ctu

Hi all,

I'm doing some research at the moment into the different trains and prices to get me from one point to the other when I am in Italy in May. I am SO CONFUSED by all the different types. Does anyone know the difference between Eurostar (ES), Eurostar City and Intercity (IC)? All the prices are different but they seem to all take the same amount of time to get to the destination. Also, I'm looking to be able to reserve seats on each of the trains. Do all 3 of these train types offer seat reservations?

I will be purchasing the train tickets when I get to Italy, but want to do my homework now so I know what I need to purchase when I get there.

Any help would be appreciated so much!

Rastaguytoday

It's actually very simple. Go to their web site and click on English at the top right. Then click on trains. There's a fairly detailed explanation.

It comes down to the ES (Eurostar) has fewer stops and is more expensive. Some of their trains are looking a tad tired.

There's a new class, Eurostar City that is brand new, so I can't comment on that.

A new class, Intercity +, makes an additional stop or two along the way, but is much cheaper. This type of train was introduced in 2005. It's clean, new train, all cars are nonsmoking. For the price of an ES second class, you can ride on an IC+ in first class. I like them a lot.

Intercity (IC)are the slower, regional trains, that stop just about every where.

Click on each type of train and you can see the types of services that are available.

To figure out your tain stops and prices, pick your to-from stations. If you're more than 90 days out, pick the same day of the week within 90 days to see the prices. Open the shopping cart in a new window to see the prices. The train number will be highlighted. Click on that to see where all the stops are. Each IC+, as an example, may have more or less stops than the IC+ that is before or after it.

nnolen

Actually, IC (Intercity) aren't that bad in terms of stops. It is the IR (interregionale) trains that will stop for towns that consist of a chicken coop and three vagabond dogs.

rkkwan

Eurostar Italia (ES*) and Alta Velocita (AV) - the latter on a couple of routes - use the new ETR 500 highspeed trainsets. They are quite comfortable and relatively spacious.

These trains can go highspeed, but only on some dedicated routes - like Naples to Rome, Rome to Florence (sort of), and Milan to Turin. On other parts of the journey, they have to stick to the lower speed the route allows. [Like very slow between Florence and Bologna.]

Intercity uses slower trains, as the routes they go are usually non-highspeed ones.

Don't know much about Eurostar City, but it seems they use newly refurbished non-highspeed trains that go from Milan to Lecce in Southeastern Italy. It'd be something between ES and IC.

Note that when I say "slow" or "non-highspeed", it's just a relative terms. Most of those trains can run up to around 120-125MPH. The ES* and AV trains can go up to 180MPH or so.

And on most routes, you don't really get a choice. If you're doing Naples-Rome-Florence-Milan/Venice, then you'll be taking ES*. On other routes, just take the fastest train on the schedule.

ira

Hi CT,

The ES* and AV trains almost always rune on time.

EC and IC+ mostly run on time.

For IC and R trains, the schedules are guidelines.

ellenem

For some of these your reserved seat is included when you buy a ticket, like ES, EC, and I think IC+. For the old IC, you can buy a reserved seat as a small additional cost to the ticket price.

Shana2055

I am trying to purchase train tickets from Venice to trieste mestre through a travel agency that we booked a cruise on. She wants to charge us $40.00 to send us the ticket. If we buy the tickets ourselves online, does Trenitalia charge to send us tickets in the US or can we pick them up on our arrival? Does anyone know this????
Thanks

ctu

Ummm... I read that you can do an online ticket and just print the confirmation. I don't know how well it will work. I'm waiting to arrive in Italy to get my train tickets.

rkkwan

According to the Trenitalia timetable, Venice to Trieste is mostly regional trains. Very frequent too.

There's really no need to buy the tickets prior.

ira

Hi Shana,

When you buy your ticket online from www.trenitalia.com choose the "ticketless" option.

You will get an email confirmation. That and your passport is all you need.

GeoffHamer

From Venezia to Trieste, trains run every hour and take about two hours. Just buy a ticket at the station and get on the next train. There is no reason whatsoever to book in advance.