The Rails

Train Tickets

Every rail leg of the trip, in order — booked tickets with PNRs and seats, plus the buy-day-of regionals. All four of us are seated together on every reserved train.

Mon · July 27 — arrival day
Florence Airport → LuccaBuy day-of
Regional · ~80 min
Tram/shuttle from the airport to Firenze S.M.N., then the regional to Lucca. Fixed price — buy in the Trenitalia app when you land. Trains roughly hourly.
Step-by-step
  1. Grab bags, exit arrivals, turn toward the tram. The T2 tram stop ("Peretola Aeroporto") is right outside the terminal — you can see it from the doors.
  2. Tram tickets: buy at the stop's machine (~€1.70 each, 90-min validity) or just tap a contactless card on the green validator on board — one tap per person.
  3. Ride T2 toward the center ~20 min to "Alamanni – Stazione" — the stop right beside Santa Maria Novella station. Everyone off, you're 50m from the station.
  4. While on the tram, buy the train tickets: Trenitalia app → Firenze S.M.N. → Lucca, 2 adults + 2 kids. Fixed-price regional, never sells out. App tickets need no stamping — tap Check-in if the app shows it.
  5. Inside S.M.N., check the departure boards for the train toward Viareggio / Lucca (roughly hourly, ~80 min ride). Note the platform (binario) and roll the bags over.
  6. No assigned seats on regionals — grab seats together, bags in the racks by the doors. Get off at Lucca (most Viareggio trains stop there; the app shows the stop list).
  7. From Lucca station it's a 10–15 min walk through the walls to the apartment (or a short taxi from the rank out front). Lockbox check-in after 3 PM.
Wed · July 29 — birthday travel day
Lucca → Firenze S.M.N.Buy day-of
Regional · ~80 min
Morning departure to open the Florence window. Fixed price, Trenitalia app. Bags to left-luggage at S.M.N. on arrival.
Step-by-step
  1. Check out, roll bags to Lucca station (10–15 min). Buy the regional to Firenze S.M.N. in the app the night before or at the machines — fixed price, no rush beyond catching a morning train (~hourly, ~80 min).
  2. Arrive S.M.N. and head to left-luggage (KiPoint) — along platform 16, follow the "Deposito Bagagli" signs. ~€6 per bag for the first 5 hours. Keep the receipts and passports handy.
  3. Hands free by ~11:30 — birthday Florence window is open. Set an alarm for 4:30 PM: bags back by 16:50, Frecciarossa at 17:20.
Firenze S.M.N. → Bologna CentraleBooked ✓
Frecciarossa 9426 · Super Economy
17:20Firenze S.M.N.→17:58Bologna Centrale
PNR ZW7MDNCoach 3 · Seats 1A · 1B · 2A · 2B€101.80
Super Economy fare — no changes/refunds, so don't miss it. Be back at S.M.N. by ~16:50 to collect bags.
Step-by-step
  1. Collect bags from KiPoint by 16:50 (receipts!). You're already in the station.
  2. Watch the main departure board for Frecciarossa 9426 to Bologna/Milano — the platform posts ~10 min before departure. No validation needed on Frecce; the PNR ZW7MDN in the Trenitalia app is the ticket.
  3. Walk to Coach 3 (carrozza numbers are marked on the platform screens and on each car). Seats 1A/1B/2A/2B — two facing pairs.
  4. 37 minutes, mostly tunnel. Arrive Bologna Centrale 17:58 — take the escalators up to the main hall, exit toward Via Indipendenza, and it's a flat 10-min roll to the apartment.
Thu · July 30 — Emilia food day
Modena → Parma  then  Parma → BolognaBuy day-of
Regional · ~30 min + ~55 min
Driver drops you at Modena Centrale after the 8:00 AM cheese tour (~9:45). Both legs fixed-price regionals, frequent all day — buy in the app when you know your timing.
Step-by-step
  1. Driver drops you at Modena station ~9:45. In the app buy Modena → Parma (direction Milano/Piacenza, ~30 min, several per hour).
  2. In Parma, the old center is a 10-min walk straight from the station — Baptistery, Cathedral, long prosciutto lunch, Mercato della Ghiaia.
