macdogmom

We will be taking the train from Salzburg to Milan, Milan to Cinque Terre and then Cinque Terre to Venice in the upcoming weeks. Should we purchase all the tickets in one fell swoop at a station or should we go to a travel agent once we get there? I have seen a few different suggestions on the boards. I decided to wait and get the tickets there after I read all the problems people have with the Italian train site. Thanks in advance for any advice.

Peter_S_Aus

You can buy them at the station from vending machines. The machines accept credit cards and Euro bank notes. The nmachines are multi-lingual and simple to use.

charlotte4600

you can buy them in advance from trenitalia.it & pick up upon your arrival. Line-ups to buy tickets in Italiam cities can ruin hours of your day.

LoveItaly

Hello macdogmom. Fodorite's have found it is almost impossible to buy train tickets online through trenitalia as of late. Evidently they are not accepting US credit cards.

You will be arriving in Milan, the central station, here is the website which gives the information about buying the train tickets..do note that you will need to use the small yellow machine to validate your tickets each time before you get on the train to go to your next distination.
http://www.grandistazioni.it/cms/v/i...003f16f90aRCRD

If you will be in Milan for a bit of time (you don't say) yes you can buy the tickets through a travel agent. If you are staying at a hotel in Milan your hotel will be able to advise you as to the nearest travel agency that sells the train tickets.

valtor

You can buy all of them them from Milan train station from ticket office. When I buy more tickets (for more destinations) sometime I have questions, so I preffer a ticket office as I can ask and receive advices.

ira

Hi mac,

You might be able to get your Italy tickets in Salzburg. It won't hurt to ask.

If not, get them when you arrive in Milan, or at any TA that has the Trenitalia logo. IIRC, TAs don't charge extra.

Connie

I never found much of a line at ticket machines and they were very easy to use even for a first timer to Europe like me. It gives you more flexibility to wait. My suggestion is to not wait until the day you are leaving--it adds too much stress to an already stressful day. Go the station the afternoon or evening before you leave. This also helps you see how to get there and how long it will take to get there. You don't always leave a city the way you come into it.

bratsandbeer

If you are planning on a sleeper train, then you could get your tickets before leaving home. Otherwise, just buy them at one time at the station. I purchased tickets through Rail Europe and was very happy with their service.

macdogmom

Thanks for all the great information. Would buying the tickets at a ticket machine be the same price as getting them from the ticket window or a travel agency?

We will be in Milan overnight (after Salzburg) and then off to Varenna for 3 nights before we head to the Cinque Terre. I may buy tickets for each leg of the trip since I may not want to be locked into a departure time.