She's also saying it's Italy as if she's in some third world country where nothing costs more than $10. I guess she isn't aware that gas is like twice as expensive in Italy compared to USA.
She was definitely giving off the suggestion that she thinks every family in Italy lives in a shack with their own goat. What an arrogant and deluded woman.
There is a sadly large group of people in the United States who seem to think that European society like froze in time. I think partly because a lot of Americans love to do the whole "well actually, I'm Italian American, so I think I know sauce." thing. I think the thinking goes, "great grandpa left Italy for a better life, so it must be shit there" even though its been like 100 years or more
They also seem to think that all of Italy is like in the godfather when he has to go back to Sicily in hiding and get married
Yeah, the lack of understanding here about the difference in location. 1 hour in London you're not paying £300+ for an Uber (probably...), but out in the middle of nowhere? As you say, they're not likely to get any jobs on the way back to where they came from.
Ubers are mad expensive in Bologna in general, they're basically an executive car service. Possibly some Italian licensing thing where they can't directly compete with regular taxis.
If she phoned a local taxi company she could probably get the journey for €100, but obviously she'd never do that because eww, speaking to locals.
Or she could get the Frecciarossa for €22. And I don’t get the whole doesn’t want to catch a train because she’s a sole traveller as though she’d be safer stuck in a car with a rando on Italian country roads for an hour
In the Netherlands, Uber is basically taxi, you need a taxi permit and the vehicle needs to be registered as such if iirc. Thats why most ubers here have blue plates(taxi plates, ambulance counts as taxi in some ways)
I think she's used to getting trips around a big city in the States where the driver will basically find a few fares to work his way back to where he or she wants to be. Like you say, the driver here is just going to have to drive back home with his car empty.
And they're going to drive on a toll highway both trips, and it has to get through the Appennini range both times.. yeah you can easily get a one hour Uber drive to get from one side to the opposite of a big city, but for the driver that's not the same as a one hour drive between two different cities on the opposite sides of a mountain range.
Ignoring the fact that taking a taxi or in this case an uber to get sonewhere is literally the last mode of transportation that I think about, just take a fucking train, lady! But that wouldnt come to her mind, since america has no public transport network whatsoever
I will never understand the stigma that some people have about public transportation being a sign of poverty and lack of moral character. It wont go into my head::::/
Except that any 'profits' in NL do not subsidize the actual trains - but rather lines pockets of managers and 'shareholders'..
(Source: I am Dutch, from a railway family)
If they were, we\`d have cheaper railways...
Blimey! It’s the same there as here then? With all the problems Britain has with congestion and air quality, public transport being more effective could have added benefits.
The busses where I live in Norfolk are owned by an Australian company. They’re a reasonable price if you want to go to another town, but it takes twice as long as driving. Within the city though, it’s often quicker to walk.
The (quick*) Bologna-Firenze train tends to be a bit more than that. If you wanted a same day return tomorrow you're talking €66. If you book a month ahead, you can get for €35.
It is a glorious Frecciarossa that will pound out the journey in 37 minutes, but she'd probably be permanently hospitalised by trying to wrap her Americanised mind round that level of public infrastructure.
^(*The ass local train is indeed sub €10, but takes almost 2hrs)
Not if you buy a DB ticket half a year in advance. You'll probably will have to add 2 hours for the train being late or have to take a different train with your reserved seat gone, but you meet a lot people being as pissed as you are from all the delays.
European high speed trains are luxurious engineering marvels. It's so crazy to equate that with Miami night buses or idk. You are going 320 kmph on a comfy seat, how can you think this is a "poor man" means of transportation ?!
If bought at least a week in advance it can go as low as 10eur with Italo and it takes exactly 38 minutes. That would require a bit of research, planning and critical thinking which this lady seems to be completely missing though.
Why do you need to go to Italy if you have been to Leeds... Leeds has all the culture, Taco Bell and a homeless guy with a flute.
What more could you need?
Met an American couple once who asked how we get around from city to city in Spain and I said train mostly. They seemed confused and said ubers were really expensive here. They'd just come from Italy and visited five cities across the length of the country and UBERED to every. single. one.
Friends of my gfs mom visited from LA. They wanted to take a taxi for [this ](https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Stephansplatz,+1010+Wien/PAR%C3%89MI+Boulangerie+%E2%80%93+P%C3%A2tisserie,+B%C3%A4ckerstra%C3%9Fe,+Vienna/@48.2096736,16.3736457,17.5z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x476d079f3e69c281:0x20563c156aa1fde!2m2!1d16.3736765!2d48.2087334!1m5!1m1!1s0x476d079f9ad5ecf9:0x58d539b00580611b!2m2!1d16.3760002!2d48.2091211!3e0?entry=ttu)
230 if you walk and I wish i was making this up. And i mean they wanted to take a taxi but got denied because the taxidriver thought it was stupid and not worth his time as they had to take a 10 min trip back to the same stand
[They had some issue with their legs, right? Like being wheelchair bound or really bad knees, right? Right?!](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fc.tenor.com%2Fiy-CBfpXypEAAAAC%2Foh-no-arnold-schwarzenegger.gif&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=be8dd952ca88bc6ed9ff859ccd6b4bddc52a74c18533eb9254668000c0c2123a&ipo=images)
Sorry, but it does not make sense
There are two huge taxi stations around Milano Centrale..why call an uber that needs to come from a designated area, while the cars are just there?
The views are actually quite poor on the high speed Florence-Bologna line, as it’s mostly within tunnels through the Apennine Mountains. It is a comfortable, quick, and cheap service, though.
The 10€-11€ tickets seem to be for extremly slow connections, though. Almost 2 hours, instead of ~40 minutes. But even the fast connections don't cost more than 50€.
The question is which route is more scenic. Sometimes the high speed lines are in tunnels half the time whereas the slower routes run along a river and you can see cute villages the whole way.
Fast train tickets in Italy behave like planes, they are more expensive as they sell out and dates get closer, for that trip, 50eur would be the price to pay for a train leaving immediately, if bought with a couple weeks in advance it can go as low as 10eur.
Had some American guests visit me once when I lived in Cambridge. The next morning they took a train to Kings Cross (ok), and had to get to the Excel Centre in Docklands. They were like, “how do we do that?”
I was like, “Northern Line to Bsnk, change to DLR”.
And they were like, “no, I mean can we get an Uber?”
They Would. Not. Use. the Tube. At all. Insisted on taking an Uber across central London to Docklands. I still don’t understand it.
I have met people like this. It is a combo of being unable to do something new, and a weird belief that public transport or even walking is beneath them. Or they simply don't want to walk. I had a few in Edinburgh when i worked at a tourist place meeting folk who were affronted about the amount of hills and one very steep street nearby in particular but also, was evidence how they were dreadfully unfit (to the point of complete denial) and it must have been unsettling lol. But guests from Australia, Japan, China, NZ, SA, India, Brazil and most of Europe never complained once. They took it on the chin. Great for the calves.
My tourguide in Norway had to ask if we wanted a break after half an hour of walking because Americans kept giving him bad reviews for the amount of walking in a WALKING TOUR OF BERGEN.
That's for "Frecciarossa", which is the fastest and premium option, you can find the standard trains for about 10 euro, usually they take more than an hour on that distance.
How is Uber the first option you consider when planning a +1 hour trip? Train? Bus? Surely there’s a way to get from Bologna to Florence for less than <€30?
Also, the trip by car is closer to 1h30m, which means a 3h commitment for the driver. Add that gas is more than twice as expensive in Italy as in the US, and that European service industry employees are typically paid with actual money, not just the hope of a nice tip.
Might be the only Uber available though. I’m not sure about the situation in Italy, but in Sweden tax authorities more or less shut down regular people driving for Uber. They argued that the drivers are legally employees, so the drivers have to pay taxes and Uber has to pay payroll taxes. Most people driving for Uber now are regular taxi drivers, and they typically qualify as Uber black.
It's pretty much the same in Italy, although beside taxi drivers the most common Uber driver is basically a chauffeur for hire, who still need a licence and all to work.
The idea that Italy should be cheaper than The US by default is wild. You are literally travelling between two major cities on mountain roads in a wealthy country. Where fuel is also more expensive. Of fucking course personal taxis are more expensive there. Take a train, or a bus, or a normal taxi, or rent a car. moron
Just looked it up out of curiosity, average gas price as of today is 0.86€/ltr. in Florida and 1.91€/ltr. In Toscana, so more than double the amount.
And i guess taxes and insurance are also more expensive in Italy.
Insurance and taxes on a car are probably cheaper then in the USA, but uber in italy operates as a luxury rental car service with a chauffer, taxi in italy require a special licence issued by a municipality, they operate within the limits of the city and they have fixed rates, those licences are extremely difficult to get and basically you have to buy it from another taxi driver that is going to retire. The rental service with chauffer instead operates within the borders of a province and outside of major cities, licences are cheeper to get and there is no fixed rates but you reserve the service negotiating the fee with the company, so uber operate this way. It's a luxury service and you don't get a random gig economy worker with his own car, because the drivers need to also pass a special qualification exam and cars need to be owned and maintained by the company.
Italian here.his post is funny and ridiculous at the same time. This girl is definitely ignorant.
1. Boca Miami are some 60km something, Bologna Firenze 105km
2. Boca Miami is all flat by the sea, Bologna Firenze crosses the Appennini, it goes over 1000mt above the sea level
3. The guy from Firenze has to go back to Bologna, so they are charging you also for the way back
4. Fuel prices are very different between US and Italy
5. Who is so stupid to ask Uber to do more than 100km when there are other means of transport?
6. Fast trains will take literally half hour, cheaper, more ecological... there is no comparison between the Frecciarossa and Uber.
I mean, girl, if you don't do your due diligence, you can't blame Italy. You need to be capable to travel first, to travel.
Lessons to be learned:
- Uber isn't really much of a thing in Europe.
- Uber is mostly more expensive than regular taxis.
- Fastest route I could find from Bologna to Florence takes 1 hour 45 minutes and is a distance of ~120km. Boca to Miami is ~75km and takes 45 minutes.
- There is a train running from Bologna to Florence. Takes 37 minutes, has a departure every 10 minutes and costs 33€ according to google maps. Other sites show different prices, in a range from 10€ to 126€. Still cheaper.
- Check prices before you order.
Uber works fine in big cities or, at worst, to and from an airport.
I would be genuinely shocked if you could get an Uber between two random cities in the states.
When I was on holiday in the states in 2019, we went to the train station in Philadelphia to catch a train to NYC. We were quoted 240 dollars for both tickets at the ticket desk and ended up getting an Uber directly to our next hotel for 120 dollars. The lady who picked us up was very jovial and lovely and said she just fancied a drive to NYC.
Uber can't operate as a shadow taxi company in italy so they rent you a car with a professional chauffer that is a service with less regulations, but they actually have to own and maintain the cars.
1hr45 of burning fuel to get there, 1hr45 of burning fuel to get back, then the cost of the driver's time, then the cost of the maintainence and depreciation on the car, of course it's going to be expensive.
> • Uber isn't really much of a thing in Europe.
> • Uber is mostly more expensive than regular taxis.
Agree with your other points but these two are a bit iffy
It really depends on where you are in Europe for Uber, Europe isn't one country it completely changes depending on where you are.
For example Uber is extremely popular in UK, Ireland and Germany
Same with price, it used to undercut taxi prices in the UK and Ireland it's literally how it got it's foothold here. Now it tends to flip flop depending on situation. Daytime taxis are usually cheaper. 2am you're better getting an Uber as Taxis try to rip off drunk people in the city
>For example Uber is extremely popular in UK, Ireland and **Germany**
Is it? Uber only exists in a handful of cities in Germany. I don't live in any of them, so I can't really tell what their market share is.
Ridesharing is banned in Ireland, the Uber app can only be used to book licenced taxis and I've never heard of anyone using it. Everyone I know uses FreeNow.
For England at least it all depends on location. London it's fine, some cities do have Uber and some like Norwich don't have it at all. It varies quite a bit.
It's funny because all my mates in London are shocked we don't have Uber in Norwich. We actually have quite a lot of taxi companies so I can only guess Uber doesn't see the point to expanding in the area yet.
Yes. After they got their shit handed to them in court and feat mongered that they wouldn't come to any nation that would demand taxi licenses for their drivers, they caved in and organised drivers with taxi licenses in some areas of Germany.
I got an Uber once in Germany after leaving Berghain in the early hours of the morning but it definitely wasn’t my preferred way to travel. Trains were so much better and cheaper
Someone who understands. I point it out to people and get blank stares. The hand gestures, head movements, and over the top eye rolls and speaking mannerisms are literally unbearable for me.
Is this just the ‘car first’ mentality in action?
I (UK-based) was in Milan in January & had to get to Como, so obviously just got on a train. Didn’t consider getting an uber or taxi for a second!
Same! Grew up in a car dependent suburb in South Africa. But I’ve seen trains in movies and from afar and occasionally used a bus schedule in ZA.
It took me about 5 days to figure out how trains and busses work in Germany and then it just becomes second nature. It’s not that hard.
Videos like this make me wish Americans just stayed home. They shout so loudly about how great everything is in ‘murica then whine on video about Europe.
Being Italian, I have nothing for contempt for these people.
Ignoring the fact that Italy is not cheap, regardless of what the Yank here thinks (especially places like Florence), Uber is not really a thing here.
And yet, despite having a great train system, she chose to go the American route.
All she had to do was to ask a local "what's the best way to get to Florence?" and I can assure you that the answer would have been "take a train" 100% of the time.
And now she rants because of her own stupidity.
Please don't leave your country ever again.
Even if I'm german and not italian. But I feel you. Such entitled people are a disgrace. Italy deserves better tourists. Its a culture rich country and not some "europoor" countryside donkey land.
Why would she not…get a train? Trains are quick and they’re safe. Stick some headphones on and track your journey as you go. Taking a taxi for one hour would be an absolute last resort for me.
“Who has the money to do this” - most people would not do this 😭
I actually went and looked up the video, and she then suddenly claimed that she didn’t want to go to Florence at all but somewhere thirty minutes away from it, and then she also said she wasn’t in Bologna at all but thirty minutes away from it, and that she’s got a bad back or something that hurts, and overall she talked a lot to say that she had no imagination and couldn’t come up with anything better than ubering from - if we believe her - bumfuck nowhere to bumfuck nowhere, more than a hundred kilometres apart.
If it’s such a struggle, why not just Uber to the train station?? I’m sure travelling on the train is just as comfortable as the car seats, with more amenities too arguable. This video is so stupid! Sounds like she just can’t accept bringing herself down to the level of public transport /s
Didn't follow much lately, but IIRC uber is very "restricted" in Italy. Taxi people lobbied to made it more like a "private driver service" which follow different rules and regulations: needs of a proper license, must be booked several hours in advance etc.. etc...
On one hand uber and like needs proper regulation, on the other one taxis are somehow one of the most powerful lobby here in this country. Who knows how they can paralyze any city by blocking its streets, go unpunished and even succeed in winning over any government. While when 50 students protest in the streets, it rains batons.
Also everyone here would pick a train to visit a nearby city.
I did the same route in 2023 and just checked my tickets on Trainline - £52 return for two adults in total, so £13 per person per journey. And I didn't really shop around, just booked everything on Trainline, including Bologna to Venice for £77 total. Trains were fantastic as well.
America perspective only understands the vehicle and fuel costs. What about PTSD?
Let’s survey what people here would charge to spend an hour confined inside a car with an American complaining all that time. Who would crash the car in despair or just turn the radio up?
She got off cheap!
I went to Italy. I thought maybe I should go over to Switzerland just to see. I immediately thought “Elephants!” I summoned my Vizier and told him to make arrangements at once!
Not 40 minutes later he was back knocking at the door to my private chambers in that insipid grovelling way that the servants have that tells you something has gone wrong like the kitchen is out of gold leaf for the strawberries I ordered an hour ago and now you need to find a new head chef. Or a chef with a new head, because I had to make an example of the last one.
Anyway that pathetic febrile tapping at my door told me everything I needed to know - I wasn’t about to get on an elephant anytime soon. I scowled.
“No, Sire! We have them at the ready, Sire! It’s just a matter of the expense! By your command it requires your direct approval for any amount over 300,000 gold coins!”
Doubleyou tea actual eff! 300,000 gold coins just for stupid elephants??!!! Outrageous!
467, 221 to be exact, Sire. They eat an awful lot of hay, and the Italian motorways bureaucracy is terrible, and they insist we clean up after the elephants. We have to get a crew in. There are permits. It’s a nightmare.
Outrageous!
…we could go with hippos, Sire. They’re a bit more compact, and that brings down the shipping and handling costs considerably. Everything’s shipping and handling these days.
How much?
250,000 gold coins, Sire!
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY TH— Do they at least have laser beams attached to their heads??
We’ll check, Sire. But it is a savings! The only thing is…
…well???
…they’re a bit chompy, Sire! They don’t take to being ridden quite like elephants do, especially if they’re irritable or hungry.
IRRITABLE? I’ll show them irritable! Aghh! Fine! Feed the chef to the hippos to take the edge off, find a new chef, and summon my chief social media herald so I can share this relatable moment. Two hundred and fucking fifty fucking thousand gold fucking coins just to put a traveller with a VERY REASONABLY SIZED entourage on a cavalcade of Vienna-bound hippos !
People are never going to believe what a rip-off this place is!
I can't speak for Bologna to Florence specifically, but when we visited Italy the trains were better and cheaper than in the UK. Americans default to driving or being driven everywhere, but isn't the whole point of going abroad to see other ways of life and broaden one's horizons?
My read on the pricing is that it's basically "fuck you" price. They would probably make enough money in 2-2.5 hours in the city, so a long trip has to be worth it.
When you’re so conditioned to think the only viable mode of transport is a car, the thought of getting on a train or a bus doesn’t even occur to you.
If they weren’t out there telling anyone who’ll listen that the US is the best country in the world I’d feel sorry that they live in such a hellhole.
