Barb

My plans to use the trains in Italy in March are as follows: 1 round trip Roma/Napoli (to see Pompeii), 1 one-way Roma/Firenze, and 1 one-way (different day)Firenze/Venezia <BR><BR>I have accessed the web site www.trenitalia.it and found that for Roma/Napoli the ES* 1st class fare is 32,54 each way, and the fare on the IC is 22,21 1st class each way. The trip time is actually a few minutes shorter on the IC.<BR>The Roma/Firenze is similar: 29,80 for IC, and 42,35 for ES*. I find only ES* for direct fast train Firenze/Venezia.<BR>There will be two of us traveling.<BR>The other option I have found is a rate of $162/person for 3 days 1st class train and two days rental car. I might consider this option, as we will have 4 days in Firenze and might be glad for the flexibility of a car, if the parking (for the two nights in Florence) is not going to blow the savings.<BR>Can someone offer comments on the above and also tell me what other fees will be charged on the train, such as reservations? Where are you Walter, Bob the navigator, and Rex?

robin-k

Barb:<BR><BR>I've been on both Eurostar and Intercity trains in Italy. Given your options & assuming budget constraints, I'd rather travel in second class on an ES train than first class on IC. ES is more comfortable and reliable on departure/arrival times. I buy my tickets once in Italy, either on day of travel or a few days prior. Racking my brain & just can't recall what (if any) add'l fees are charged for a seat reservation. I can't imagine that any such fee would be very much. As to any other costs, there aren't any. You may want to buy a drink or snack when you're on the train or better yet, bring your own.

Ben Haines

<BR><BR>The timetable suggests to me that usually IC trains take 7 minutes more from Rome to Naples than ES trains do. But I can?t see that the difference matters. For Rome to Florence to Venice IC are rather slower than ES, but that lets you see the countryside better, and parts are beautiful. Not all IC trains have restaurant cars, but you can choose ones that do, for example Florence SMN 1325, Venice SL 1631.<BR><BR>Six weeks ago one morning in Trieste an ES and an IC train stood either side of the platform. So I inspected both. There was almost no difference in their plan, with 2 seats one side of the passage and one the other in first class, and two and two in second. The buffet car lists looked comparable, too.<BR><BR>Please write if I can help further. Welcome to Europe.<BR><BR>Ben Haines, London<BR>

Walter

Barb: Well the little boy in me likes the ES trains because they are the fastest and look cool:~). But take either one, they are all short journeys. The ES prices on the "trenitalia" is the total price you will pay for the ticket, suppliment and seat reservation. On the IC prices (ticket, suppliment) just add ~3 euro if you want a seat reservation. Regards, Walter

Barb

Is it only the ES* that requires a seat reservation, or does the IC require one also?

Santa Chiara

Train reservations on IC are optional but highly recommended. Good chance of standing the entire trip without them. Somewhat better chance of actually being to occupy your seat if you do have reservations, although not always a guarantee.

Walter

Santa Chiara: Re: Another post of yours about the new ES tickets. The ES tickets are now like airline tickets? only valid on the exact train/time you bought them for, is that correct? I believe in the past that a ticket was valid for 2 months, if you missed your train you only gave-up the seat reservation. And could either jump on another ES train and take a vacant seat or go back to the window and buy another seat reservation. My question is, if you now miss your ES train is the ticket void (which I hopefully doubt or can you just go back to the ticket window and pay a penalty and get re-issued a new ticket or could you use that ticket to take the next cheaper train like an IC or one of the slower multi-stop regional trains by just hopping on? I'd like to know in just case I oversleep for my 0610 ES Rome-Naples on Mar7:~) TIA Regards, Walter

Santa Chiara

Bravo, Walter, your instincts are correct. Yes, the tickets are like airline reservations (good analogy). If you miss your train, you have 24 hours to exchange them for a fee of 8 euros I believe. You can change your tickets before your original train reservations with no fee, up to 24 hours. In other words, you can change your ticket, for instance, two days ahead with no penalty, but once you enter that critical 24-hour period, you pay a small penalty. After that, if I am translating correctly, you lose everything. <BR><BR>They have brochures about this system (only in Italian, of course), which I tossed. If my information is incorrect, I will repost after I reread the instructions. <BR><BR>Good luck, and have a great time on your trip.

GAC

The new policy concerning changing reservations for seats of ES* trains is explained fully on the website for trenitalia.it (In Italian)

Tania

We found the Intercity trains just fine. <BR><BR>In retrospect, I would make reservations in high season or if travelling during the late afternoon. We did stand from Verona to Padua, no bog deal, but there were fold down seats in the halls for the fortunate.