Hello all!
I am someone that has NO experience with train travel at all! I am embarking on a month long adventure through Europe and I am very nervous about the train travel. I find the websites very confusing. Can anyone help with specific instructions? I would really like to thank anyone in advance who responds!

SWITZERLAND TO GERMANY
Train from Linde – Pilatus Switzerland to Mittenwald Germany, (Innsbrucker Str. 33, Mittenwald, 82481, Germany)

GERMANY TO VENICE
Train from Mittenwald Germany to Venice (Calle de le Ostreghe San Marco 2439, Venezia, Italy)

VENICE TO CINQUE TERRA
Train from Venice to
Cinque Terra, Riomaggiore (177 Ca dii Benaci)

CINQUE TERRA TO ROME
Train from Cinque Terra to Rome (Via Principe Umberto, 00185 13, Roma, Lazio 00185)

ROME TO ORVIETO
Train from Rome to Orvieto Rail Station to pick up the car

ORVIETO RAIL STATION WITH CAR TO GROSSETO (TUSCANY)
Orvieto to Via Dogana 1, 1-58036 Sassofortino (Roccastrada), Grosseto, Toscana, Italy.

Swiss: www.sbb.ch
German www.bahn.de
Italian www.trenitalia.it

Your Italian trains will be a mixture of high speed (AV,ES) and slow (R) trains. The faster trains are sold reserved seat only, but the slow R trains don't have reserved seats. You must validate R tickets before boarding the train. I would not buy R tickets online in advance as they have more restrictions than bought at the train station or from a travel agency.

You can find advance purchase discounts on most of the online sites.

Thank you so much for the information kybourbon!!

I'm no train expert but you can also go to the local train station and buy them there. I've done this several times, when I added something on to my plans, once I was already in Europe. Just went a couple day before I wanted to travel, stood in line, talked with a clerk at the counter, bought the ticket.

You can probably buy all the tickets at the first station, especially if it is fairly large and has a travel agency desk of sorts.

If you are initially flying into Zurich or Geneva you can do it in those stations.

As always, the font of all rail knowledge is www.seat61.com