Using the Italian train network will undoubtedly help you to get the most out of your trip. The high speed lines will transport you between Italian cities in complete comfort. The carriages run smoothly on the tracks and slice through its varied countryside giving you incredible and varied landscapes outside your window, they will really enhance your holiday and open so many more doors to different experiences and allow you to really get a complex and authentic taste of Italy.

I will explain in broad terms about the Italian rail network and the two companies that keep the country connected and the service comfortable with quality service. 

I will show you where you can buy you tickets and give you an overview of what level of service available to you.

Taking the night train will save you time because your travel time is taken while you sleep. Suitable for families, groups and even solo travellers, they are your secret weapon in getting the most out of your time! 

The Italian sleeper service is run by Intercity Notte and connects the northern cities of Milan, Turin and Genova with central and Southern cities such as Rome, Lecce and Messina. Travelling across the country will take you from Rome to Trieste; the doorstep of Slovenia and Croatia.

These sleeper routes can get you from one end of the country to the other in just one night of sleep. The Intercity notte service is clean and modern and ideal for getting more experiences out of your holiday.

Below is a list of examples of the incredible distance you can cover in one night.

 Milan – Lecce

Rome – Trieste

Rome – Siracuse

Turin – Naples

The Intercity notte trains bring the southern beaches of Puglia closer to Milan, giving you cities and museums and then culture, food and nature. You could even get all the way down to Sicily. Onboard this train you will travel all the way to the coast of Calabria before boarding the ferry, while still on the train, before reaching the island off Sicily.

Italy’s cross boarder connections are varied and very convenient for long distance connections. 

Did you know you can find sleeper trains that will travel from Italy all the way into Slovenia, Austria, Germany and Switzerland! Long distance travel to Italy couldn’t be easier. We have tried the Rome to Munich OBB nightjet train. We travelled with our then 1 and 3 year old and found the expience relaxing and easy. Don’t get me wrong, as I booked our tickets I thought of every possible thing that could go wrong while travelling so far on a train with such young children. In the end we had a great first experience and we looked forward to our next trip.

Maybe you are unsure about navigating foreign ticket websites. Fortunately, the trainline online booking service offers tickets for Italian train operators. You have probably had experience of using the service, and if not, if not don’t worry. The trainline has a  simple interface where you can search and explore ticket options. Once you have bought your ticket you can store them on the app, ready for your trip.

Buying your tickets for Trenitalia and Italo trains can be done through their apps or website. The websites regularly offer discounts on tickets for people travelling in groups, or discounts for dsame day returns.

Try to book your trains in advance where you can as you will save a lot on your journey. Upgrading to business will give you more comfortable and spacious seats and sometimes complimentary snacks

Trenitalia’s Frecce trains are engineered by Hitachi, these trains reach up to  350 km/h, they reduce the time it takes to travel between Italian cities.

Italo’s trains are engineered by Alstom, these trains are designed to travel at 360 km/h and similar to the Frecce, they provide convenient links between Italian cities.

These trains  have a low environmental impact. Their lightweight carriages allow for incredible acceleration and quiet and extremely smooth running.

In fact Trenitalia signed a contract worth €861 million for the supply of 30 new ETR1000. These trains are designed to travel on different power supplies and signalling system meaning that they can travel out of ITaly and into neightbouring country infrastructure – this will add to the europe rail network and make sustainable travel even more accessable. 

Regional trains are varied, some old stock can be a little bit rickety but the new  trains are modern, double deckers that are easy to use. Offering space for luggage, onboard station and departure information and they can save you a fortune!

Hitachi Rail Italy per Trenitalia One regional train used for city to suburb connections are made by Hitachi and they go by the names of Jazz, Swing and Rock. These are electric trains and reach 160 km/h and host up to 1400 people at a time.

Below are a list of trips taken with regional trains that are cheap and so worth the time!

Rome to Viterbo for 5,60 euro

Padova to Venice Santa Lucia for 4,80 euro

Verona to Lake Garda (Desenzano) for 4,65 euro

Genova to Cinque Terre (Monterosse) for 8 euro

Perugia to Assisi for 3,60 euro

(all one way)

For booking regional trains I have some great news – The trainline also offer these tickets. On my trip from Rome to Spoleto I bought my regaional train tickets viw the Train line and it was quick and easy. You can also buy regional train tickets in the ticket office of a station. 

Alternatively, regional tickets can be researched and booked via Trenitalia’s website or app.

For physical ticket you can go to chiosks and ticketing machines. The best thing about chiosks is that if you have questions you can directly ask. Ticket machines can be slow and will ask you one million questions before printing your tickets. You also need to be aware that sometimes they are out of order so have a back up plan, especially if you are at an un-manned station. 

Paper tickets need to be validated before you board your train but this is straight forward – you just need to pay attention to find the  machines pictured below. 

Follow the arrows on the ticket that indicate which end to insert into the machine. The paper enters the little black mouth area and then you need to slide the ticket to the left. Once you have moved the ticket, the crunching sound indicates that your ticket has successfully been validated. 

Tickets bought through the app can be managed and you can check in electronically which saves the time of printing tickets and finding the check-in machines in the station but recently (2024) there is no need to validate your electronic tickets. 

I hope you found this helpful! IF you have any questions feel free to add them below.