We had a brief discussion about these back in Nov, but in looking at my info from my 5 weeks in Florence in Dec-Jan to try to compile some type of report that would be interesting, I thought these were worth highlighting.
I used these machines 3 times during my stay, to purchase tickets for 4 trips, and cannot say enough about them. You can access the info in English if need be, on the touch screen. They accept credit cards, cash and Bancomat for payment. You can purchase any ticket and any number of tickets- Eurostar, IC, regional trains, etc,- for any date, to and from any station. You can get tickets that you have reserved on the internet www.trenitalia.it
There are many of them at Termini in Rome, probably about 8-10 at SMN in Florence, and I buzzed by several in Milan, on the lower level adjacent to the ticket windows. The ones at Termini seem to be grouped together near the entrance to the station, each with it's own little kiosk. The ones in Florence are more spread out; several in the main area near the platforms, against the wall, and several in the room with the ticket windows.
How to use them? They have a touch screen; the first step is to touch the flag of the language you want. Then follow the steps- if you are in Florence and want a ticket for a train leaving from Florence, the departure city is already on the header. The major cities are given, you just need to touch the name. (If you are going to a smaller city, touch the letter the city name begins with and you'll get an alphabetical list of stations; touch the one you want.) A time table will appear; touch the train you want; confirm the train; put in the payment. Ticket is printed and appears in the drawer at the bottom.
To purchase a return ticket, start over. The most difficult part about this is changing the name in the header to the station you're returning from- and that's quite simple.
I did not use the machine to print out a ticket I'd reserved on the website, but I looked at the steps involved and it seems very easy, too.
I also discovered that not all Eurostar trains are fast travel. Due to my schedule, I had to take the 8:something pm Eurostar from Milan to Florence- the last train that night. It makes 5 stops between Milan and Florence, and takes 3+ hours. (Ours took much longer because the doors in car #7 were very tempermental and would not close or open when they were supposed to!) I also had a very slow Eurostar from Rome-Florence, again, the last train of the day. I think it took a little less than 3 hours, unlike the direct Eurostar I took from Florence to Rome in the morning, which was 1 hour 35 minutes.
These last are NOT complaints, just info. Believe me, I'd love to have this type of train service in Boston!
Maureen
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kim,
Posts: 4724 | Location: Boston or Florence | Registered: 07 July 2001
I agree, the machines are great. I always use them. People generally seem wary of the technology so there are never queues longer than two people. You can arrive at the station ticketless ten minutes before departure, buy tickets and still catch your train on time
Just to add, there are machines in Naples as well, in the same area as the ticket desks.
Posts: 51 | Location: Rome | Registered: 24 April 2002
quote:Originally posted by Luke: People generally seem wary of the technology so there are never queues longer than two people.
In Milano Centrale even shorter queues are at the machines on the "other" side of the long row of machines in the main hall. Since these only accept Credit cards ans ATM cards and Italians are still in love with cash, there are always at least a couple of free machines.
Alice Twain -- I know I was born and I know that Iâll die The in-between is mine I am mine
Unfortunately, I've never been able to get the machines in the Venice Santa Lucia train station to make it to the point of issuing a ticket!
But ... they're at least useful for planning. In 2001, when I was traveling from Venice to Bergamo, a ticket machine walked me through the routing (Venice to Brescia, change trains to Bergamo) so that when I went up to the agent I knew what to expect.
Colleen in California
Posts: 14303 | Location: The Beautiful San Francisco Bay Area | Registered: 06 August 2001
I have another question regarding this. Does the ticket or machine tell you which platform to catch your train? My daughter thought she was getting on a train from Florence to Lucca last summer and found out she was on bullit train to Rome! I have to get from Rome to Florence by myself this April and sure would not want to get on the wrong train!
Posts: 838 | Location: Nashville, TN USA | Registered: 11 September 2002
Do you have a picture of what this machine looks like? Between ATMs and other machines I don't want to walk by one when I'm looking for it and not know it's right there. I like how Pauline takes pictures of things we take for granted. e.g. the instructions for the shopping cart coin mechanism or the weigh scale. Even though I may know how these operate here where I live someone else may not know what it looks like or how it works. Someone here showed me a close-up photo of what an ATM looks like (buttons and all) and another of an Italian computer keyboard.
Three or four years ago I tried to use a ticket machine in Rome Termini to buy tickets to Florence. The amount was about 60,000 lire.
I made my selection and put my cash in ... then the machine promptly shut down, giving me nothing.
Can you imagine trying to get your money back from Ferrovie dello Stato? With great apprehension (and prepared for a four hour fight) I approached a window. The ticket seller went and got his supervisor. The supervisor unblocked teh machine, looked at teh tape to see that I had paid and not received, dipped into the machine and gave me 60,000 lire.
This all happened in about 10 minutes, without argument.
I still find it hard to believe!
Posts: 18 | Location: California | Registered: 21 May 2002
The "binario" #, the platform that the train is on, can change, so it's best to look at the board that shows arrivals/departures, and listen to the announcements. There is always a display at the entrance to each platform that tells you where that train is going and what type of train it is. It does not list all of the stops, so you might be taking a Eurostar from Milan to Florence, and the sign on the platform says "Roma" as the destination; the train does stop in Florence. Just check the train # and you'll be fine- and ask people along the way. Everyone does.
Paolo-
Thank you for the link to the photo!
Maureen
Posts: 4724 | Location: Boston or Florence | Registered: 07 July 2001
I would also suggest that for those that feel uncomfortable using those weird ticket machines, you can always go to a travel agency to have train tickets issued! That's what we did last summer in Florence and got our tickets to Venice in less than 5 minutes.
quote:Originally posted by Christian: I would also suggest that for those that feel uncomfortable using those weird ticket machines, you can always go to a travel agency to have train tickets issued!
On the other hand, travel agencies sometimes add a fee of theuir own to the tickets and they are not always accurate when it comes to booking: I have often seen foreign tourists that purchased tickets at a travel agency just to find that the agent had not also issued a booking, while it is not too uncommon that (due to software, probably) a seat is booked by two people, one who bought the ticket at a travel agency and one whobooked at the station. getting the ticket at the station or from the machines is always the best soution.
Alice Twain -- I know I was born and I know that Iâll die The in-between is mine I am mine
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