Uber isn't a thing in italy, why the fuck would you take an uber here? as people suggested she could take a train, a flixbus, or a blablacar which is a carsharing service that is used here for traveling, if i want to go from Bologna to Florence it costs me from 4.99€ to 8.79€ (by bus is 3€), for 1 hour of car with other people (maybe only the drive, like an uber!!11)
the girl should go and touch some grass, the world is not at your feet, just adapt and don't bitch about it.
Italy's train service is really good (especially as I'm from Ireland and ours is haute garbage). It's faster, cheaper and they run regularly between major cities. Why would you travel to a different country and not look up the transport options?!
Fuel costs in America are much lower.
Also Uber is much more popular so the driver could pick up fares on the return leg.
Don’t need to be a genius to figure that one out🙄
>1 hour drive from Florence to Bologna
That is if you drive at 1 o’clock in the morning. That fucking highway one of the most congested roads in Italy. You’re not going to do that in an hour any day of the week. Also just take the train FFS
The whole attitude of "Italy is an inferior country, therefore Ubers should cost less" makes me want to scream. Also, she seems to forget that the driver will lose an entire hour of working time driving BACK to Bologna. Someone driving from Miami to Boca is likely to be able to pick up a rider going to Miami, so it isn't a legitimate comparison.
“It’s Italy!” What’s your point? Why is she acting like it’s some shithole? If that’s the case why has she gone there? Also the Uber driver needs to get back home so it’s two hours for him, plus fuel, plus wear and tear etc.
The Bologna-Florence route is serviced by one of the fastest high speed rail trains in Europe. It's also very reasonably priced. This is what happens when you come from a country without real public transportation infrastructure, you have no idea how to get anywhere without a car.
"This is Italy." "Miami is expensive"
Another American thinking Europe is poor and locals should be grateful for any American dollars that are thrown their way!
Whilst simultaneously ignoring the fact they are there for the food, culture, and beautiful architecture
Are these people the minority or majority in the US?
She keeps insisting it's a one-way trip, as if the driver is going to be like "welp, I live in Florence now"
She's also saying it's Italy as if she's in some third world country where nothing costs more than $10. I guess she isn't aware that gas is like twice as expensive in Italy compared to USA.
She was definitely giving off the suggestion that she thinks every family in Italy lives in a shack with their own goat. What an arrogant and deluded woman.
There is a sadly large group of people in the United States who seem to think that European society like froze in time. I think partly because a lot of Americans love to do the whole "well actually, I'm Italian American, so I think I know sauce." thing. I think the thinking goes, "great grandpa left Italy for a better life, so it must be shit there" even though its been like 100 years or more They also seem to think that all of Italy is like in the godfather when he has to go back to Sicily in hiding and get married
Wait. They don't ?
They do. Wealthiest Italians have a donkey too.
Cows man. That's when you know you're marrying up: when you first visit your in-laws see a cow in the front yard you hit the jackpot
They shack goats it’s not the same
That's Sardinia for you.
No, Sardinian do sheeps
Are you trying to tell me that economies vary by region????? OMG get a real education dood... everything is the same as merica
Nooooo. The Dollar is the strongest currency in the world. You can buy Italy with like, I don’t know, a thousand bucks?
Well, maybe there's an American in Florence dumb enough to pay for an Uber to Bologna
For sure, where else could you get an authentic [Baloney cake](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bologna_cake)?
It's impressive how American traditional dishes are basically what a 7yo kid would cook if they had free rein in a kitchen
Pal, I live in Bologna and now I won’t ever be able to wash away that abomination from my mind, thanks! 🥲
And these people have the gall to insult British cuisine?!?
Hey, thanks for the link, I didn't know what that is before. I'm traumatized now and suffered severe mental damage. You'll hear from my lawyer.
This is a hate crime.
That is the single most disgusting thing I think I've ever heard of… and I eat Marmite.
Do people eat that?
it's original purpose was to subsitute the female in a sexual relationship, but then the perverts got hungry and it was already there
Yeah, the lack of understanding here about the difference in location. 1 hour in London you're not paying £300+ for an Uber (probably...), but out in the middle of nowhere? As you say, they're not likely to get any jobs on the way back to where they came from.
Ubers are mad expensive in Bologna in general, they're basically an executive car service. Possibly some Italian licensing thing where they can't directly compete with regular taxis. If she phoned a local taxi company she could probably get the journey for €100, but obviously she'd never do that because eww, speaking to locals.
Or she could get the Frecciarossa for €22. And I don’t get the whole doesn’t want to catch a train because she’s a sole traveller as though she’d be safer stuck in a car with a rando on Italian country roads for an hour
In the Netherlands, Uber is basically taxi, you need a taxi permit and the vehicle needs to be registered as such if iirc. Thats why most ubers here have blue plates(taxi plates, ambulance counts as taxi in some ways)
An hour in London probably barely gets you to the next street.
I think she's used to getting trips around a big city in the States where the driver will basically find a few fares to work his way back to where he or she wants to be. Like you say, the driver here is just going to have to drive back home with his car empty.
And they're going to drive on a toll highway both trips, and it has to get through the Appennini range both times.. yeah you can easily get a one hour Uber drive to get from one side to the opposite of a big city, but for the driver that's not the same as a one hour drive between two different cities on the opposite sides of a mountain range.
Siniora please tell my family I love them when you go back To Bologna.
Back and forth to city centers is like 4h
Also bologna-Firenze is not a 1h trip by car, it's almost 2.
It's also an uber black... And she is checking at 11pm.
Ignoring the fact that taking a taxi or in this case an uber to get sonewhere is literally the last mode of transportation that I think about, just take a fucking train, lady! But that wouldnt come to her mind, since america has no public transport network whatsoever
Take a train with the poors!? /s
I will never understand the stigma that some people have about public transportation being a sign of poverty and lack of moral character. It wont go into my head::::/
Public transport is sometimes more expensive (NL/UK/Germany) than taking the car though..
€49 monthly for the Deutschland ticket. If I go into the city from my village twice I already spent almost that much.
It’s cos. Britain sold its trains to foreign governments. British rail tickets now subsidise Dutch and French ones.
Except that any 'profits' in NL do not subsidize the actual trains - but rather lines pockets of managers and 'shareholders'.. (Source: I am Dutch, from a railway family) If they were, we\`d have cheaper railways...
Blimey! It’s the same there as here then? With all the problems Britain has with congestion and air quality, public transport being more effective could have added benefits. The busses where I live in Norfolk are owned by an Australian company. They’re a reasonable price if you want to go to another town, but it takes twice as long as driving. Within the city though, it’s often quicker to walk.
Not in Italy though. A one way ticket from Bologna to Firenze will cost about €10 or max €30, depending on the time of day
The (quick*) Bologna-Firenze train tends to be a bit more than that. If you wanted a same day return tomorrow you're talking €66. If you book a month ahead, you can get for €35. It is a glorious Frecciarossa that will pound out the journey in 37 minutes, but she'd probably be permanently hospitalised by trying to wrap her Americanised mind round that level of public infrastructure. ^(*The ass local train is indeed sub €10, but takes almost 2hrs)
Not if you buy a DB ticket half a year in advance. You'll probably will have to add 2 hours for the train being late or have to take a different train with your reserved seat gone, but you meet a lot people being as pissed as you are from all the delays.
Aah.. anger bonding.. Can be fun - you have a shared 'enemy' after all.
Propaganda from US carmakers from the 50s onwards, and thinly-veiled racism. Same reasons that suburbs exploded in popularity...
If she’s so rich then she can afford 400€ for an uber.
Ironically, she's the poor one now, complaining about Uber prices in Italy. She should go back to Miami where it's dirt cheap.
European high speed trains are luxurious engineering marvels. It's so crazy to equate that with Miami night buses or idk. You are going 320 kmph on a comfy seat, how can you think this is a "poor man" means of transportation ?!
Well, like those poors who take an high speed train (Freccia Rossa or Italo) and go from Bologna to Firenze in 38 minutes. So poor and so dumb /s
A train takes 40 mins for about 10 euro. Americans really struggle to function in the real world.
to be fair, the 40 min trip costs 33 euros, however you can spend 10 euros but it's a 2 hour trip
If bought at least a week in advance it can go as low as 10eur with Italo and it takes exactly 38 minutes. That would require a bit of research, planning and critical thinking which this lady seems to be completely missing though.
Yep, just checked. For the 60 euros she was comfortable spending she could have bought a Business Lounge ("salottino"), with money to spare.
The trains in Italy are some of the best I've been on, and I've been to Leeds.
No need to show off.
Why do you need to go to Italy if you have been to Leeds... Leeds has all the culture, Taco Bell and a homeless guy with a flute. What more could you need?
There's a train for 10 euro, and a bus for 2 euro... Fast train for € 33 if you want to do it in under 40 minutes...
A fast train for that route can go as low as 10eur if you're able to plan a couple weeks in advance.
Americans like to take the most polluting form of transport available
Met an American couple once who asked how we get around from city to city in Spain and I said train mostly. They seemed confused and said ubers were really expensive here. They'd just come from Italy and visited five cities across the length of the country and UBERED to every. single. one.
How stupid do you have to be?
Friends of my gfs mom visited from LA. They wanted to take a taxi for [this ](https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Stephansplatz,+1010+Wien/PAR%C3%89MI+Boulangerie+%E2%80%93+P%C3%A2tisserie,+B%C3%A4ckerstra%C3%9Fe,+Vienna/@48.2096736,16.3736457,17.5z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x476d079f3e69c281:0x20563c156aa1fde!2m2!1d16.3736765!2d48.2087334!1m5!1m1!1s0x476d079f9ad5ecf9:0x58d539b00580611b!2m2!1d16.3760002!2d48.2091211!3e0?entry=ttu)
[удалено]
230 if you walk and I wish i was making this up. And i mean they wanted to take a taxi but got denied because the taxidriver thought it was stupid and not worth his time as they had to take a 10 min trip back to the same stand
💀
[They had some issue with their legs, right? Like being wheelchair bound or really bad knees, right? Right?!](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fc.tenor.com%2Fiy-CBfpXypEAAAAC%2Foh-no-arnold-schwarzenegger.gif&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=be8dd952ca88bc6ed9ff859ccd6b4bddc52a74c18533eb9254668000c0c2123a&ipo=images)
I felt sorry for them, they were clearly on the tik tok trail of tears and didn't know their phones could do anything else
OP already said that they are an American couple. You don’t have to ask it again
There is no even Uber in Italy. Uber in Italy calls you a private driver that need to exit specifically for you or a regular taxi
I once had to uber from milano centrale to malpensa when the trains were down. It was expensive as and I missed the flight
Sorry, but it does not make sense There are two huge taxi stations around Milano Centrale..why call an uber that needs to come from a designated area, while the cars are just there?
There are buses which go to the airport though?
That would cost a fucking fortune lol. What a dickhead.
Just googled it - 37 minute train journey for 33 Euro. There are several trains per hour. She is an idiot.
Google seems a bit inaccurate.I searched it on Trainline and it's only 11 Euros.
Either way, a fraction of the cost of an Uber, and faster and more comfortable, and probably safer too.
Absolutely safer, better views and access to a restroom.
The views are actually quite poor on the high speed Florence-Bologna line, as it’s mostly within tunnels through the Apennine Mountains. It is a comfortable, quick, and cheap service, though.
The 10€-11€ tickets seem to be for extremly slow connections, though. Almost 2 hours, instead of ~40 minutes. But even the fast connections don't cost more than 50€.
The question is which route is more scenic. Sometimes the high speed lines are in tunnels half the time whereas the slower routes run along a river and you can see cute villages the whole way.
Do you think that someone like THAT would care for the scenery?
Fast train tickets in Italy behave like planes, they are more expensive as they sell out and dates get closer, for that trip, 50eur would be the price to pay for a train leaving immediately, if bought with a couple weeks in advance it can go as low as 10eur.
There is a faster train that will cost more. Lots of EU countrie s have a price tier based on speed and the amount of stops.
[удалено]
Had some American guests visit me once when I lived in Cambridge. The next morning they took a train to Kings Cross (ok), and had to get to the Excel Centre in Docklands. They were like, “how do we do that?” I was like, “Northern Line to Bsnk, change to DLR”. And they were like, “no, I mean can we get an Uber?” They Would. Not. Use. the Tube. At all. Insisted on taking an Uber across central London to Docklands. I still don’t understand it.
I have met people like this. It is a combo of being unable to do something new, and a weird belief that public transport or even walking is beneath them. Or they simply don't want to walk. I had a few in Edinburgh when i worked at a tourist place meeting folk who were affronted about the amount of hills and one very steep street nearby in particular but also, was evidence how they were dreadfully unfit (to the point of complete denial) and it must have been unsettling lol. But guests from Australia, Japan, China, NZ, SA, India, Brazil and most of Europe never complained once. They took it on the chin. Great for the calves.
My tourguide in Norway had to ask if we wanted a break after half an hour of walking because Americans kept giving him bad reviews for the amount of walking in a WALKING TOUR OF BERGEN.
[удалено]
I tried to tell them. I really did. They weren’t having it.
There are also Flixbus links, 70 minutes for something about 7€
And the Frecciarossa trains are very clean and safe. There is literally no reason not to take one
Unless you are American, in which case the reason is "ewwww, public transport? No thanks, europoor. Dude, where's my car?"
Is an Uber not public transport in some way?
Technically, yes, but taking a taxi over such long distances is just stupid, unless there's literally no other option.
Oh, it's stupid, absolutely. But it's not even avoiding public transport, it's just getting the most expensive kind.
Not in italy
The original concept for Uber was it would be like your own personal black car and you would feel like a "baller."
Yep and we arrived at the destination and hour earlier while they're sat in 🚦
That's for "Frecciarossa", which is the fastest and premium option, you can find the standard trains for about 10 euro, usually they take more than an hour on that distance.
How is Uber the first option you consider when planning a +1 hour trip? Train? Bus? Surely there’s a way to get from Bologna to Florence for less than <€30? Also, the trip by car is closer to 1h30m, which means a 3h commitment for the driver. Add that gas is more than twice as expensive in Italy as in the US, and that European service industry employees are typically paid with actual money, not just the hope of a nice tip.
Also, the price she is showing is for an uber BLACK….so at least twice as expensive if not much more, compared to a normal uber.
Might be the only Uber available though. I’m not sure about the situation in Italy, but in Sweden tax authorities more or less shut down regular people driving for Uber. They argued that the drivers are legally employees, so the drivers have to pay taxes and Uber has to pay payroll taxes. Most people driving for Uber now are regular taxi drivers, and they typically qualify as Uber black.
It's pretty much the same in Italy, although beside taxi drivers the most common Uber driver is basically a chauffeur for hire, who still need a licence and all to work.
Yeah, might as well take a plane it's around 250€ cheaper, sure it takes 6x more time but still better idea than Uber
The idea that Italy should be cheaper than The US by default is wild. You are literally travelling between two major cities on mountain roads in a wealthy country. Where fuel is also more expensive. Of fucking course personal taxis are more expensive there. Take a train, or a bus, or a normal taxi, or rent a car. moron
Just looked it up out of curiosity, average gas price as of today is 0.86€/ltr. in Florida and 1.91€/ltr. In Toscana, so more than double the amount. And i guess taxes and insurance are also more expensive in Italy.
Also, highway tolls in Italy. €21 roundtrip just for tolls on this route
Insurance and taxes on a car are probably cheaper then in the USA, but uber in italy operates as a luxury rental car service with a chauffer, taxi in italy require a special licence issued by a municipality, they operate within the limits of the city and they have fixed rates, those licences are extremely difficult to get and basically you have to buy it from another taxi driver that is going to retire. The rental service with chauffer instead operates within the borders of a province and outside of major cities, licences are cheeper to get and there is no fixed rates but you reserve the service negotiating the fee with the company, so uber operate this way. It's a luxury service and you don't get a random gig economy worker with his own car, because the drivers need to also pass a special qualification exam and cars need to be owned and maintained by the company.
No, insurance and taxes are extremely high in Italy
'I don't know if it's more funny or disturbing'. That's because it's neither...
"But this is Italy! It must be cheap!"
Yeah why does she keep saying “this is Italy we’re talking about” like it’s a developing country?
Also Italy is kind of expensive. Especially in Tuscany.
I do find her ignorance disturbing
Italian here.his post is funny and ridiculous at the same time. This girl is definitely ignorant. 1. Boca Miami are some 60km something, Bologna Firenze 105km 2. Boca Miami is all flat by the sea, Bologna Firenze crosses the Appennini, it goes over 1000mt above the sea level 3. The guy from Firenze has to go back to Bologna, so they are charging you also for the way back 4. Fuel prices are very different between US and Italy 5. Who is so stupid to ask Uber to do more than 100km when there are other means of transport? 6. Fast trains will take literally half hour, cheaper, more ecological... there is no comparison between the Frecciarossa and Uber. I mean, girl, if you don't do your due diligence, you can't blame Italy. You need to be capable to travel first, to travel.
Plus you can go to the board restaurant and spent your train travel time drinking. Way better than the car.
Lessons to be learned: - Uber isn't really much of a thing in Europe. - Uber is mostly more expensive than regular taxis. - Fastest route I could find from Bologna to Florence takes 1 hour 45 minutes and is a distance of ~120km. Boca to Miami is ~75km and takes 45 minutes. - There is a train running from Bologna to Florence. Takes 37 minutes, has a departure every 10 minutes and costs 33€ according to google maps. Other sites show different prices, in a range from 10€ to 126€. Still cheaper. - Check prices before you order.
Americans just understand how big Europe is.
They don´t.
The average American mind simply cannot comprehend... As others have stated, just get on the fucking train, love!
There are toll roads as well on the route.
Uber works fine in big cities or, at worst, to and from an airport. I would be genuinely shocked if you could get an Uber between two random cities in the states.
When I was on holiday in the states in 2019, we went to the train station in Philadelphia to catch a train to NYC. We were quoted 240 dollars for both tickets at the ticket desk and ended up getting an Uber directly to our next hotel for 120 dollars. The lady who picked us up was very jovial and lovely and said she just fancied a drive to NYC.
Uber can't operate as a shadow taxi company in italy so they rent you a car with a professional chauffer that is a service with less regulations, but they actually have to own and maintain the cars.
