Italy has 16,700 km of railway tracks. The high-speed trains linking the cities run at 300 km/h and the regional trains crawl through the countryside at 60 km/h. The slow ones are the ones worth taking. The landscape changes every 20 minutes. The Alps give way to the Po Valley, the valley gives way to the Apennines, and the Apennines give way to the Mediterranean coast. A train tour of Italy is the best way to see the country without renting a car and negotiating Italian traffic laws.
In This Article
Milan to Venice: The Core of the North
The high-speed line from Milano Centrale to Venezia Santa Lucia takes 2 hours 25 minutes and costs roughly €35-50 booked in advance on Italo or Trenitalia. The train passes through Brescia, Verona, Padua, and Mestre before crossing the 4 km causeway into Venice. The approach to Venice, the train suspended between water and sky, the domes of St Marks basilica appearing across the lagoon, is the most dramatic arrival of any European train journey. Book a seat on the right side of the train (direction Venice) for the best view. Arrive in Venice at Santa Lucia station, walk out the front door, and the Grand Canal is at your feet. Book tickets 30 days ahead for the best prices. First class adds €10-20 and includes a snack and a seat with more legroom.
Venice to Bologna: Delta, Sprawl, and Food
The regional train from Venice to Bologna takes 1 hour 35 minutes through the Po Delta, the flat agricultural heartland of Italy. The fields of corn, tomatoes, and wheat stretch to the horizon. The silos, the farmhouses, the canals. This is not tourist Italy. This is agricultural Italy, the part that feeds the rest of the country. Arrive at Bologna Centrale and walk into the old town, which has the largest medieval centre in Europe and the best food in Italy. The tortellini in brodo at Osteria dellOrsa costs €12. The Tagliatelle al Ragù, the original Bolognese sauce served on fresh egg pasta, is nothing like the pasta you have eaten at home. Bologna is also the rail hub of Italy. Every major line passes through Bologna Centrale, making it the best base for a multi-city train itinerary.
Bologna to Florence: 35 Minutes Through the Apennines
The high-speed train from Bologna to Florence takes 35 minutes through the Apennine mountains. The tunnel sequence is the most concentrated on the Italian network. The train emerges from a tunnel into a valley, crosses a bridge, and disappears into the next mountain. Each emergence reveals another Tuscan hill town, another villa, another valley of olive groves. Arrive at Firenze Santa Maria Novella, which is a 10-minute walk from the Duomo. Florence is small and walkable. The Uffizi Gallery, the Accademia (Michelangelos David), the Ponte Vecchio. The train station itself is worth a look. It was designed by the Gruppo Toscano in the 1930s and is one of the finest examples of Italian rationalist architecture.
Florence to Rome: 90 Minutes Through Tuscany and Lazio
The high-speed line from Florence to Rome takes 90 minutes at up to 300 km/h. The landscape transitions from Tuscany to Umbria to Lazio. The olive groves of Tuscany, the hill towns of Orvieto and Montepulciano glimpsed from the window, the Tiber valley as the train approaches Rome. Arrive at Roma Termini, the largest railway station in Italy. The metro from Termini to the Colosseum takes 5 minutes. The high-speed line was built for the 1990 World Cup and the bridges and viaducts along the route are engineering landmarks. The section through the Chiana Valley runs on a viaduct that is 4 km long. Rome is the end of the northern high-speed network and the start of the southern lines. Plan a stop here to break the journey.
Rome to Naples: 70 Minutes to the Coast
The high-speed train from Rome to Napoli Centrale takes 70 minutes through the Campanian countryside. The line runs past the Alban Hills, through the Liri Valley, and along the coast of the Gulf of Gaeta before turning inland towards Naples. The approach to Naples, the Bay of Naples visible on the right, Vesuvius on the left, is the second most dramatic arrival after Venice. Naples is chaotic, loud, and serves the best pizza in the world. Pizzeria Da Michele, in business since 1870, serves two types of pizza only (Margherita and Marinara) for €5 each. The queue is 30-60 minutes at peak times. Take the Circumvesuviana local train from Naples to Pompeii, a 30-minute ride for €3. The excavated Roman city at the foot of Vesuvius is the closest you can get to walking through a Roman town. The train to Sorrento continues from the same line through the Sorrentine Peninsula and the Amalfi Coast.
Which Italian train journey would you book first, the causeway approach into Venice or the pizza reward at the end of the Rome-Naples line?
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This is a topic close to my heart — train travel in Italy. It is great to see such thorough coverage of it here. The insights are spot on and the writing style makes it an easy and enjoyable read.