we are trying to determine the time involved with rail travel from venice to florence and florence to rome. Also, any comments on the satsfaction of these trips?

Several sources for this info. Try www.der.com, or the Rick Steves Guide to Rail Passes (www.ricksteves.com). I have found these 2 to be the easiest.<BR><BR>Anne

I usually consult www.trenitalia.com or www.raileurope.com (but do NOT actually buy here - - hefty price mark-up). For more complicated itineraries, www.railsaver.com is also a good website.<BR><BR>This is a flagship "milk run" for Trenitalia - - and it is an excellent ride. First class white tablecloth dining (a little bit overpriced) along the way (Venice to Florence) if you choose.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

rex,<BR>so where do you actually purchase the train tickets if you do not purchase from those two websites?<BR><BR>What do you mean by "milkrun" between venice and florence? Is this a special run?<BR>

The reference library of a city near you may have the Thomas Cook European Timetable. Table 620 has your trains. On the Eurostar fast trains with supplement and restaurant car that Rex describes, Venice to Florence takes 2 hours 50 minutes and Florence to Rome 1 hour 35 minutes. On InterCity trains, with much lower supplement, and only some with restaurant cars, Venice to Florence takes 3 hours 6 minutes, and Florence to Rome 2 or 2 ½ hours. You see that the supplement buys you just 16 minutes to Florence. It saves you half an hour or an hour from Florence, but it is just on this route that you have fine views of the Appenines, which flash by on the Eurostar. So I suggest Venice Santa Lucia 1329, InterCity restaurant car train, Florence 1722 (or Venice Mestre 0941, IC restaurant car train, Florence 1235), then Florence 1217, IC restaurant car train, Rome 1416. To trundle through the scenery and see it well you can take a packed meal on the Direct train from Florence at 1109 to Rome at 1446, and hourly.<BR><BR>Ben Haines, London<BR>

Purchase at any train station - - I posted also on "your" thread about reservations.<BR><BR>By "milk run", I mean that it operates frequently, and it is like the Washington-New York run in the US - - the most heavily traveled. But because of that, they add as many cars as necessary to ensure that they meet the demand (I think).<BR><BR>And I also mean that it is the route most used by tourists. So that ticket agents have dealt with travelers who speak no Italian a lot for this route. You are not getting off the "beaten path" with this route. It isn't difficult like trying to go between two obscure points on a complicated connection.<BR>