While in Italy recently, we took the train between Florence and Venice to spend the day in Venice. Our hotel in Florence was just a couple of blocks from the train station so we walked to the station one morning for the 8:30 a.m. train to Venice. The station in Florence isn't much to look at on the outside, but I like the big windows they used for the roof which helped lighten up the interior.
Once inside, it reminded me a bit of New York Penn in that everyone stands in front of the digital status board and waits for the platform announcement of their train.
Once you know your platform, you rush out to board your train. Just like the Acela, first class is generally right behind the engine but the location depends on which direction you are traveling (engines at each end). One of the things I thought was helpful was the digital display in the doors of the cars listing the destination and the car number.
Heading out to our train
Digital display in the door
The interior was very clean, comfortable and modern and not unlike Acela in that it has the four-tops, doubles, and singles.
Unlike Acela, though, first class doesn't get you much other than separation from the masses. In first class, they have cart service much like the airlines that will serve you a complimentary beverage and snack. Since it was a morning trip, I had coffee and a package of biscuits.
The ride was much smoother than Acela but I never saw on the displays that we went much faster than 140 mph, so I was a little disappointed in that I thought we might go a little faster. Oh well, maybe another trip. We heard many remarks about how reliable the train was and the fabulous on time performance. It was somewhat ironic, though, that our trip happened to be one of those rare instances where there was an incident. The was a noticable bump and thud and the train soon came to a stop. We sat for a good 30 minutes and the power was out about half of that time. According to the chatter around us, the rumor was that there was a problem with the catenary, but I wondered if we had struck something given the bump and thud. Anyway, after thirty couple minutes, we resumed our journey and because of our delay, we ran into a little traffic and had to wait a time or two. We arrived in Venice about 40 minutes late.
The station in Venice is a very convenient walk to the Grand Canal where you can hire the water taxis to take you anywhere. We had a great day in Venice and then headed back to Florence without any disruptions in service.
Below are some of the pictures I took of our train and a couple of others.
Once inside, it reminded me a bit of New York Penn in that everyone stands in front of the digital status board and waits for the platform announcement of their train.
Once you know your platform, you rush out to board your train. Just like the Acela, first class is generally right behind the engine but the location depends on which direction you are traveling (engines at each end). One of the things I thought was helpful was the digital display in the doors of the cars listing the destination and the car number.
Heading out to our train
Digital display in the door
The interior was very clean, comfortable and modern and not unlike Acela in that it has the four-tops, doubles, and singles.
Unlike Acela, though, first class doesn't get you much other than separation from the masses. In first class, they have cart service much like the airlines that will serve you a complimentary beverage and snack. Since it was a morning trip, I had coffee and a package of biscuits.
The ride was much smoother than Acela but I never saw on the displays that we went much faster than 140 mph, so I was a little disappointed in that I thought we might go a little faster. Oh well, maybe another trip. We heard many remarks about how reliable the train was and the fabulous on time performance. It was somewhat ironic, though, that our trip happened to be one of those rare instances where there was an incident. The was a noticable bump and thud and the train soon came to a stop. We sat for a good 30 minutes and the power was out about half of that time. According to the chatter around us, the rumor was that there was a problem with the catenary, but I wondered if we had struck something given the bump and thud. Anyway, after thirty couple minutes, we resumed our journey and because of our delay, we ran into a little traffic and had to wait a time or two. We arrived in Venice about 40 minutes late.
The station in Venice is a very convenient walk to the Grand Canal where you can hire the water taxis to take you anywhere. We had a great day in Venice and then headed back to Florence without any disruptions in service.
Below are some of the pictures I took of our train and a couple of others.
