Fast Trains Between Rome & Venice - Italo vs Trenitalia

[Gimpy McFarlan]

Hello,

Curious about opinions / thoughts / experiences with the faster (4-hour) train services offered by Italio and Trenitalia between Rome and Venice.  My DW and I will be visiting Rome and Venice prior to our Celebrity cruise in May and we will use one of these trains to move between the cities.  We will be using a private car to transfer between Termini Station in Rom and the Civi cruise port.  Questions that come to mine are…

 

Since our schedule is set does it make sense to purchase the train tickets now?  Is it common for prices to increase significantly as the date/time of train departure decreases?  Is it common for these trains to sell out?  Are there any significant pros / cons of each provider (Italo vs Trenitalia)?  I noticed each company offers multiple service classes ranging from a basic level, a “comfort” level with better seats and free snacks and a “business” level.  It seems free Wi-fi is offered at every level so do the better seats and snacks really justify the additional cost?

[cruisemom42]

For Trenitalia, tickets generally go on sale for the high-speed routes about four months in advance. They are definitely cheaper when you purchase earlier (except when there are specials that pop up from time to time). 

 

The downside is that these tickets are specific to the time for which you purchase them. If you miss your train, you cannot just grab the next one.  So if you have any doubts about timing, it may be better to either wait until closer to the travel time or else pad your timing. For example, someone arriving at FCO in Rome and looking to travel onward that day to Venice or Florence would be well advised not to book a train ticket until at least 3 hours after the announced arrival time.  (Which is less than ideal and a good reason not to schedule onward travel on the same day unless it cannot be avoided.)

 

Trains do not commonly sell out; however if you are traveling during a holiday period or a heavily traveled time it is possible. If going from Venice to Rome it used to be wise to check cruise ship schedules as well -- on days with a lot of ship arrivals in Venice, the trains got crowded with disembarking passengers traveling onward. I'm not sure now whether the situation is better due to fewer ships docking in Venice proper....

 

It is generally best to buy your tickets directly from the seller (e.g., from Trenitalia or Italo) rather than using a middle-man site.

 

On the high-speed trains I generally travel second class. Second class on these trains provides more comfort than coach on an airplane and generally is fine for a trip of 2-4 hours. However, check the fares because sometimes special promotions make first or business class carriages very close in price to the second-class tickets. First class is NOT like an airline first class but you will get fewer and roomier seats and more luggage storage per carriage.

 

TIPS:

• If possible look at the train layout and try to choose a seat or seats near the luggage racks so you can keep an eye on your luggage. Theft is not a huge problem on the fast trains, but it has been known to happen. 
• Train departures are listed on large signboards at the front of each station. Track assignments often are not made until less than 30 minutes (sometimes more like 15 minutes) prior to departure, so keep your eye on the sign. Delays are also listed.
• Locate your train by the number, as sometimes your town/city won't be listed (unless it is the final destination). 
• "Binario" means track. The fast trains usually get assigned to the tracks closest to the passenger waiting areas so that passengers don't have far to walk, but in large stations you may still need to move quickly to your train once the track is assigned.
• Your ticket will show both a carriage number and a seat number. It is far easier to walk outside the train until you find your carriage rather than go through the train on the inside. Carriage numbers are usually listed on or beside the doors.
• If you are traveling with someone, it's easiest if one person climbs up into the carriage (there are usually a few steps up) and then the second person can hand up the luggage.

 

 

 

[slidergirl]

Cruisemom speaks from experience!!

Now that 1st and 2nd class have wifi, I'd save a few Euro and go 2nd.  That used to be my decision point.  

[Gimpy McFarlan]

Thank you @cruisemom42 and @slidergirl for the feedback!  Ordinarily I would go for 2nd class but I’m seriously considering spending the money on one of the middle classes in order to reserve one of the few cafe-style face-to-face seats for 2.

[Gimpy McFarlan]

Ran some comparisons last night and ended up booking Prima class on Italo.  Trenitalia did have a better price but we would had to switch trains at some point when traveling between Venice and Rome.  Italo offered end-to-end service without any train changes in both directions (Rome Termini -> Venice St Lucia and Venice St Lucia -> Rome Termini).  Was able to reserve seats on the way to Venice for €3 each and for free on the way back to Rome.  🎉

[cruisemom42]

4 hours ago, Gimpy McFarlan said:

Ran some comparisons last night and ended up booking Prima class on Italo.  Trenitalia did have a better price but we would had to switch trains at some point when traveling between Venice and Rome.  Italo offered end-to-end service without any train changes in both directions (Rome Termini -> Venice St Lucia and Venice St Lucia -> Rome Termini).  Was able to reserve seats on the way to Venice for €3 each and for free on the way back to Rome.  🎉

 

That's odd. I see almost hourly departures from Roma Termini to Venezia Santa Lucia on the trenitalia "Frecciarosa" trains (leaving at 35 minutes past the hour) with no change of train. For example (picked from a random date in March):

 

 

Returns are the same route backwards (I've done both).

 

Are you looking at dates more than 4 months in advance?

 

Edited to add:  Oops, I see I cropped the image too short and left out the final stop at Venezia Santa Lucia but I promise it's there. 

 

Edited February 10, 2022 by cruisemom42

[Gimpy McFarlan]

The train change was required when going from Venice to Rome.  This is for Friday May 13th.  In order to allow enough time to depart Venice, arrive in Rome and then transfer to the Civitavecchia cruise port we must leave Venice early in the morning. Trenitalia has a direct train at 7:26am and then again at 9:26am and 10:26am.  We did not want to leave after 9am and the 7:26am train was a touch too early for us.  If our schedule was more flexible we definitely would have gone with Trenitalia.

[euro cruiser]

There is a 6:26 from Venezia S. Lucia arriving to Rome Termini at 10:25.  It makes six stops but there is no change of train.

[Gimpy McFarlan]

5 minutes ago, euro cruiser said:

There is a 6:26 from Venezia S. Lucia arriving to Rome Termini at 10:25.  It makes six stops but there is no change of train.

 

True but…

 

13 minutes ago, Gimpy McFarlan said:

We did not want to leave after 9am and the 7:26am train was a touch too early for us.

 

[euro cruiser]

Ah, missed that.