The fare rules are as follows:
Make unlimited changes or cancel for a 100% refund up to 30 days before departure. Within 30 days of departure, make 1 change or receive a 100% credit for your booking.
Point-to-point travel and pass travel are both valid options for exploring Europe, and both have their own benefits.
Point-to-point tickets are good for short distance travel, such as travel from city to city within a country. They are also a good value if you plan to restrict your travel and are only going to one or two places. This option may be more economical for you if you know the cities and destinations you…
Discounted train tickets for Italy will be in the form of promotional fares that are released throughout the year and based on availability. Travelers who sign up for our newsletter are notified in advance of upcoming promotions so they can book early when there is greater availability.
Eurail passes will have promotional offers, typically during the early Spring and late Fall. Otherwise, pricing is standardized…
ItaliaRail is an official partner of Trenitalia, the national railway of Italy. We are the largest foreign seller of train tickets in Italy.
We have direct, real-time connectivity to Trenitalia's schedule and reservation system, allowing us to give you the best fares and most up-to-date availability.
ItaliaRail offers more than 80,000 high-speed and…
Bringing the kids along on a trip through Italy is both an exciting and rewarding adventure and, at times, challenging. We have covered some of the things that help make traveling with children by train in Europe easier in another article. Here, we want to make sure you know all about the various train ticket and rail pass options for your kids when you take the train around Italy.
Train Tickets for Children in Italy
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What you need to do before boarding your train in Italy depends on whether you have a train ticket or a rail pass.
If You Have a Train Ticket
As of August 2016, Trenitalia high speed tickets ("Freccia..." type) and regional trains that are purchased online no longer need to be validated before you board the train. This is because tickets now have a specific date and four-hour window of time in which they're…
When planning a train trip through Europe, you have two choices - using a rail pass of some kind or getting point-to-point tickets. There are pros and cons to each option.
Point-to-point tickets (also known as city-to-city tickets) are good for traveling shorter distances, such as between two cities or towns within one country. They can also be a good value if you plan to travel only…
Rail passes are an excellent value if you want flexibility, if you plan to travel extensively throughout one or several countries, or if you plan to cover long distances during your travels. Passes provide access to most rail routes and allow you hassle-free travel, since you won’t have to wait in lines at the train station to get tickets. In some cases, you will still have to make seat reservations or pay supplements, but…
Eurail and InterRail are both rail passes, and while they are similar there is one critical difference - who can buy them. Eurail Passes are only for non-European citizens or residents. InterRail Passes are only for European citizens or residents.
Eurail Pass features include:
- Unlimited rail travel in one or more…
You need to determine what countries you plan to travel through and how many days you will spend in each country to determine the best pass for your needs. Fill in your trip information on RailPass.com, and you'll get a pass comparison chart on the results page with more detailed information. We'll help you find the best pass for your trip.
Rail passes act…
Taking the train through Europe is an excellent way to get around, and having a rail pass makes doing that easy. There are some trips for which point-to-point tickets might be the better option, but for many trips a rail pass is the way to go.
Rail passes are the ideal choice for travelers who don't have a set itinerary and…
A travel day is a 24-hour period during which you can travel on trains with your rail pass. It lasts from 12 a.m. (midnight) to 11:59 p.m. on the same calendar day—though, for overnight trains departing after 7 p.m., you need only enter the following day's date on your pass.
Within one travel day, you can take as many trains as you like and still be using only one travel day on the pass.
When you activate your pass, that's…
Depending on the mistake that has been made, and if your pass has not yet been activated, we can issue you a new rail pass. You will need to send the incorrect pass back to us via a traceable shipping method and pay a new shipping fee.
Rail pass exchanges must be made via the address listed below. Once your request is received in our office, we will exchange the pass. If there is a rate increase, you will just pay the…
A rail pass is equivalent to a train ticket. For some trains like Regional Trains, a ticket - or a rail pass - is all you need to ride because Regional Trains do not require seat reservation. For others, you'll also need a reservation for a specific seat. Seat Reservations are not included with rail passes, so if you travel on any…
If you have 15 or more people that are traveling together to the same destinations in Italy, you can save up between 10% to 30% on your rail tickets. ItaliaRail can help with your travel plans, save you money and make your journey truly memorable.
We also have fantastic group deals on Tours & Activities, Transfers and Hotels and can provide you with private guides and help while…
To improve security and ensure the safety of train passengers in Italy, "access gates" have been installed at Roma Termini (Rome), Firenze Santa Maria Novella (Florence), and Milano Centrale (Milan).
At each location, most of the station is accessible to anyone, with only the area around the tracks restricted by guards to those with valid train tickets or passes.
To get through the checkpoint and onto your platform, you'll…
One of the best things about taking the train in Italy – and, really, almost anywhere – is the opportunity to look at pretty scenery as you travel from one place to another. In some parts of Italy, however, there are scenic train routes that are specifically designed to be tourist attractions rather than simply modes of transportation.
Most scenic trains in Italy are operated by private companies, not Trenitalia, and they aren't…
Train strikes in Italy can be a major inconvenience for travelers, especially if you're caught off-guard. These strikes are scheduled in advance, however, and the dates and times are announced and posted. This means you can find out about them, in some cases, before you even leave home.
Have your travels been affected by a train strike in Italy? Re-book your train tickets…
Strikes on Italian trains are infrequent enough that you might travel through the country many times and never have to deal with one. It only takes one instance of having travel plans thwarted by an unexpected strike, however, to ruin a trip.
Note that the word in Italian for strike is "sciopero" - be on the lookout for it in newspapers and at train stations!
Learning About Strikes in Advance…
Trains that are traveling when a strike begins and are not canceled in advance at their departure station will normally reach their final destination, provided those stations can be reached within one hour from the strike’s start.
