My boyfriend and I are going to France this summer. We arrive in Paris and want to get to Italy and are planning on purchasing an overnight train ticket (Paris- Florence). The ticket is labeled "Private double cabin- full fare." Does this mean we have to share a cabin or will we have the cabin to ourselves? Has anyone found any other overnight trains that are reliable besides the Euro Rail passes? Please share with us your experiences!

You would have a double to just the two of you.

It's probably much cheaper to fly. Easy Jet flies Paris Orly to Pisa which is only a 6€ train ride from Florence (about 60 minutes).
http://www.easyjet.com/asp/en/book/index.asp?lang=en

For budget flights in Europe:
www.skyscanner.net
www.whichbudget.com

>>>Has anyone found any other overnight trains that are reliable besides the Euro Rail passes?<<<

Each country has their own train system (it's not Euro Rail which is a pass seller) so you don't have a choice of train companies. A rail pass does not include your sleeping compartment on an overnight train nor does it include seats (mandatory) on any of the faster Italian trains.

The Italian rail company is Trenitalia.
http://www.trenitalia.com/cms/v/inde...0080a3e90aRCRD

Berths are sold individually. So if you booked two tickets in a 6-berth couchette, you'd get two of the six berths.

But if you book a Double Sleeper (2-bed compartment) then you'll get a 2-berth sleeper all to yourselves.

You can see what these sleepers look like in the photos at the bottom of the page on www.seat61.com/Italy.htm. There's also a virtual tour at www.artesia.eu

The cheapest way to buy tickets is at www.tgv-europe.com , the official French Railways English-language website, it's often much cheaper than raileurope.com for this train, but if you're from the USA, make sure you select 'Canada' or 'Great Britain' NOT 'United States' to avoid being bumped to Rail Europe.

Flying wouldn't be nearly as much of an experience, it wouldn't be centre to centre so you'd need to pay for taxis or trains oput to the airports, you'd then need an extra hotel night, etc etc.

The scenery is nice along the River Yonne as night falls, take a picnic and bottle of wine with you to eat and drink in your compartment, then you wake up in Italy, with completely different scenery and houses and trees...

And no need to go through all that unnecessary arport security stress!

for lots of great info such as answers to OP's questions check out these fab IMO sites - www.seat61.com - Man in Seat 61 who posts above, his web site, and also www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com. If you book thru RailEurope do so thru www.seat61.com's link to RailEurope as then Man in Seat 61 will get a cut - deservedly so IMO.

If you decide to take the night train, don't wait until you get to Paris to buy your tickets. Popular night trains can sell out weeks in advance. Book your tickets now at www.tgv-europe.com. To keep the site in English and to avoid being bumped to the Rail Europe site, choose Great Britain as your country of residence. Pick up your tickets at any SNCF station or ticket boutique in Paris.

Is that your only train trip - are you under 26 - if no for the first and yes for ther 2nd then investigate either the Eurail Select Youthpass or a France-Italy Eurail Youthpass - with the pass you pay 28 euros on this night train for the cheaper sleeping option - pass paying for the train fare but not sleeping costs.