Italy for me From Italy with love
If you’re planning to explore Italy by regional train and purchase tickets directly without intermediaries, this article is for you. I’ll share a step-by-step guide on how to buy a railway ticket online in Italy and answer all the questions travelers might have.
Page Contents
Important to Know
What is the speed of regional trains in Italy?
What is the price difference between regional and high-speed trains in Italy?
Which Italian cities can only be reached by regional train?
Is it comfortable to travel by regional train in Italy?
Where to Buy
Tickets for trains should only be purchased on the official website of the Italian railways, www.trenitalia.com, which not only allows you to buy tickets remotely and in advance but also offers various promotions and discounts.
Also read:
- ItaloTreno high-speed trains – recommended for trips between major cities
- How to get from Rome to Milan
- How to get from Rome to Florence
- How to get from Fiumicino Airport to Rome
- Termini Train Station in Rome
- How to get to Venice from Milan
Step-by-Step Process for Selecting and Purchasing Tickets Online
The Trenitalia.com website is available in Italian, English, French, German, and Chinese official languages. The language switcher is located in the top right corner.
The main page in Italian looks like this:
To purchase a ticket for a regional train, we are interested in the Principali Soluzioni (Main Solutions) switch. Click here and select Regionale; the background will change to white.
You might wonder, “How do I know which value to use in the form?” If you are sure you need a ticket for a regional train, follow the steps described above. If you want to see alternative options, including high-speed trains, leave the form at the default Principali Soluzioni.
Now, we are interested in all the fields in this form; let’s start with their translation.
Andata (one way) and Andata e ritorno (round trip), here you choose whether you need a one-way ticket or a round trip.
Da (from), that is, the departure point
A (to), that is, the arrival point
Andata (departure date), you specify the date and Ora (time)
Ritorno (return date), again, you specify the necessary date and time
Adulti (adults) Ragazzi (children) up to 4 years old, a child travels for free, from 4 to 14 years old on national high-speed trains with discounts. In these fields, you indicate the number of travelers.
Cerca (search) is this page’s last field of interest; clicking on search, the site processes your information and displays all possible trains in the following form. In the top left corner of each offer, there is a mark indicating the type of train:
- RV – Regional
- Intercity
- Frecciabianca, Frecciargento, Frecciarossa – High-speed
Please note that purchasing a ticket in advance, at least a month before traveling on a high-speed train, can be cheaper than on a regional train. This is because regional trains in most directions operate with a fixed fare, while high-speed trains often have significant discounts for early booking.
Partenza (departure) Arrivo (arrival) Durata (travel time) Treno (train) Prezzi (price)
Select the line with the train that best suits you, clicking on Seleziona (select) at the end of the line, the site opens the following form
In regional trains, only the second class of carriages is available. Also, there is no option to choose a seat in the carriage. There’s a chance you might have to stand in the high season or under certain circumstances.
After all selections, press Continua (continue)
The site proceeds to the ticket booking page.
Select Non Sono registrato (I am not registered) and fill in the fields below.
Important: Tickets are non-transferable, so enter your name and surname exactly as in your passport.
Nome (Name), Cognome (Surname), Email (Your active email to which the ticket will be sent), Conferma email (Confirm email), Telefono (Phone)
Next, choose the payment type (card or PayPal), select the necessary option, tick the box next to Accetto le Condizioni Generali di trasporto (I agree with the General Conditions of Transportation), and press Continua (continue)
Ticket Payment Process
For ticket payment, the options available are:
- Credit and debit cards Visa, Mastercard, AmericanExpress
- PayPal
- Apple Pay
- Google Pay
- Amazon Pay
You fill in your card or PayPal details on this page and press Avanti (next).
Titolare della carta (cardholder) Nome (name) and Cognome (surname)
Tipo carta (card type)
Numero della carta (card number)
Scadenza carta (expiration date)
Depending on the card, the site may request a card verification; in my case, it looks like this:
Wait a few seconds while the payment is being processed.
If the payment is successful, the following page appears with the message Operazione avvenuta con successo (Operation successfully completed).
Press OK and choose Invia SMS (send SMS) or Stampa (print).
Congratulations, you have successfully, independently, and without intermediaries, purchased an electronic railway ticket! The electronic ticket will be sent to you by email and optionally by SMS. In fact, the conductor will only be interested in the code of your ticket, which is usually 5-6 digits.
What a Train Ticket Looks Like in Italy
A Trenitalia regional train ticket that will be sent to your email looks like this:
In this example, the ticket is for the second-class carriage without a specified seat. It does not need to be validated; simply show the QR code to the conductor upon request inside the train.
Process of Buying a Train Ticket at a Station Kiosk
Watch the video tutorial on buying tickets for regional trains, as well as other useful videos about Italy, on our YouTube channel.
How to Validate a Regional Train Ticket
Online tickets for regional trains for a specific time and date do not need to be validated. However, a ticket bought at a kiosk before boarding the train must be validated.
Ticket validators are usually located inside the station building, in the passages between platforms, or directly on the platform itself.
I’ll happily answer all your questions in the comments – it’s free. You can also request a personal consultation to plan your trip to Italy.