The offer is not intended to last but will allow Trenitalia to introduce its category of trains top-of-the-range, which compete with French TGVs on the Paris-Lyon axis and as far as Milan.
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This is the first time that TGVs will be put in competition. From Saturday, December 18, the Italian company Trenitalia will offer a Milan-Paris via Lyon on its high-speed line. For now, there will only be two round trips a day but the Italians have a few assets up their sleeve, notably the Frecciarossa, the red arrow, the high-end category of its high-speed trains.
It is even the Frecciarossa 1000 which will land in France, an icon of made in Italy as the Italians themselves say. Marco Mancini, spokesperson for the Italian railways, welcomes us on board. “We are in the executive class of this Frecciarossa 1000 which will launch on Paris-Milan on Saturday, he presents. There is the meeting room with a table for five people who can work together. It is the top of Italian design in the latest of our trains, the most efficient. There are ten very wide and widely spaced seats that can all swivel in the direction of travel for a relaxed and comfortable trip. “
A 165 euros trip between Paris and Milan, 139 euros for Paris-Lyon but in standard class where you are also given a kit with mask and gel. The commercial offer is aggressive with first prices at 23 euros for Paris-Lyon and 29 euros for Milan. Except that it has no chance of lasting. “Of course the price is very competitive at the start, but it is above all to give everyone the opportunity to discover our trains., explains Luigi Corradi, Managing Director of Trenitalia. This is clearly an introductory price that will change in the future. “
It is therefore not on prices that Trenitalia will make the difference, but the Italians leave with an advantage: they have known the competition in Italy for ten years. “When the high speed market opened up, we had a real competitor, a private company, says Luigi Corradi. This has led us to consider the passenger as a real customer who must be convinced to stay on our train and this has led us to fundamentally improve our service. “ Trenitalia starts with two daily rotations for the moment – which are in fact part of the international link Paris-Lyon-Chambéry-Modane-Turin-Milan. In a few weeks, the Italians will offer five round trips per day.