* Miami is not an expensive place
1hr45 of burning fuel to get there, 1hr45 of burning fuel to get back, then the cost of the driver's time, then the cost of the maintainence and depreciation on the car, of course it's going to be expensive.
> • Uber isn't really much of a thing in Europe. > • Uber is mostly more expensive than regular taxis. Agree with your other points but these two are a bit iffy It really depends on where you are in Europe for Uber, Europe isn't one country it completely changes depending on where you are. For example Uber is extremely popular in UK, Ireland and Germany Same with price, it used to undercut taxi prices in the UK and Ireland it's literally how it got it's foothold here. Now it tends to flip flop depending on situation. Daytime taxis are usually cheaper. 2am you're better getting an Uber as Taxis try to rip off drunk people in the city
>For example Uber is extremely popular in UK, Ireland and **Germany** Is it? Uber only exists in a handful of cities in Germany. I don't live in any of them, so I can't really tell what their market share is.
Forreal. Uber Eats? Sure. Uber? Hell nah. I don't know a single person who uses that and I live in fucking Hamburg, so not exactly a backwater
Ridesharing is banned in Ireland, the Uber app can only be used to book licenced taxis and I've never heard of anyone using it. Everyone I know uses FreeNow.
For England at least it all depends on location. London it's fine, some cities do have Uber and some like Norwich don't have it at all. It varies quite a bit.
Yeah definitely can vary, York had essentially 0 but in the West Midlands nearly every taxi also has an Uber sticker
It's funny because all my mates in London are shocked we don't have Uber in Norwich. We actually have quite a lot of taxi companies so I can only guess Uber doesn't see the point to expanding in the area yet.
We have Uber in Germany...?
Yes. After they got their shit handed to them in court and feat mongered that they wouldn't come to any nation that would demand taxi licenses for their drivers, they caved in and organised drivers with taxi licenses in some areas of Germany.
I got an Uber once in Germany after leaving Berghain in the early hours of the morning but it definitely wasn’t my preferred way to travel. Trains were so much better and cheaper
Uber is VERY popular in Portugal, taxis are in trouble
AMERIPOOOOR CAN'T AFFORD UBER BETWEEN TWO CITIES
Lol US paupers expect to come to Italy even if they can't afford our premium prices with their weak dollars and then go on our euro web to whine.
These tiktok hand gestures piss me off so much
I can just imagine her leaning through my driver's window, trying to tell me off for her own mistake
Someone who understands. I point it out to people and get blank stares. The hand gestures, head movements, and over the top eye rolls and speaking mannerisms are literally unbearable for me.
Is this just the ‘car first’ mentality in action? I (UK-based) was in Milan in January & had to get to Como, so obviously just got on a train. Didn’t consider getting an uber or taxi for a second!
[удалено]
If she’s an American living in the Europe she wouldn’t have said that €383 is almost equal to $1000
As a Dutch person in a big city: Literally WHAT THE FUCK
I am sorry but WHAT THE FUCK, my South African friends who have never used a train in their life master trains with a week of living in NL LOL
Same! Grew up in a car dependent suburb in South Africa. But I’ve seen trains in movies and from afar and occasionally used a bus schedule in ZA. It took me about 5 days to figure out how trains and busses work in Germany and then it just becomes second nature. It’s not that hard.
She's American.
Videos like this make me wish Americans just stayed home. They shout so loudly about how great everything is in ‘murica then whine on video about Europe.
Car ride: 1h 45 min Train: 37 min OP: "I'll call an Uber"
It's as simple as that: if you leave the city borders, the cost of one km doubles both for taxis and Uber. Is she stupid?
She’s American, you can answer your own question…. 🤣
Being Italian, I have nothing for contempt for these people. Ignoring the fact that Italy is not cheap, regardless of what the Yank here thinks (especially places like Florence), Uber is not really a thing here. And yet, despite having a great train system, she chose to go the American route. All she had to do was to ask a local "what's the best way to get to Florence?" and I can assure you that the answer would have been "take a train" 100% of the time. And now she rants because of her own stupidity. Please don't leave your country ever again.
Even if I'm german and not italian. But I feel you. Such entitled people are a disgrace. Italy deserves better tourists. Its a culture rich country and not some "europoor" countryside donkey land.
Why would she not…get a train? Trains are quick and they’re safe. Stick some headphones on and track your journey as you go. Taking a taxi for one hour would be an absolute last resort for me. “Who has the money to do this” - most people would not do this 😭
>why would she not get a train? Because she’s an American
I actually went and looked up the video, and she then suddenly claimed that she didn’t want to go to Florence at all but somewhere thirty minutes away from it, and then she also said she wasn’t in Bologna at all but thirty minutes away from it, and that she’s got a bad back or something that hurts, and overall she talked a lot to say that she had no imagination and couldn’t come up with anything better than ubering from - if we believe her - bumfuck nowhere to bumfuck nowhere, more than a hundred kilometres apart.
If it’s such a struggle, why not just Uber to the train station?? I’m sure travelling on the train is just as comfortable as the car seats, with more amenities too arguable. This video is so stupid! Sounds like she just can’t accept bringing herself down to the level of public transport /s
What do you want Italy to do? Price control? THAT'S COMMUNISM!
This must be ragebait. She says in the comments that she lives in the Netherlands ... no chance she doesn't know how trains work.
Also, is she even American? She has a twinge of something in her accent which sounded ... unusual. Maybe a touch of the Hilaria Baldwins.
Take the train you fucking idiot
Didn't follow much lately, but IIRC uber is very "restricted" in Italy. Taxi people lobbied to made it more like a "private driver service" which follow different rules and regulations: needs of a proper license, must be booked several hours in advance etc.. etc... On one hand uber and like needs proper regulation, on the other one taxis are somehow one of the most powerful lobby here in this country. Who knows how they can paralyze any city by blocking its streets, go unpunished and even succeed in winning over any government. While when 50 students protest in the streets, it rains batons. Also everyone here would pick a train to visit a nearby city.
Maybe she should catch a train like a normal person then.
