I have been trying to purchase train tickets on the Trenitalia site since 6/8 and have not been successful. Someone suggested the Italia Rail website and I am just about ready to try them, but I wanted to see if anyone can comment on them first. I hate to spend $630 without knowing for sure that other people have been happy with their service and the tickets were real.

So, can anyone comment on this company?

I may be wrong, but I think Italia Rail adds a huge mark-up to Trenitalia's fares.

I thought they would add a huge markup also, but they are quoting $630. The Trenitalia price is 439 Euros. Not much difference if you are looking at a $1.43 exchange rate.

What are you getting for $630? That is a nice chunk of money. Point to point tickets in Italy are very reasonable so
unless your price is for several people and includes great distances it seems like
a lot to pay.
www.budgeteuropetravel.com was recommended
on this site regarding rail questions 800 441-9413. Maybe they
can help you. At least maybe you could
speak with a living person.

Hi Roaming,

It only cost me $28 more to book Italia Rail than booking through Trenitalia. My ticket arrived within 2 days by DHL and I noticed the Italia Rail company is out of Newton, MA, according to the receipt. We leave on Monday and am SO relieved I don't have to worry about train tickets anymore!!!!

Personally, I would suggest that unless you're buying tickets for a real popular route, you buy your tickets in Italy. It's relatively easy to do...but that's just my personal opinion.

Hi R,

>I have been trying to purchase train tickets on the Trenitalia site since 6/8 and have not been successful. <

What has been happening?

What is the itinerary?

Are you trying to book more than 60 days away?

To answer some of the questions, I am trying to purchase tickets for 4 adults and 2 children on an overnight train from Cefalu to Rome on July 9th. I am trying to select the 3 bed compartments. I get everything all selected and get to the payment screen and once I type in my credit card information I get either "cannot contact server" or "payment denied" errors. I have tried several different credit cards and I have even called the card companies to verify there is nothing wrong with my accounts and to inform them of the transaction I am attempting to make. They have all said that they do not see any attempts showing up on my accounts.

I have faxed trenitalia but they do not respond. I have trired creating new trenitalia accounts with different emails but nothing works.

I think I will go ahead and use the Italia Rail site in the morning. It is just inconvenient to have to make sure someone is home to sign for a delivery from them.

Thanks everyone.