In other posts we’ve explored the types of Trenitalia tickets, MINI tickets, buying tickets online, using kiosks to buy tickets, and also how to go “ticketless” on a Trenitalia train. Here we want to talk specifically about the Trenitalia Family Offer. And like all things Trenitalia, there are plenty of rules you have to be aware of.
Rule #1: The Family Offer is available for “family” groups from 2 to 5 persons. In that group, there must be at least one adult and one child LESS than 12. Rule #2: If it’s your birthday and you’re 12 today, or one day after, you do not qualify as a child.
Note if you have, say 8-10 people in your group… become TWO groups with the appropriate displacement of children if you’re interested in buying these tickets. Rule #3: The “Family Ticket” discount is limited to a certain number of tickets per train, and that allotment number is controlled by Trenitalia. As stated clearly by Trenitalia, “This offer has limited seats availability, the numbers of which vary depending on the day, train and class.”
If your “family” group meets these age-limit requirements, then you are eligible for the family group ticket (if available). You can get:
50% off the base ticket for all children UNDER 12.
Every other person gets 20% off their ticket.
Rule #4: In order to utilize these family discounts, the minimum net price of the discount ticket has to be at least 10 euro for each passenger over the age of 12. Rule #5: The Family Ticket are discounted from the BASE ticket prices and not promotional specials like the MINI tickets. Rule #6: Special rules apply to couchettes and Wagon Lit tickets, where the discount for children UNDER 12 is only 30%, not 50%
Rule #7: You cannot use the Family Ticket discounts on all train. You can use it for AV, ES*, ES* City, IC, ICN, Express, couchette and WL tickets. The Family offer does not apply to journeys on the Excelsior and Excelsior E4 carriages, or for single journeys on the Regionale trains. Rule #8: But if you connect to a Regionale train from, say an AV train, and you used the Family Ticket Offer on the AV train, then you can use the Family discount on THAT connecting Regionale train.
Confused yet? If it’s not confusing, it’s not Trenitalia!
Well, let’s throw another wrench in the works. Rule #9: If you have children in your group under the age of 4, they travel free on Trenitalia trains. Once you turn 4, you’ll always pay to ride Trenitalia. (Oops – there is an exception to that rule and we’ll cover that in a minute … Rule #10: you knew there had to be a rule for “the” rules…)
So, if you have a two-year old they can ride free. If you have three two-year olds in your group, they can all ride free! But they are NOT guaranteed a seat. This means if you book two seats for yourself and your spouse, and there’s an adjacent third seat empty on the train, your two-year old child can sit there… until some comes to claim that seat. After all, they paid for it, you did not. So, on a full train, if you do not buy a train ticket for your toddler(s), then you may be holding them the entire trip. On a 70-minute ride to Naples from Rome, this may not be a bad option. On a ride of almost 4 hours from Rome to Venice, this many not be the best choice.
Thus, for children under the age of four, if you don’t mind holding them, you do not need a ticket. You don’t even need to acknowledge their existence at a ticket counter, travel agent, or at a kiosk – again, if you don’t mind holding them.
On the Regionale trains, there are no reserved seats. So, for this reason, most folks DO NOT purchase a ticket for their children under 4 on a Regionale train. The day after your child turns FOUR, they can no longer ride Trenitalia free (well, with one exception that I’m aware of)!
But you don’t want to hold them… so even though they are “free” and under the age of 4, they’re also under the age of 12! So Rule #11: If you choose, you can buy a child’s ticket at 50% off (and then you get the 20% off), or you could purchase an ADULT MINI ticket for your child. Yes, in some circumstances, treating your two-year old as an ADULT may actually save you money… Yeah, my head’s starting to hurt too! We’ll explore that option in a second.
Changes, Refunds, and Other Trains
Rule #12: Once purchased, you are allowed to change your booking only ONE time prior to the trains departure (without accruing additional charges). You can make your changes online, at a kiosk, by calling the Trenitalia Call Center, through authorized travel agencies, and at train station service counters. Rule #13: If you you are using “ticketless tickets” purchased through a travel agency, you can only change these tickets through or AT that agency.
Rule #14: If you make a change from your Family Tickets to a train that has no family tickets available – due to the Trenitalia allotment – you will lose your discount and have to pay the difference between your tickets and the BASE price (unless a MINI ticket option is available).
Rule #15: Changes of tickets (For example, changing from a 2nd class to a 1st class ticket)bought on the Trenitalia site cannot be made online. Rule #16: Changes are only possible if they involve paying a sum equal to or higher than the amount already paid. So you can’t get a “refund” if you find a lower fare. Rule #17: To make any ticket changes, you must first pick up the printed ticket, or, for “ticketless” tickets, go directly to the station ticket desk or issuing agency.
