainly a consideration b/n Rome and Naples... (cont.)

(cont.) I agree the timetables for the Circumvesuviana trains could be better; just know that the trip takes about 1 hour b/n Naples and Sorrento, plus or minus, and about 47 mins b/n Sorrento and Herculaneum, and about 30 minutes to Pompeii. Don't forget your stop in Naples is the Garibaldi station on the Circum. train (2nd to last stop); it's below the Centrale train station. Here's the website for the Circumvesuviana: http://www.vesuviana.it/web/en/homepage At the top click on 'Timetables', then on 'PDF Timetable'. If you want to start in Naples, you probably want the Naples Garibaldi -Sorrento route. Click on 'Railway info' OR 'Stop list' under 'Railway Station' for a list of stops. Click on 'Winter Timetables' under 'Timetables available' for depature times from Naples. Make sure you pick a train actually going to Sorrento! Yep, you'll probably need Google Translate from there LOL! There's lots of info on this website under 'Schedule your trip', too - price per trip, train station facilites, what time you'll arrive at each stop on the route. You just have to play around a bit...

Eileen, Thank you for your reply. Sorry I'm so late getting back to you...been so busy the last few days.
Once the Le Frecce website was clarified, I'm no longer "confused" about that...got it under control, but was having a bit of a problem reading the winter schedule on the Circumvesuviana website. I did do a translation, and now it's fairly clear. Since the winter schedule was for the past winter, would I be safe in assuming it will be the same for the coming winter season? Thanks again for all your help.