Port of Venice (Ravenna) getting to and from

[ravenrob]

Starting to dip toes into water again to cruise.  😀 

 

We are looking into a 10 day R/T in May 2023 hoping that the COVID days will be behind us for our 30 year anniversary and looking into flying to Rome R/T.  Seems like getting to the terminal in Ravenna could be difficult when trying to get there by train.  Can anyone offer a simple way to get there rather than flying in and out of Venice.  We want to spend a few days in Rome either pre/post cruise and Ravenna doesn’t seem to be an easy port to get to.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

[Saab4444]

2 hours ago, ravenrob said:

Starting to dip toes into water again to cruise.  😀 

 

We are looking into a 10 day R/T in May 2023 hoping that the COVID days will be behind us for our 30 year anniversary and looking into flying to Rome R/T.  Seems like getting to the terminal in Ravenna could be difficult when trying to get there by train.  Can anyone offer a simple way to get there rather than flying in and out of Venice.  We want to spend a few days in Rome either pre/post cruise and Ravenna doesn’t seem to be an easy port to get to.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

Fly to Bologna or take a train from Rome to Ravenna. no need to transit in Venice.

[ravenrob]

1 hour ago, Saab4444 said:

Fly to Bologna or take a train from Rome to Ravenna. no need to transit in Venice.

Can you take a train direct to Ravenna?

[yogini06]

4 minutes ago, ravenrob said:

Can you take a train direct to Ravenna?

You would have to switch to a local train in Bologna or Ferrera.  Perhaps the port will offer shared shuttles as cruise traffic increases

[cruisemom42]

Taking the train from Rome to Ravenna is very straightforward and easy. You do have to make one change, there are no direct routes.

 

I did this exact trip in November 2019 from Rome -- I wanted to go to Ravenna and spend the night there in the middle of an extended visit to Rome. The train service most of the way there is by the fast trains which are quite nice. Only the last bit is on a regional train, and the route is not one traveled by a lot of tourists so it was relatively uncrowded. 

 

I switched trains in Bologna. One thing to be aware of is that the Bologna station has different levels. The level that the Frecce (fast trains) use is not the same as the regional trains. If I recall correctly, I had to go up an escalator to get to the correct level for the regional train after exiting the fast train. There may have been elevators, but I only had overnight bag so I didn't look for one.

 

Bologna is a large station but it was easy to navigate and there are monitors everywhere. Just be sure to give yourself a generous interval between your connections -- maybe 30 minutes, give or take. The regionale trains depart pretty regularly, and if you miss one you can simply get on the next one.

[lynncarol]

12 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

Taking the train from Rome to Ravenna is very straightforward and easy. You do have to make one change, there are no direct routes.

 

I did this exact trip in November 2019 from Rome -- I wanted to go to Ravenna and spend the night there in the middle of an extended visit to Rome. The train service most of the way there is by the fast trains which are quite nice. Only the last bit is on a regional train, and the route is not one traveled by a lot of tourists so it was relatively uncrowded. 

 

I switched trains in Bologna. One thing to be aware of is that the Bologna station has different levels. The level that the Frecce (fast trains) use is not the same as the regional trains. If I recall correctly, I had to go up an escalator to get to the correct level for the regional train after exiting the fast train. There may have been elevators, but I only had overnight bag so I didn't look for one.

 

Bologna is a large station but it was easy to navigate and there are monitors everywhere. Just be sure to give yourself a generous interval between your connections -- maybe 30 minutes, give or take. The regionale trains depart pretty regularly, and if you miss one you can simply get on the next one.

 Wish I had this advice back in September when we took the train from Rome to Ravenna with a change in Bologna.  You actually have to go up two flights. We just did one flight and ended up in a parking garage, went back down to the main station, frantic, until a really sweet local woman led us up the escalator to our train which was just closing the doors. We made it, but our hearts were still racing for at least the first 10 minutes onboard that second train.

[cruisemom42]

2 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

 Wish I had this advice back in September when we took the train from Rome to Ravenna with a change in Bologna.  You actually have to go up two flights. We just did one flight and ended up in a parking garage, went back down to the main station, frantic, until a really sweet local woman led us up the escalator to our train which was just closing the doors. We made it, but our hearts were still racing for at least the first 10 minutes onboard that second train.

 

Oh my -- thanks for chiming in. 😱 I only remembered one escalator but then I was not in a rush and was just sort of moseying along.

[Davebarr]

We will travel to Ravenna from Venice.  What is the best way to go?  We will not want to drive or hire expensive limos!  Thanks in advance

[LGW59]

6 minutes ago, Davebarr said:

We will travel to Ravenna from Venice.  What is the best way to go?  We will not want to drive or hire expensive limos!  Thanks in advance

Lots of local drivers will make this trip for you, get on Google, Trip Advisor etc, you will see a lot of recommendations there.  You can also do the train, but it is not direct and takes 5ish hours.  Also if you are already booked check the roll calls, even if not booked check the roll calls, you will see info and suggestions there

[mom says]

1 hour ago, Davebarr said:

We will travel to Ravenna from Venice.  What is the best way to go?  We will not want to drive or hire expensive limos!  Thanks in advance

I'm not sure where the PP was looking for train times, but the Trenitalia site shows frequent trains from Venice (S. Lucia stn) with a single change in Ferrara or Bologna that take less than 3 hours. Price is cheap if bought in advance €20-30 pp.