The Alps tend to tower to mind when you picture skiing in Europe, cutting across France, Switzerland, Austria and Italy.
21.10.2023 - 17:27 / insider.com
I visited Italy in September to celebrate my sister's birthday and opted to travel by train instead of renting a car.
Most of my travel in the country required taking regular passenger trains, but my flight from Rome left at 10:30 a.m. the morning after a stay in Florence, so I needed an efficient method to get to the airport as early as possible.
Trenitalia, one of two major train operators in Italy, offers a high-speed rail system, or "bullet train," from Florence to Naples that stops in Arezzo and Rome. My train, which cost $46, left Santa Maria Novella station in Florence at 6 a.m. and arrived at Roma Termini at 7:49 a.m.
Here's how my trip went.
I routed all my trains ahead of time via Trainline, a third-party app that allows you to buy train and bus tickets in most European countries.
Getting to Santa Maria Novella in Florence is easy if you have a map or a phone that can route your path. From popular sites like the Duomo and Ponte Vecchio, it's about a 15-minute walk.
To make things even easier, I rented an Airbnb that was only about five minutes from the station.
On the morning of my departure, I walked the short distance to Santa Maria Novella and double-checked the train's departure time. There were several options for coffee and breakfast, but I arrived around 5:45 a.m., and most places were closed. If I had been desperate, there was a large McDonald's on the station's northeast corner.
The station can be overwhelming with crowds of people during high-traffic times, but it was nice to be in there with only a few people early in the morning.
The only confusing issue I ran into at the station was that the ticket I purchased through Trainline showed Rome as the destination, but the timetable showed Naples. When I didn't see Rome listed on the timetable, I cross-referenced the train's number and checked with a station employee to be sure I was boarding the right train.
They were helpful and confirmed which platform I needed to be on.
Unlike other passenger trains I took in Italy, the bullet train had assigned seats and carriages. But I entered my assigned carriage and found someone else sitting in my seat, so I chose a different one with a better view.
The seats were spacious, and I was grateful to have adequate legroom and overhead luggage storage.
I was fully situated in my carriage at 5:55 a.m. and was pleasantly surprised when they announced in both Italian and English that the train would depart at 6 a.m. This announcement was the only warning before the train began moving at 6 sharp, validating my decision to stay close to the station and arrive early for my trip.
The seats were larger and more spacious than other Italian trains I rode. Even with the faster speed of the bullet train,
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