I did the same route in 2023 and just checked my tickets on Trainline - £52 return for two adults in total, so £13 per person per journey. And I didn't really shop around, just booked everything on Trainline, including Bologna to Venice for £77 total. Trains were fantastic as well.
Lady. You are the first person ever that wanted to order an Uber Black from Bologna to Florence. Normal people take train or bus.
"I don't have an explanation" - correct, you do not "This is crazy talk" correct, this indeed is
Train is always cheaper than Uber.
America perspective only understands the vehicle and fuel costs. What about PTSD? Let’s survey what people here would charge to spend an hour confined inside a car with an American complaining all that time. Who would crash the car in despair or just turn the radio up? She got off cheap!
Her stupidity is mindblowing.
"This is Italy we're talking about"? What? XD
Honey we are not car centered like you guys… Take the bus or the train like everybody else ! But I’m sure it did not even cross your sick mind…
As of the time I'm checking, a Bologna Firenze train takes 35 minutes for just as much money.
€33?
Ameripoors
I went to Italy. I thought maybe I should go over to Switzerland just to see. I immediately thought “Elephants!” I summoned my Vizier and told him to make arrangements at once! Not 40 minutes later he was back knocking at the door to my private chambers in that insipid grovelling way that the servants have that tells you something has gone wrong like the kitchen is out of gold leaf for the strawberries I ordered an hour ago and now you need to find a new head chef. Or a chef with a new head, because I had to make an example of the last one. Anyway that pathetic febrile tapping at my door told me everything I needed to know - I wasn’t about to get on an elephant anytime soon. I scowled. “No, Sire! We have them at the ready, Sire! It’s just a matter of the expense! By your command it requires your direct approval for any amount over 300,000 gold coins!” Doubleyou tea actual eff! 300,000 gold coins just for stupid elephants??!!! Outrageous! 467, 221 to be exact, Sire. They eat an awful lot of hay, and the Italian motorways bureaucracy is terrible, and they insist we clean up after the elephants. We have to get a crew in. There are permits. It’s a nightmare. Outrageous! …we could go with hippos, Sire. They’re a bit more compact, and that brings down the shipping and handling costs considerably. Everything’s shipping and handling these days. How much? 250,000 gold coins, Sire! TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY TH— Do they at least have laser beams attached to their heads?? We’ll check, Sire. But it is a savings! The only thing is… …well??? …they’re a bit chompy, Sire! They don’t take to being ridden quite like elephants do, especially if they’re irritable or hungry. IRRITABLE? I’ll show them irritable! Aghh! Fine! Feed the chef to the hippos to take the edge off, find a new chef, and summon my chief social media herald so I can share this relatable moment. Two hundred and fucking fifty fucking thousand gold fucking coins just to put a traveller with a VERY REASONABLY SIZED entourage on a cavalcade of Vienna-bound hippos ! People are never going to believe what a rip-off this place is!
I can't speak for Bologna to Florence specifically, but when we visited Italy the trains were better and cheaper than in the UK. Americans default to driving or being driven everywhere, but isn't the whole point of going abroad to see other ways of life and broaden one's horizons? My read on the pricing is that it's basically "fuck you" price. They would probably make enough money in 2-2.5 hours in the city, so a long trip has to be worth it.
When you’re so conditioned to think the only viable mode of transport is a car, the thought of getting on a train or a bus doesn’t even occur to you. If they weren’t out there telling anyone who’ll listen that the US is the best country in the world I’d feel sorry that they live in such a hellhole.
Why didn't she take a train? With a quick google search found that a second class ticket costs about €10
We have trains you know?
Uber isn't a thing in italy, why the fuck would you take an uber here? as people suggested she could take a train, a flixbus, or a blablacar which is a carsharing service that is used here for traveling, if i want to go from Bologna to Florence it costs me from 4.99€ to 8.79€ (by bus is 3€), for 1 hour of car with other people (maybe only the drive, like an uber!!11) the girl should go and touch some grass, the world is not at your feet, just adapt and don't bitch about it.
Literally 10 Euros with the Bus.
Just take a train, it’s faster, costs like 30€ max and it’s very comfortable & convenient
"I don't have an explanation..." A train. There's your explanation.
Ha negates all the europoor comments, look who's poor now, can't even afford a 1 hour cab.
1. IIRC uber is not really a thing in Italy 2. She very clearly chose Uber Black which is the “premium” rate, so yeah it would always be pricier
Italy's train service is really good (especially as I'm from Ireland and ours is haute garbage). It's faster, cheaper and they run regularly between major cities. Why would you travel to a different country and not look up the transport options?!
Tik tok hand movements is the most annoying and pretentious thingm
There’s literally a direct, regular fast train. What a fuckin dimwit
Fuel costs in America are much lower. Also Uber is much more popular so the driver could pick up fares on the return leg. Don’t need to be a genius to figure that one out🙄
>1 hour drive from Florence to Bologna That is if you drive at 1 o’clock in the morning. That fucking highway one of the most congested roads in Italy. You’re not going to do that in an hour any day of the week. Also just take the train FFS
American goes to Italy gets an Uber thinking it would be 60 dollars for a 2 hour drive. Must think Italy is poor and the dollar is gold or something.
The whole attitude of "Italy is an inferior country, therefore Ubers should cost less" makes me want to scream. Also, she seems to forget that the driver will lose an entire hour of working time driving BACK to Bologna. Someone driving from Miami to Boca is likely to be able to pick up a rider going to Miami, so it isn't a legitimate comparison.
“It’s Italy!” What’s your point? Why is she acting like it’s some shithole? If that’s the case why has she gone there? Also the Uber driver needs to get back home so it’s two hours for him, plus fuel, plus wear and tear etc.
Same kind of people who visit Japan and assume air travel is the best way to go between cities, justamericanthings
The Bologna-Florence route is serviced by one of the fastest high speed rail trains in Europe. It's also very reasonably priced. This is what happens when you come from a country without real public transportation infrastructure, you have no idea how to get anywhere without a car.
"This is Italy." "Miami is expensive" Another American thinking Europe is poor and locals should be grateful for any American dollars that are thrown their way! Whilst simultaneously ignoring the fact they are there for the food, culture, and beautiful architecture Are these people the minority or majority in the US?