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Italy rail holidays

Is it a museum? Is it a gallery? No, it’s an Italian train station! Our rail holidays to Italy reveal the joys of travelling by train in a country where train stations range from architectural marvels to tiny coastal outposts. We speak to our local experts about why trains are the easiest and most enjoyable ways to get around Italy – whether you’re choosing an escorted small group tour or a private tailor made trip.

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Italy rail holidays

“If someone truly wants to understand how Italians live, they should travel by train,” says Giovanna Consonni, “because that’s how we travel.”

Giovanna designs our most popular rail holidays in Italy. These trips aren’t specifically designed for rail romantics or carbon-cutters (although they certainly go down well with both); it’s just that rail is often the easiest and most enjoyable way to get around Italy.

City stations are a revelation. Exit Firenze Santa Maria Novella in Florence, and you’re confronted with the chequered face of the Santa Maria Novella – one of the oldest basilicas in the city. Meanwhile, in Venice, the main station unexpectedly deposits arrivals right on the Grand Canal, where vapporetti bob in the water, ready to whisk visitors off to their hotels.

Roma Termini might not win any awards for architectural charm, but there’s something magic about stepping off a train and being immediately wrapped in the warmth and sounds of the city. Scooters zoom by, wine is sipped under the shade of nearby arcades, and the Roman baths are just a trundle across the bus stops. Even at the hectic rush hour, commuters find time to pause for an espresso at the station’s stand-up coffee bars.

If someone truly wants to understand how Italians live, they should travel by train.

If it is architectural wonders you’re after, there are plenty of those. Napoli Afragola, where sleeper trains from Rome to Naples pull in, is a futuristic work of art by British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid that frames views of Mount Vesuvius. Reggio Emilia AV Mediopadana is another modern vision – a silvery wave of an entranceway welcomes you to the home of Italian food staples like balsamic vinegar and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

These are journeys through history too. Two of the oldest train routes were built before the unification of Italy, by 19th-century Sicilian kingdoms in the south and the Austrian Empire in the north. For other lines, the fascist dictatorship of Mussolini, who used the railways to spread propaganda, looms large. Beneath the grand façade of Milano Centrale station is the Shoah Memorial dedicated to the thousands of Jews and other persecuted people deported to concentration camps from its underground Platform 21.

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Beyond the city lines: for the love of slow travel

Most people stick to the fast inter-city routes – but there’s a whole country to explore beyond the busy cities.

“You won’t get a real sense of everyday life by only visiting places like Venice or Rome, where tourists mostly meet other tourists,” says Giovanna. “It’s on regional trains, in small stations and everyday journeys, that you catch a glimpse of real Italian life.”

Venice to Florence is a perpetually popular route – but you can also reach the Renaissance town of Ferrara in less than an hour. Milan, Rome and Venice are all very reachable from Turin – but how about stopping en route to enjoy the mountain culture and Roman ruins of Aosta, or the wine and white truffle festivals of Alba? In Lombardy, speeding through would mean missing the art treasures left behind by the noble families of Mantua – a lakeside city also known as the Sleeping Beauty. In Tuscany and Umbria, seemingly remote medieval hilltop towns like Montepulciano can in fact be reached by train on the Rome and Siena routes. Meanwhile, Pisa often overshadows the nearby seafood-centric port city of Livorno, where canals thread through the streets.

You won’t get a real sense of everyday life by only visiting places like Venice or Rome... It’s on regional trains, in small stations and everyday journeys, that you catch a glimpse of real Italian life.

Our best rail holidays to Italy take the time to see these worlds between the cities. You might stay in a couple of bases – say, Florence and Rome – and take day trips by train to explore the region. That way, you also have the time to unpack and get to know a place – perhaps via pasta making classes in Bologna, a tour of a violin workshop in Cremona, or gelato tasting in Rome. “You experience local life, while also benefiting small businesses that often miss out on mainstream tourism,” says Giovanna.

You’ll also experience local life on the trains. “On long-distance trains, you often sit next to professionals travelling for work, and many of them speak English, so it’s easy to have a conversation,” says Giovanna. “On local trains, you might find older passengers who don’t speak a word of English, yet somehow still manage to start the most random and heartwarming conversations with fellow travellers. It’s very sweet and always makes the journey memorable.”

What are the most scenic train journeys in Italy?

Brescia-Iseo-Edolo line, Italian Lakes

“One of my favourite train routes in Italy is the line from Iseo to Edolo in the Valle Camonica,” says Giovanna. “This route offers stunning views of Lake Iseo and the surrounding mountains. While there are a few short tunnels along the way, most of the journey is open-air, allowing you to fully enjoy the beautiful natural scenery. It’s a wonderful way to experience a quieter, less touristy part of northern Italy.”

Venetian Lagoon, Veneto

Arrive by train, and the towers and domes of Venice appear like a mirage as you sweep across the Venetian Lagoon. Sit on the left-hand side for the best views – islands like flattened pennies, boats skipping across the waves, and the snowy glow of the Alps in the distance. The most famous train that makes this journey is the legendary and luxurious Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, but you can choose any train that departs Venezia Santa Lucia, really – even the 10-minute hop between Venice’s two stations goes over the lagoon.

