So when we discussed traveling between the cities in central Italy we opted for trains as opposed to buses. We see enough highways in the US and while the scenes of Italian countryside may differ from those here we know from experience that traveling by train in Europe compares with none other. We may not see much tho as we are catapulted from one city to the next at 180 mph!
Googling on 'Trains in Italy', a couple of sites popped right up ...Rail Europe was probably the first one where, in English you could purchase advance train tickets. Reading the reviews however we discovered that it didn't list or show all of the available trains on it's timetable. (Sidebar: How did we live, breathe and plan a trip like this before Al Gore invented the internet? What would we do without all of the reviews that guided through every choice we had to make?)... From those reviews we discovered that purchasing tickets directly from the train companies...of which there are only TWO... was slightly less expensive. If there was a disadvantage it was that the site was in Italian and you had to use the handy translator which caused some minor translation glitches but, overall, this site seemed less expensive.
Rail Europe also does not list or offer all of the class options, such as where you can plop yourself for a two-hour trip. "No big deal" says we..."We aren't picky about where we sit". Did you say SIT? Oh, you mean you want a SEAT on the train? The ticket entitles you to take the train...and find your own seat...providing there is one. Together? You mean you want to sit together too? Asking alot aren't you?
Humor aside, open & available seating is no different than any train here in the US but when we discovered that the trains between Venice and Florence, and Florence to Rome can be busy commuter trains at the times we wanted to travel, we decided that it might be a good idea to sit for the two-hour trips. We opted to upgrade to Italo's club seating which accommodates four people. We think it's a private compartment but we're not sure.... Regardless it guarantees us seats, even if we happen to travel at busy times, and only cost us an additional $10 per person.
At the time we checked Italo (http://www.italotreno.it/IT/Pagine/default.aspx) had less expensive fares than it's competitor (http://www.trenitalia.com/). For a really funny review of these two companies see the link below... it was written last year so some changes have definitely been made but the writer gives an informative, often hysterical analysis and the lowdown on the two train systems in Italy. http://www.forbes.com/sites/garywalther/2012/11/02/rating-italys-high-speed-trains-frecciarossa-vs-italo/
For a more comprehensive and understandable information on Italian trains I highly recommend that you read the "Transportation/Trains" section of this book "Rick Steves' Italy" available at Barnes & Noble, or by visiting his site at: http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/. He covers minor but critically important details like validating train tickets before you board to avoid being fined, deciphering Italian train schedules, etc.
So planes and trains are our major avenues for travel. We were (notice the PAST tense) going to rent a car for our travels in Sicily but that's another short story which we'll save for another entry...
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