Rule #18: If you change your mind and you’re not going to take the pre-purchased train ride, you can get a refund UP UNTIL THE TIME of departure for the train, minus a “service charge” of 20% of your tickets value. Rule #19: You can request a refund of a ticket at any ticket desk or at the travel agency you bought it from.Rule #20: Once the train departs, no refunds are given – so if you miss your train… you’re out the entire amount of the tickets. Rule #21: And if decide in the middle of your trip that you’re stopping, rather than continuing, there is no refund for the remaining sections of your trip you’ve purchased.
Rule #22: “With the Familia ticket, for the same route you can also directly board another train of the same or different type, or of a different class or service, from one hour before and until one hour after the departure of the booked train, by paying the difference between the full price for the train used and the amount already paid plus an 8 euro fine.”
An example would be if you booked a 45-minute “connection window” into your journey but your train arrives a few minutes early and you see a train headed the same direction but leaving in only 20 minutes. At minimum, you would pay an 8-euro change fee – and then any differences in price due to the type of train or class of service. But as suggested by Trenitalia, Rule #23: You must however approach the on-board conductor as soon as possible.
Rule #24: If you have a “ticketless,” you cannot travel on the Regional and international trains and if found on these trains you will be considered as travelling without a ticket. Note, that on a Regionale train, you can buy tickets online, BUT you are sent an email that serves as your ticket. This is DIFFERENT than the “ticketless” option for the high-speed train which uses PNR codes.
An Exception to the Rules
Back around Rule #10 we talked about an exception for the “age rules.” That one exception – that I’m aware of – is the Leonardo Express. According to the Trenitalia website: “Children younger than 12 travel free if accompanied by an adult; children who travel alone pay the full price.” So there are exceptions to all rules!
The Leonardo Express is a strange train. Although considered a Regionale train as there are no reserved seats, it’s also considered a first-class ONLY train. The reason for this… no Euro-Rail 2nd class passes can be used on this train. Trenitalia is nothing if not profit-minded!
Is the Trenitalia Familia Offer a Good Deal for You?
The key here is perhaps the age of your children, the type of train you’ll be riding, and your desired comfort level. In addition, some MINI fares may actually be cheaper for you than using the Family Option. Again, these “special discount options” – the Family offer and the MINI fares – are subject to allotments by Trenitalia and may not be available on your desired route. Perhaps check an earlier or later train for price savings.
Let’s look at an example. A very common route on Trenitalia is Rome to Florence. In our example, we’ll go with 2nd class tickets on one of the high-speed trains. We’ll choose a mid-week route. Our model family will be two parents and two children, ages 10 and 2.
Buying tickets for all persons on my selected date, the Total Prices for all tickets are:
BASE Ticket: €138.00 - Adults are €45 each, the children are €22.50 each
Flessible Ticket: €168.00 - Adults are €56 each, the children are €28 each
Family Offer: €117.00 - Adults are €66 each, the children are €22.50 each
So your best-case scenario in this example is the Family Offer at €117.00. If you choose to NOT purchase a seat for your 2-year old, the Family Offer tickets now become €94.50. Of course, you’d have to hope for an open seat next to you, hold your two-year old, or the two children could share a seat. So you can see where the Family ticket could save you money on this route.
BUT, what if you were able to score MINI tickets for this route. I found Mini tickets for €22 – that’s 50% off the BASE price! In order to purchase online, at a kiosk, or in advance at a train station (at least two days in advance)… I have to treat all my passengers as ADULTS. Mini fares are not available at “child rates.” So now, buying four 2nd class MINI Adult tickets, I pay €88 – the best deal of all!
I could even save more money – as my two-year old travels free – by purchasing three Adult MINI tickets at €66 … and “Sally” and “Susie” could share a seat! Remember, anyone below four-years old really doesn’t exist on the trains (unless you want a guaranteed seat for them). MINI fares exist at all price points, often determined by the time of day of the train, and certainly by the number of MINI fares Trenitalia allots. It pays to do some searching and you can find even better deals than my example.
Summary
So armed with this knowledge, your family vacation might just get a little cheaper. It’s often a good idea, if you don’t mind locking down specific dates, times, and trains to take a look at the MINI tickets on your days of travel. If there are none available and you meet the Family Requirements, Rule #1, then this may be a cost-saving measure for you. Note, the “child” does NOT have to be related to you to get a Family discount.. so if you’re in a large group, disperse your children accordingly!
This program – even with all it’s rules- can be a huge cost-saver for traveling Families!
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Header: I.C. plus 658 Cristoforo Colombo sulla Succursale dei Giovi – Photo by Maurizio Boi
