leej06

Hi everyone,
My husband and I are going to travel to Italy the first time. We will be going to several cities in Italy. Train will be our main public transportation to travel to city to city. We don't know any Italian. So, I am very worry if we don't understand anything when we get to the train station. I saw from another traveler's trip report saying they usually tell you the track number 15 min before the train is leaving. I am afraid they will only announce or post in Italian. If that is the case, how would we know. Can anyone share their experience traveling by train in Italy with me?

Thank you so much!

pavfec

Your best bet is to get a guidebook with a phrase section that will give you the Italian for &quot;track&quot;, &quot;destination&quot;, etc. Although I can't imagine you wouldn't understand <i>anything</i> on the boards. I'm sure it's easy to deduce the destination, time of departure and track number.

willit

It depends on the station. Some large stations may have announcements in English, but I would not expect it to bee the norm.

Destinations are frequently shown on television screens alongside the platform.

missypie

If I were you, if you don't want to book your tickets in advance, at least print out the times, fares, etc. of the trains you want to take. Then, if you end up being charged a fare that is twice what you thought it would be, that would give you a hint that something was wrong.

We booked all of our train tickets advance except a day trip to Pisa. On the way there we booked 5 tickets,no problem. On the way back, the lady gave us the special family rate, where our youngest was free. It was nice of her to do (unlike the first lady) because I wasn't able to ask for it.

Neopolitan

I don't quite understand the problem. If you are going to Venice it will say Venezia, or if going to Rome it will say Roma, but that shouldn't be too hard to figure it out, should it? And if it shows 15 after it, that means it leaves from track 15. Numbers work the same in both languages.

Meanwhile make sure you understand the 24 hour clock. The afternoons and evenings have 12 hours added. In other words 1 PM is shown as 13:00, and so on.

I think even if I understood Italian I wouldn't be able to comprehend those garbled and echoing announcements they make in the train stations.

ira

Hi lee,

Dinna fash y'sel (as the Scots say).

There will be ticket agents who speak English.

You should learn &quot;Good Morning&quot;, &quot;Good Evening&quot;, &quot;Hello&quot;, &quot;Goodbye&quot;, &quot;Please&quot;, &quot;Thank you&quot;, the days of the week and the months of the year in Italian.

The message boards will give the name of the destination city, the number of the train, the time it is scheduled to leave and the track number.

Note, if you are taking a train from Rome to Florence, the train will likely continue to another city. Look for the train number on your ticket and the time of departure.

Have a nice visit.

hopscotch

Upcoming train departures, up to an hour or two in advance, are posted on large boards in the main trains stations. These boards look like the old style airline departure boards that we used to have in the USA.

All train departures are also posted on buff or yellow posters in all train stations. These posters cover the entire day, from 00:00 to 24:00. Station schedules are posted in the 24 hour clock system.

Individual tracks are posted with the time for the next departure of a train from that track, the destination cities, type of train, and train number.

I suggest that you get schedules off the web before you leave. Or buy a copy of the Thomas Cook Rail Timetable at
www.thomascookpublishing.com. And learn some basics about using the trains at
www.enjoy-europe.com/hte/chap17/rail.htm.

ahotpoet

Let's get you started.
You will see and hear the word &quot;Binario&quot;. It means track.

leej06

Thanks everyone for the suggestion so far.

I am thinking to purchase train tickets before we leave US. I just read some trip reports and heard someone mentioned that sometimes they change track number at the last min.

My husband's friend just came back from Italy. She said it happened to her and her boyfriend. Good thing her boyfriend is Italian, but he still get frustrated with the last min change. So, i am more concern about the last min change and I won't be able to understand anything. Otherwise, I know it is not hard to understand the post and train ticket.

ira

Hi lee,

The last second track change will be posted on the message board.

A similar thing happened to me and my Lady Wife in Germany, of all places.

The railroad agent kept telling me that the train would arrive on track X, where we were, even though it was 10 min late.

Fortunately, I was able to comprehend the announcement, in German only, that our train would be leaving from track Y in 2 min.

It was a scene from a movie.

How do you women run so fast in heels?

missypie

I just read someone's trip report where they were in Italy and the track was changed at the last minute but the announcement was only in Italian.

Just be a polite &quot;pest&quot; to one or more people. We became very nervous while waiting for our Rome to Florence train....10 minutes before departure time, no track posted. We stopped someone who looked like an employee...were told the train was late. In a few mintues they posted a later departure time. Still no track. We stopped someone who looked like an employee, they said not to worry. About 5 minutes before the departure time, the track number was posted on the board and we made the train.

You won't be the only one waiting. Chat with others. If the Italian folks waiting seem to be running toward a track, find out why.

You'll be totally fine unless you just stand there until you're the only one around.

SeaUrchin

I agree, absolutely do not assume that what you read is what will happen.

http://goitaly.about.com/od/italytra...n/a/trains.htm

FainaAgain

The problem with a foreign language is not in learning a few polite phrases - trust me on that! The problem is when you say something - anything! in any language! - you get bombarded with a fast reply which you will never comprehend.

Leej, to be on a safe side, print your destination on a piece of paper and show to everybody who'd look at it. They will point (push ) you in the right direction.

Make sure you always have a pen and paper with you.

Edmundus

I remember being in Milan main station many years ago when I asked for a ticket to Florence. The reply was &quot;There is no Florence in Italy&quot;. Then I remembered that it was really Firenze and I got my ticket. Another interesting point about Italian railways is that you must have your ticket validated by a machine beside the platform before you board the train. That got me into a spot of bother but I did not pay the penalty requested in the end.