On Fri, 11 May 2007 09:47:18 +0200, Giovanni Drogo
wrote:
> ... there are standard fare trains (mainly inter-regional)
[list deleted]
I forgot that now there seem to be standard fares and flexi fares
costing 20% more that I am offered when I buy a Eurostar ticket on
line. The flexi fare offers more possibilities of changing the ticket
or getting your money back if you don't use it. I always buy the
standard ticket, as I rarely have to change a ticket and I prefer to
pay a higher surcharge on those rare occasions rather than pay 20%
more for every ticket.
The Flexi fare is only offered on trains that have mandatory
reservations. The tickets on other trains are already flexi, in the
sense that you can use them on any train on that route for something
like two months after date of sale, unless you've already validated
them.
There are also discounts for various categories of travellers, but
these all involve paying an annual fee to get a card and unless you
use the trains a lot during the course of the year, it won't pay off.
My husband is now eligible for the senior card, and we figured that he
would have to make a fairly long trip at least monthly to break even.
>This essentially means that when you ask for a ticket from A to B
>(unless travelling only with interregional or lower), you'd have to
>specify the train(s) you'd intend to take, and you will receive a bunch
>of tickets for the various stretches, with separate fares !
>
>> Do fares vary by time of day or day of week, high or low season?
>
>Not normally, although there maybe "offers" or other arrangements. For
>instance local tickets in Ligury over the weekend have a different fare,
>local tickets on FNM LeNord near Milano on holidays have a lower fare.
>
>Trenitalia sometimes makes deal fares with lower prices, to be booked in
>advance or "until supply exhausted". Note however that they may be
>subject to restrictions in refund and reservation changes ... while with
>the standard fare you can change reservation for free until departure.
>
>> Is there any advantage in booking in advance (looks like they let you
>
>No money advantage unless you want to use one of the special limited
>offers. Only advantage maybe in securing a seat during peak hours
>(otherwise as Barbara said, it is not a problem), and avoiding queues at
>the last moment.
>
>Nowadays I usually book the day before, from a station near where I work
>(Lambrate, guess what :-) ), even if I depart from another station. In
>the past for business I used to book at a travel agent which delivered
>the ticket to our office.
>
>Anyhow you can book usually at any travel agent without surcharges (it
>used to be like that, although I've seen some limitations ... in Ligury
>small travel agents cannot issue reservations but only local tickets, in
>Cervia the ticket office at the station has been franchised to a travel
>agent, and they apply a surcharge for CHANGES of reservation).
>
>> Do they take American Express for ticket purchases?
>
>No idea at main stations, probably not. Surely not at minor stations.
>Most likely yes at major travel agents (in main stations there are often
>also a couple of them).
>
>> Do you need to validate the ticket before boarding?
>
>For tickets with no reservation attached yes, stamping at the yellow
>machines, or, if faulty, applying to the conductor asap.
>
>Tickets with reservation for a specific train do not require stamping,
>as they expire if unused and not reclaimed soon.
>
>> Are there any bus or train tours from Venice to surrounding cities like
>> Verona, Padua, Dolomites?
>
>No idea.
>
>> What is the best way to get to the train station at Mestre? Vaporetto
>> to Piazzle Roma and then bus? Which number bus?
>
>To get to Mestre from where ? From Venice ? The best way is by train
>from Venezia Santa Lucia station !!!
>
>> Trenitalia lists 3 stations in Verona? How far apart are they?
>
>Do not know, but maybe google maps or google earth can help you.
>Anyhow fast trains call at Porta Nuova ("newgate"), which is just
>outside the walls of the old city. I suppose that Porta Vescovo
>("bishopsgate") is similarly located, because of the name. What is the
>third ?
>
--
Barbara Vaughan
My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it
I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup |