We arrived in Venice by train after a two
hours trip from Florence. We were almost fooled into getting
down at Mestre, because the signs read "Venezia" but we didn't
because we saw everyone else in the train sitting quietly.
Finally we arrived at Santa Lucia, the other Venice railway
station which is the end point for trains coming from many
European cities. A few trains will only take you as far as
Mestre, where you will need to hop into a local train. Traveling
by train in Italy is a great experience. Services are regular,
trains are in time and the cost of travel is reasonable. We took
the Eurostar, which is the fast intercity, but there are a variety
of trains available. The Santa Lucia station is located at the
west end of the Grand Canal and the No. 1 vaporetto stops right
in front of the building. Inside the station there are automatic
ticket machines which we found very easy to use and a variety
of shops and services helpful for the traveler: an exchange
office, a left luggage facility, a cafeteria and bar and shops
that sells souvenirs as well as international newspapers and
magazines.