Florence to Rome, Tuscany

Fast trains zip between Florence and Rome in just 1.5 hours, smoothing through the Tuscan countryside, where cypress trees stripe the hills and medieval villages and cities perch on hilltops. For a slower, more scenic journey, take a regional train that gives you a chance to explore those cities – including Arezzo, with its suntrap piazzas and frescoed churches, and Orvieto, where a funicular will whisk you between the new and very, very old – Etruscan-era – towns.

Verona to Bolzano, Italian Alps

Travelling from the city of star-crossed lovers to the South Tyrolean landscapes of the Alps is a delightfully dramatic introduction to north-east Italy. The mountains are high – and then higher and higher – as you head up to tiny Tyrolean villages huddled beneath the brow of the Dolomites. The weather is ever-changing: peaks folded in a misty cloak one minute and dipped gold from the low sun the next. Sit back with a book and enjoy… and don’t worry, you’ll be forgiven for not reading a single page.

Genoa to La Spezia, Ligurian Gulf

If you’re inspired to pen an ode or two while admiring the views from the train window while rattling along the Gulf of La Spezia, you won’t be the first one. This is also called the Gulf of Poets – the beauty of it all inspired Genoa-born Nobel Prize winner Eugenio Montale, Lord Byron, the Shelleys, and D.H. Lawrence. Travelling it by train is a bit like flicking through a picture book as the train dives in and out of tunnels – darkness punctuated by long looks at the yacht-flecked sea. Stop in Porto Venere for a glass of the local Vermentino and a plate of cheese focaccia.

Cinque Terre Express, Liguria

Is there a more scenic train station than lovely Manarola? It’s certainly a hard view to beat, braced between the sheer coastline of the Cinque Terre and the inky blue sweep of the Ligurian Sea. Trains can be crowded in the summer holidays, so time it right – in the bright peace of spring and early summer, or in the evenings, when most of the day trippers have drifted home. You can also choose to walk between towns – a great way to take in the views at your own pace on our family rail holidays in Italy.

Milan to Bologna, Emilia-Romagna

Okay, we admit, technically the journey might not count as the most scenic in Italy. There are the plains of the Po Valley and the occasional splash of vineyards. But the towns in-between are some of the most interesting and most underrated in Italy – and yet they produce some of the most famous food in the world. This train line ties together Parma (of Parma ham fame), Reggio Emilia (for Parmigiano Reggiano cheese), Modena (the home of balsamic vinegar) and Bologna (for mortadella sausage). So swap the non-stop fast train for a slower regional train where you can hop on and off, tasting all the way.

Ferrovia Circumetnea, Sicily

You’ll get to marvel at Europe’s largest active volcano from every angle on the Ferrovia Circumetnea, a train that’s been trundling around the slopes of Mount Etna since the 19th century. It’s a three-hour trip in total, with the option of hopping off at the villages en route, including Bronte, the home of Sicilian pistachio production (and melt-in-the-mouth pistachio pastries), and Randazzo, a medieval town with a trio of lava-carved churches.

Bernina Express, Tirano

The Bernina Express has spent over 50 years astonishing visitors with its journey through the borderlands of the Rhaetian Alps. The distinctive scarlet-red tourist train takes four hours to travel from Tirano in Italy to Chur in Switzerland, across mountain passes and bridges (196 of them, in fact), including the sky-high Landwasser Viaduct. Extra-large picture windows mean extra-good views – improved in summer by the addition of open-air carriages that give you the chance to admire glaciers, lakes and mountains with the alpine air in your hair. To reach the starting station of Tirano, you’ll catch a train from Milan – a spectacular journey itself that takes in almost the entire east side of Lake Como.

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Our travellers also ask…

Are trains a good way to travel in Italy?

Yes! Train travel is a great way to explore north and central Italy, where tracks connect cities and small towns. Things get trickier south of Naples and Bari, where the rail network is more limited. Calabria, inland Basilicata and islands such as Sicily and Sardinia have less reliable routes. “It’s a shame, because these places are beautiful,” says Giovanna, “but you need private transportation to explore them properly.” For the south, your best bet is our small group or self drive tours.

Is train travel expensive in Italy?

Like most countries, it depends on many factors, including the time of year, which type of train service, seat preferences, and how far you book in advance. As a general rule, booking train tickets in advance and choosing slower regional trains is cheaper; you pay more for the comfier and quicker non-stop services between cities. Train travel is included in the price of our rail holidays – and our tailor made experts can tweak the route to your budget.

Where does the Bernina Express start & end?

The Bernina Express starts in Tirano, in Italy’s northerly Lombardy region, and finishes in Chur, Switzerland. If starting from Tirano, you can reach the start point by direct train from Milan.

How far in advance should I book Italian train tickets?

Tickets can be booked about two months in advance. You can book our rail holidays long before that, though – our partners will grab your seats as soon as they’re released and tweak your itinerary accordingly, keeping you informed all the way.

Can I travel from the UK to Italy by train?

Yes, several routes connect the UK and Italy by rail. Travelling via Paris is the most straightforward route – it’s a Eurostar from London St Pancras and then a train to your pick of Turin, Milan or Rome. Travel time is around 16 hours; save on daylight hours and accommodation costs by using a sleeper train.

What is the luxury train to Italy?

The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is by far and away the most luxurious train to Italy, kitted out in restored Art Deco carriages and a bar car with a resident pianist. We don’t offer trips on the Orient Express, but if luxury is your cup of Earl Grey tea, we have first-class travel options on almost all our Italy holidays – usually on the zippy city-to-city trains.