Alrighty-you all convienced me that my original 9 day plan was flawed. So I'm revamping. We will arrive in Rome and spend the first 3 days there. Then we want to take the train to Venice and spend 3-4 days there. Rent a car and take a leisurely 2 day drive back to Rome through Tuscany (DH loves to drive)
So! Now I'm nervous. I'm looking at train resevations online and trying to figure out when to book-how to book-Any thoughts?? Help!

Did you try going to www.trenitalia.com? to check out the schedule and fare. Please note that you might need a reservation to do this. While in Rome, go to the Termini Station and make the reservation there if you don't feel comfortable making it online.

Since you have several days and it sounds like a flexible schedule, you can buy tickets to Venice at the train station once you are in Rome.

Hello SLC,

I just returned from my first trip to Italy which included 3 nights in Rome and Train to Venice with car rented in Venice for 1 week stay in Tuscany.

Based on invaluable advice from this board, (and they knew what at planner I was) I did NOT reserve my train tickets on line from the US. And believe me I really wanted too. Thank goodness I didn't because the time I was going to buy them for turned out to not be a good time for my mother and it would have been a pain in the butt to change them.

I waited until I got to Rome. I could have just purchased them at the train station but I really wanted to be sure we would have 1st class seats and didn't want the hassle of dealing with it at the station. One of the other board suggestions was that my hotel might be able to help me. They suggested a travel agency and I went there the day before the train trip to buy them. Not all travel agencies sell them so you have to double check.

Good luck.

ALSO: DO NOT HAVE YOUR WALLET OUT AT ANY TIME ANY WHERE NEAR THE TRAIN STATION! I MEAN DON'T EVEN LET ANYONE SEEEE YOU HAVE A WALLET. Dad had his stolen and I'm going to report on it im my trip report that is currently being written and posted in installments.

Hi SLC,

You may purchase your tickets up to 60 days in advance online from www.trenitalia.com/en for the same price as in Rome.

You can buy your tickets at the train station at FCO when you buy your ticket to Rome.

You can buy your ticket at Roma TE when you arrive in Rome.

You can buy your ticket from a travel agent in Rome.

I've used travel agents in Rome and it's been so easy. there's one by Piazza Venezia that sells train tix, but I second just asking your hotel.

I've also bought tix at the train station. A little more stressful, maybe, but not a huge deal.

Have fun!

Re train:

Check these old threads:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...p;tid=34520676

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...p;tid=34522295

There seems to be a lot of talk about booking trains in advance, online.

When I was in Italy in May 2000 (not technically high season, but it was Jubilee year), we just popped into Termini, purchased our tickets from a machine, and were done with it. It was incredibly easy.

Have things changed? Is it really necessary to book that much in advance? I've read (OK, skimmed) all the other posts, but only one or two actually seem to be as "laid back" about train ticket purchase as I think it is. As I'm heading to Italy in May, I'm starting to worry that I'll be left high and dry if I just show up at the train station and try to purchase something. Any thoughts?

Everyone is saying you can buy tickets in the train station in Rome. You can. What they're not indicating or emphasizing is that you can buy most tickets from one of the computer-looking, touch screen, ticket vending machines which is easier to use than buying bubblegum. It prevents your having to wait in long lines and allows you to select your seat as well as a non-smoking (or smoking: cough, cough) section.

Zola, is there a problem with credit cards not working in those machines? I think I was unsuccessful in Paris and Berlin with similar ticket dispensers, and I seem to recall reading this is due to a lack of a chip that European credit cards have.

Wow you guys! What helpful advice!

Now-I'm with HunnyM. I worry that I will get there-go to buy a ticket and they will say "Sorry! Sold out!" And I will keel over dead! But if you guys don't think that is an issue I will wait until I arrive!

Also-anyone know about the night train from Rome to Venice-we would be sleepy but it seems like a way to save $$ on a hotel and save time on the travel. Thoughts?

PLMN-Sounds like we are doing almost the same trip!! Any thoughts? Where did you go in Tuscany?

Thanks!