  3. When you've had enough (aim ~17:00), buy Parma → Bologna in the app — direction Bologna/Rimini, ~55 min, runs all evening. No time pressure tonight.
Sat · Aug 1 — the big move south
Bologna Centrale → Napoli CentraleBooked ✓
Frecciarossa 9607 · Economy
08:07Bologna Centrale→11:38Napoli Centrale
PNR ZW6EZNCoach 4 · Seats 11A · 11B · 12A · 12B€259.80
Checkout is 10AM but the host stores luggage — this early train means bags come with you instead. Breakfast on board.
Step-by-step
  1. Leave the apartment by 7:30 — the station is a 10-min roll up Via Indipendenza.
  2. Bologna Centrale's high-speed platforms are underground (tracks 16–19, level -2/-3) — follow the red "AV" signs and allow 10 extra minutes with bags and the escalators.
  3. PNR ZW6EZN in the app, Coach 4, seats 11A/11B/12A/12B. Grab pastries and water in the station first — it's a 3.5-hour ride.
  4. Arrive Napoli Centrale 11:38. Pizza window: da Michele is a ~10-min walk (cash only) — or the Mercato Centrale food hall inside the station if the line's absurd. Keep bags with you.
Napoli P. Garibaldi → SorrentoBooked ✓
Campania Express · reserved seats
14:26Napoli P. Garibaldi→15:35Sorrento
Ticket ref 518460Carrozza 2 · Posti 32–35€100 round trip (all 4)
Garibaldi is the lower level beneath Napoli Centrale — down the escalators, follow EAV/Circumvesuviana signs.
Step-by-step
  1. Be back at Napoli Centrale by ~14:00. From the main concourse take the escalators down, following the EAV / Circumvesuviana signs to the Garibaldi level.
  2. The Campania Express has its own gate on the Circumvesuviana platforms — show ref 518460 (phone screenshot works) to the EAV staff at the gate.
  3. Carrozza 2, posti 32–35 — reserved, air-conditioned, with luggage racks. Sit left side for bay glimpses.
  4. Arrive Sorrento 15:35 (the end of the line — can't miss it). Casa Leo is ~300m: exit the station, and it's a 5-min roll. Drop bags fast — the lemon grove tour is booked for 4:30, a ~10-min walk to Via Correale 27.
🍕 The Naples pizza window
Arrive 11:38, depart 14:26 — nearly three hours in Naples with the bags. That's lunch at L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele (~10 min walk, cash only) where pizza was born, or the food hall upstairs in Centrale if the line's wild. Best "layover" of the trip.
Mon · Aug 3 — Pompeii, then Rome
Sant'Agnello/Sorrento → Pompei ScaviBuy day-of
Circumvesuviana regional · ~25–30 min
Catch a ~7:45–8:00 departure to make the 9:00 Pompeii entry. A few euros each, no reservations — station machines or the GoEAV app.
Step-by-step
  1. Check out and walk to the station with the bags (~300m). Buy 4 singles to Pompei Scavi at the machine or in the GoEAV app — a few euros each, never sells out.
  2. Any train direction Napoli works — take one ~7:45–8:00. The stop is "Pompei Scavi – Villa dei Misteri", ~30 min. Watch the boys and the bags; morning trains can be busy.
  3. Exit the little station and the site entrance (Porta Marina) is ~50m to the left. Free bag storage is just inside the entrance, before the ticket gates.
  4. 9:00 entry is booked — have the Pompeii tickets and everyone's passports ready. Hats, water, sunscreen: there is no shade in there.
Sorrento line → Napoli P. GaribaldiBooked ✓
Campania Express · return half of ref 518460
10:20departs Sorrento→11:34Napoli P. Garibaldi
Carrozza 2 · Posti 43–46 (as reserved — see note below)
Step-by-step
  1. Out of the ruins by ~12:00–12:30, grab the bags from storage, back to Pompei Scavi station next door.
  2. Plan A: if a Campania Express toward Napoli passes between ~12:15–1:15, board it with the same ref 518460 — the ticket is hop-on/hop-off, you just may not get the reserved seats. Check the day's Express timetable the night before.
