My cousin and I will be traveling from Milan to Florence (1st class reserved seat) and then a rented renault mini van. We each have a 30" suitcase. Will this work??? Neither of us want to repack. Leave tomorrow.

Depends on what you mean by will it work? You cannot carry on a 30" suitcase (though many people try). You will have to check it, and if the airline doesn't lose your luggage, then it will work. I prefer to confine my packing to a 21" rolling carryon and a large purse. I carry it on going out, and usually check it and carry on my souveniers coming home, when lost luggage is not as big of a disaster. Have a nice trip.

anna, <BR>thanks for your prompt reply. We do plan to check our bags on flight over we were concerned about the train and car portion. <BR>samy

We had a 28" bag in Italy last fall. And, while it wasn't easy getting it on the train, we managed. However, you may not be able to fit it in your first-class compartment, if it's full. We were lucky in that our compartment was never filled and we could keep the bag on an empty seat. We noticed that other people left bags in the corridor outside their compartments. <BR>Sorry, I can't help you with the car question.

You may find the following to be true. After pulling a 30" suitcase up 3 floors time and time again or trying to get them into your car, you may wish you had a smaller suitcase. My wife and I have gone to 26" because they will fit in most trunks and they are not as heavy.

Fodors <BR> <BR>The suitcase I used for a month on trains in Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland is 2 inches shorter than yours. It has wheels at one corner and a handle at the other. I see no problem wheeling yours around . b I wheeled mine around stations, taxi drivers threw it into boots, and to get it up from platform to train floor level I asked any nearby muscular young man -- and up to carriage luggage racks too. <BR> <BR>Perhaps Italian trains are very crowded indeed, but in central Europe it is bad form to leave luggage in corridors: that's where people walk. I am on trains in that region every year. <BR> <BR>Please write if I can help further <BR> <BR>Ben Haines, London <BR> <BR>