my husband and i are going to italy next week. we are visiting venice, florence, then rome. are the trains easy to use? or, should we just rent a car? i've heard some say the trains are confusing if you don't speak italian, and we don't at all. any suggestions?

thanks! jlp

The trains are very easy to use, whether you speak any Italian or not. We went to the same cities for the first time last March. I must admit I was a bit apprehensive about the trains, but found them a breeze and very enjoyable. Don't worry - take the train!

You would find renting a car an absolute nuisance considering which cities you are visiting.

To make your life simple, remember these two things:

To buy a ticket at a window, have already written down on a piece of paper your destination, what time you want to leave, and how many tickets you want. Plus, write down if you want "1st classe" or "2d classe". (Unless you are very tall, there is no difference.) Give the piece of paper to the station clerk. You can pay with a credit card.

Secondly, before you get on the train, you MUST validate your own ticket by punching it in a time-stamp machine. These are mail-box sized contraptions (often yellow) usually found at the entrance to the train tracks. You will see other people using them before they board the train.

If you don't see one, just ask another tourist where you can stamp your ticket. The conductor will take your ticket from you on the train.

Every train station you enter will have a tourist information booth and many other English-speaking tourists, most of whom will be more than happy to answer any questions.

Hi J,

The trains are less confusing than trying to drive in Italy, especially in cities.

Good advice from N.

If, somehow, you aren't able to stamp your ticket before boarding the train, go look for the conductor and have your ticket stamped.

If you wit for the conductor to come to you, you could be fined right on the spot.

In our first trip to Italy we visited the same places as you want to do. We had no car and travel by trains. It was very easy.
The trains are clean, safe, fast. You do not worry about directions, parking, etc. In towns you do not need the car at all.

I do not see how the trains can be confusing.

Have a beautiful vacation!

thank you all for your great advice! jlp

ditto to Ira - cars a complete hassle in the three cities you'll be visiting - plus parking can cost a ton - Venice of course is car-less and wide swathes of Firenze and Rome are off-limits to cars - and theft from cars and car theft themselves is supposedly rife - to wit special theft insurance some car rental copanies make mandatory. Trains are a snap - if really worried pay extra to go to RailEurope and have all trains and seats reserved before you leave so you just need to show up for the train. Can save by buying tickets in Italy but as train travel in Italy is so cheap anyway it won't cost a ton to do so ahead of time. If in US i'd contact BETS (800-441-2387) for their expertise and great service - a RailEurope agent they also don't charge some of RE's fees. You can also try to navigate the often frustrating www.trenitalia.com site for online tickets and so-called PREM fares, which should be booked weeks in advance to get. Or when you land at Rome's airport make all you reservations there at the airport train station upon arrival. There is an Italian railpass but you are not nearly traveling enough to make it pay off, and with it you still have to make reservations which are mandatory on many long-distance trains.