SLCLibrarian, if you wait til you get to Italy to buy the train tickets, what will likely happen is that you may not get your first choice of times...but you will probably be able to get something. This is what happened to us. The train I wanted was full. But we got something for a different time. We went several days in advance to the travel agency in Italy to buy our train tickets, and yet still our first choice train was sold out. so make sure you don't wait til the last minute.

I bought one set of train tickets on the trenitalia web-site at home before we left. I got my choice of times. However, it is very difficult to learn how to use this web-site as you have to buy the tickets from the Italian language portion. It took me a couple weeks to get it done.

So basically as soon as you arrive in Rome see to getting those train tickets for Venice. Don't wait too long!

3 nights in Rome and 3 nights in Venice is good. Rome is so fabulous I recommend 4 nights in Rome. I suggest you rent a car in Tuscany and drive around in Tuscany, then return the car. Take the train back to Rome. Don't try to drive in Rome or any big city in Italy. Driving in the countryside and smaller towns of Tuscany would be much more pleasant, I promise!

City driving in Italy is nothing like driving here...you don't want to do it. Think of old narrow streets NOT built for the incredible modern traffic they are handling, plus put in pedestrians and crazy people scooting by on vespas...that's city driving in Italy. NOT fun. NOT relaxing. Street signs are harder to read too...sometimes they are on the side of buildings, fading and hard to read. NOT always clearly posted.

If you want to drive, do it in the gorgeous, peaceful countryside of Tuscany and Chianti.

Hi

You can now buy tickets through the English-language portion of www.trenitalia.com/en

Hi SLC,

We rented a villa in the Cortona area for a week. 5 bedrooms for 3 people it was GREAT!

What we did was spend 3 nights Rome, train to Venice. Two nights Venice then drive to Cortona. Had car to visit Perugia, Florence and other smaller places closer to Cortona.

Then we checked out of villa on a Sat and drove back to Rome where we spent one more night so that we would not have to drive to airport same day as departure.

Although I was not sure about this last part, it worked out great because we ended up seing an area of Rome we might have missed, the Port of Fiumicino where we had one of best meals of the whole trip.

(Be sure not to miss my trip report in the works.)

I agree with Zola, I've never had any problem just turning up at Termini & buying a ticket for the next fast train, using the machines (including trips in June). I suppose the sleeper would need booking in advance, however. As for the chip issue - the UK is just going over to Chip & Pin, but I never had any problem using my pre C&P cards in Italy, including at these machines.

Read my posting:

"Warning About Advance Purchase of Eurostar Italia Train Tickets"

dated 9/24/2004 at 10:49 a.m.

(If I knew how to cut and paste, I'd do so here).

Between Rome and Venice, the Eurostars tend to travel on the full side during the tourist season, but purchasing the ticket a couple of days in advance is usually sufficient to secure a seat. ES trains depart every two hours, so there are options for travellers who have a little flexibility.

What GAC has written here and in the past is worthy of note. You should keep all his good advice in mind. I'm not suggesting that you shouldn't buy the ticket prior to departure from the US, only be heedful of the disadvantages. If you then DO, however, decide to purchase tickets in Italy, see my earlier post above.

WillTravel: I used my U.S. credit card in both places that I bought tickets from a vending machine (Florence and Rome stations). It was not necessary for me to use a pin either, but I'd double check to make sure you have one and know it before you leave, just in case.
Last item: While noting that I traveled both times in off season (late fall & winter), I was able to purchase my tickets the same day, within hours of my trips. That's rolling the dice a little, but the odds are in your favor during these travel periods.

If you sleep well on trains you can add half a day s sightseeing and subtract a night s hotel bill by booking a second class two-berth sleeper on the Marco Polo Express to beyond Venice, then coming back to Venice in the morning. You will find times in table 601 of the Thomas Cook European Timetable, which may be in the reference library of a city near you. Rome Tiburtine board 2243, leave 2253, Pardenone 0725, pick up coffee and sandwich, leave 0728, wash in the toilet and breakfast in the restaurant car, Venice Mestre 0844 to 0854, Venice Santa Lucia 0905. The cost each, with sleeper is about 80 euros. You can leave your sleeper in Venice at 0518, but I prefer a longer night.

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