If trains are not able to make the one-hour time limit, then they may terminate at the next station and before your stop is reached. In the event that this happens, Trenitalia will assist you with an…
Even on days when there are strikes scheduled, Trenitalia has what it calls "guaranteed minimum transport services." In other words, there are some trains that will run every day despite a strike so that an entire country doesn't shut down. It's relatively minimal service, compared to normal schedules, and it focuses on commuter hours: 6 to 9 a.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. from Monday through Saturday.
Tickets for these trains can be reserved…
A "mini fare" is a sale fare, which can be between 10-60% off the normal fare. These sale fares also come with different fare rules, including the policies about changing or canceling your ticket.
For instance, with a mini fare you cannot change a ticket - with a normal or flexible fare, you can. Mini fares are also typically limited to a certain number of seats available for sale at a certain time, so you may not find the same sale…
Trenitalia's train schedules and fares are typically only released between 90-120 days in advance*, so it's not a good idea to solidify travel plans before that point—the timetable can change seasonally.
You can buy your train tickets roughly 2 months ahead of when you'll need them, and can even book them the day before your train trip. Once you're in Italy, you can buy tickets just before you get on a train.
Buying tickets…
When you use ItaliaRail's search tool, enter the origin and the destination of your trip. Then select the date you want to travel and click on search to find the trains that suit your schedule.
The platform will show you all the trains available between your city pair, then choose the time and type of fare that accommodates with your schedule, budget and restrictions you want to take with the type of fare. Buying your tickets online…
When to Make a Reservation
Purchasing a train ticket means you have bought the right to travel from one city to another by train. Many tickets, however, do not specify the date of travel or even the exact train. That is what reservations are for, so for some train trips you'll need both a ticket and a reservation.
All reservation holders must be in possession of a valid rail pass or city-to-city ticket that covers the…
It depends on the type of train ticket or fare you bought. While rail passes are issued in the name of specific passengers and must match that traveler's passport, regular e-tickets or train tickets as of now are not associated with specific passengers and conductors do not require ID on the train. For most tickets, names are not required to appear in the ticket as of now, therefore you do not need to change your e-ticket if you…
With our exclusive e-tickets, you will receive a minimum of two emails, more depending on the number of trains trips reserved. The first email is the order invoice confirmation showing the amounts paid, and the second shows the e-ticket booking "PNR" confirmation. Both emails will be sent immediately upon completion of your booking. Download the e-ticket at the paragraph HOW DOES MY TICKET WORK? Type: E-Ticket Click here for your Ticket(…
Any e-ticket could be re-printed in plain paper to be shown to the train conductor, or shown in electronic format like in a smartphone, so it could not be lost unless the printed paper or phone and laptop is lost. We recommend the printing of e-tickets in plain paper in case phones are out of battery of have any electrical issue. You can contact customer service to request a copy of your ticket to be sent to a…
Validating a Train Ticket
As of 5th August 2023, Trenitalia tickets for regional trains that are purchased online need to be validated. This validation must be done before your train departs and you'll incur a fine if your ticket isn't validated. Please click here for instructions on how to validate your regional tickets.
Note that tickets for Trenitalia's high-speed…
Tickets or e-tickets and seat reservations are not the same thing in Italy, and you won't always need both. A ticket or e-ticket is what you need to travel from one city to another on any train in Italy, and it shows a seat reserved for the type of class and fare purchased. A seat reservation is what grants you a specific seat on that train and it must be issued for travellng in conjunction with a Rail Pass. All high speed…
Some e-tickets allow for "ticketless" travel, in that you do not need to print a hard copy of the ticket before boarding the train. This is generally true with high-speed train. In these cases, you can simply show your e-ticket on your personal mobile device (smartphone or tablet).
Other e-tickets will require you to "print a ticket upon departure," which means you will need to use a self-…
If you don't receive an order confirmation after your purchase, contact Customer Service so we can re-send the information or — if necessary — correct a mistake in the email address. Please allow a couple of minutes for the system to generate the email information and check your spam folder. If you have not received your e-tickets please contact us at any time. We provide…
An electronic or e-ticket is the newest reservation confirmation for booking reservations trains in Italy. This is exclusively available on trains that originate within Italy.
Upon completing an e-ticket booking, you will receive an email confirmation of your train journey in place of the printed and shipped tickets. This…
Depending on the fare rule purchased your e-ticket might be non-refundable and non-changeable or may be only changeable or 75%-80% refundable. Please look at the order confirmation email sent at the time of purchase to validate the rules of your fare.
If you're not sure whether your tickets are refundable or changeable, email us info@italiarail.com and be sure to include your order number. You…
If you arrive at the train station only to find your train has been canceled (because of a strike or otherwise), be prepared with lots of patience. Trenitalia staff should do their best to get you booked on the next available train. If there are no other trains available, you can request a cancellation and strike refund directly at the train station.*
ItaliaRail as agent of the rail company in Italy…
Changing Reservations
An exchange of date and time is allowed on some fare rules. You only can change your ticket, if the rules of the fare you purchased allow you to change the ticket. Usually the cheaper the ticket the more restrictive it is. Therefore super-economy fares do not allow tickets to be changed or rebooked. Economy tickets allow one change and must be upgraded to a normal or base…
You only can cancel your ticket, if the rules of the fare you purchased allow you to cancel the ticket. Usually the cheaper the ticket the more restrictive it is. Therefore super-economy fares do not allow tickets to be cancelled. Economy tickets allow one change, but it cannot be cancelled, and normal or base fares allow tickets to be cancelled with a 20% penalty.
To cancel a ticket, contact …