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Traveling by train in Italy
Sat, 10/30/2004 - 10:23
worldtraveler
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Hi all,

I don’t know anything about the train system in Italy other than the fact that it’s relatively cheap and extensive. I am traveling to Italy next Oct and planning an open jaw flight (most likely into Venice and out of Rome, or vice versa depending which is cheaper). This means I will need to travel by train (I heard it’s cheaper than flying) between Rome and Venice. In addition, I am also planning to visit Florence and a few other day trip destinations (as suggested by fellow Eurotrippers!). I was wondering if there are rail passes within Italy available, considering I will need to ride the train so many times.

Thanks in advance.

Worldtraveler

Sun, 10/31/2004 - 17:33
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Yes. Click on "BUY A RAILPASS" at the top of this page and than on "Country Passes".

However a rail pass will make barely sense in Italy.
E.g. a 4 days in 2 months Italy TrenItalia Pass 2nd class is USD 191 (~ EUR 150). Thus a pass day is EUR 37,50.

Florence – Rome 2nd class is
EuroStar Italia: EUR 29,44 (1:37)
IC: EUR 24,95 (2:35)
D: EUR 14,31 (3:37)

Venice – Florence 2nd class
EuroStar Italia: EUR 26,60 (2:49)
IC: EUR 21,75 (only 3 minutes slower, but less comfort)
Here travelling with slower trains will be again much cheaper. And as this is no high speed line the difference will less striking than for Florence – Rome.

http://www.trenitali…

Fri, 11/19/2004 - 14:48
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nandafebriani
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if i may add, i dunno if the ‘goup’ ticket still applies. u could check that. if u go with a group of 4 or 5 people, u’ll have cheaper price. i think also if the destination is quite far

Fri, 11/19/2004 - 15:28
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I think nandafebriani is talking about the old "kilometric" tickets. Those no longer exist.

As Abalada says, a rail pass probably doesn’t make sense. Train tickets are cheap in Italy; the expense is the required reservations on the premium trains — and reservations aren’t covered by a railpass. On many routes you can avoid the premium trains by taking a train that’s only a few minutes slower. You can enter your itinerary (including day trips if you get creative about it) at railsaver.com Check a preference for 2nd class travel and "use a rail pass only if it saves money." It will recommend pass, point to point tickets or a combination based on what’s cheapest. A rail pass does have the advantage of avoiding ticket lines for trains that don’t require reservations.

If you register with the trenitalia site and get a password, you can charge your tickets and reservations in advance at the same price as buying them in Italy. On some routes you can print out the receipt and go "ticketless." On others you print out a confirmation number. You type that in at the kiosk in the train station and it prints out your ticket. Both the website and the kiosks are user friendly and the English instructions are very clear. I bought some tickets before I left home and others from the kiosks — sure beats waiting in line. I was in Rome in September and the lines were still miles long.