  3. Plan B: any regular Circumvesuviana toward Napoli (every ~30 min, ~35 min ride). Hot and no reservations, but it always works.
  4. Either way: off at Garibaldi, then up the escalators to the main Centrale concourse — 15–20 min with bags. Target arrival ~14:30 for the 15:10 Frecciarossa.
⚠️ The 10:20 vs. Pompeii timing — the plan
The reserved 10:20 return passes Pompei mid-morning — while we're still inside the ruins (entry 9:00, out ~12:00). The Campania Express ticket is hop-on/hop-off, so the move is: board a later Campania Express at Pompei Scavi (early-afternoon run) using the same ticket — reserved seats won't apply on a different train, but the ticket is valid. Check the day's Express timetable the night before; if no run lands between ~12:15–1:15, the regular Circumvesuviana from Pompei (every ~30 min, ~35 min ride) is the fallback. Either way: be at Napoli Centrale by ~14:30 for the Rome train.
Napoli Centrale → Roma TerminiBooked ✓
Frecciarossa 9428 · Economy
15:10Napoli Centrale→16:20Roma Termini
PNR ZW73DNCoach 2 · Seats 3A · 3B · 4A · 4B€151.80
Garibaldi (lower level) up to the main Centrale concourse takes 15–20 min with bags — platforms post ~10 min before departure.
Step-by-step
  1. On the main Centrale concourse, watch the big board for Frecciarossa 9428 to Roma — platform posts ~10 min out. Lunch/snacks in the station hall if the Naples pizza was hours ago.
  2. PNR ZW73DN in the app, Coach 2, seats 3A/3B/4A/4B. No validation needed.
  3. 70 minutes to Roma Termini (16:20). Exit toward Via Giolitti or the front — the apartment on Via Merulana is a 15-min walk or a short taxi from the rank out front (€10–12 flat-ish in the center).
Wed · Aug 5 — Orvieto day trip
Roma Termini ⇄ OrvietoBuy day-of
Regional · ~75 min each way
Direction Firenze/Chiusi. Depart Termini ~9:50am — the cave tour moved to 12:30 with a 12:15 check-in at Piazza Duomo, and the funicular + walk take ~25 min from the Orvieto station. Arriving ~11:05 leaves time for a stroll and gelato first. Fixed price, no reservations — Trenitalia app both ways.
Step-by-step
  1. Buy both directions in the app over breakfast. At Termini, regionals toward Firenze/Chiusi/Orte usually leave from the far platforms (25+, east wing) — allow 10–15 min to walk inside the station.
  2. ~75 min to Orvieto. Exit the station: the funicular is directly across the square — a couple of euros each, every ~10 min, up the rock to Piazza Cahen.
  3. From Piazza Cahen: hop the little Line A minibus (meets the funicular, drops at Piazza Duomo) or walk ~15 min along Corso Cavour.
  4. Stroll and gelato, then be at the ticket office — Piazza Duomo 23, by 12:15 sharp — for the 12:30 English cave tour. Cash: €10/adult, €8/kid (~€36).
  5. After: late lunch up top, cathedral facade, funicular down, and any evening regional back to Termini (roughly hourly — check the app).
Thu · Aug 6 — fly home
Roma Termini → Fiumicino AirportBuy day-of
Leonardo Express · ~32 min · every 15 min
€14/adult (kids under 12 free with a paying adult). Leave the apartment ~6:45 for the 10:10 flight. Buy in-app the night before or tap at the machines — never sells out.
Step-by-step
  1. Key-drop per Maurizio's instructions, out the door by 6:45. Taxi or 15-min walk to Termini.
  2. The Leonardo Express runs from platforms 23–24 (follow the airplane signs), every 15 min, nonstop, 32 min. €14/adult — both boys ride free with paying adults (under 12). Buy the night before in the app or tap at the platform machines.
  3. At Fiumicino follow signs to Terminal 3 — Delta check-in and bag drop. Target the counter by ~7:45 for the 10:10 departure; US-bound security and passport control eat time.
  4. Parmigiano and limoncello go in the checked bags. Ciao, Italia. 🇮🇹