There are many ways to get around Italy—but after years of travelling up and down the country, I’ve come to a firm conclusion: nothing compares to the train.
I’ve taken day trips and weekend journeys to cities as varied as Genoa, Turin, Rome, Milan, Trieste, Parma and Florence—all by rail. Every time, I’ve found the experience not just efficient, but genuinely enjoyable. Compared with the UK, there’s simply no contest.
🚄 The “Freccie” — Fast, but Not Always Best
Italy’s famous high-speed trains—the Frecciarossa, Frecciargento and their competitors from Italo—are undeniably impressive. Sleek, fast, and capable of slicing through the country at up to 300 km/h, they connect major cities with remarkable speed.
But speed isn’t everything.
These trains often rush through the landscape, particularly across the Apennine Mountains, via long tunnels. The result is what I’d call a kind of tunnel vision: efficient, yes—but detached from the country you’re travelling through.
🚆 The Case for InterCity and Regional Trains
Personally, I find myself drawn far more to Italy’s slower trains.
The InterCity services strike a perfect balance: comfortable, affordable, and crucially, they stay above ground long enough for you to actually see Italy. The views are often superb.
Then there are the regional trains—my particular favourite. They may be slower, but they offer something the high-speed trains cannot:
🌄 Breathtaking scenery
💬 Opportunities to meet people
💶 Consistently low prices
🎟️ No need to book in advance
Unlike in the UK, regional train fares in Italy don’t fluctuate wildly. A ticket costs the same whether you buy it today or just before departure—a small but significant civilised touch.
🚉 A Practical Example: Lucca to Rome
Take a simple journey: from Lucca to Rome.
Many would instinctively head to Florence and board a high-speed train. But in reality, it often makes more sense to go via Pisa and take an InterCity service directly to Rome.
Why?
No compulsory booking stress
Often cheaper
A more relaxed, scenic journey
🏔️ The Magic of the Apennines
If you really want to experience Italy by rail, take one of the older routes across the Apennines—such as the line from Pistoia to Parma.
Here, the railway winds its way through mountains, valleys and forests, revealing views that the high-speed lines completely bypass. It’s slower, certainly—but infinitely richer.
🌊 Favourite Journeys
Some routes stand out as truly unforgettable:
The coastal line through the Cinque Terre
Almost any regional crossing of the Apennines
The spectacular alpine journey from Sondrio to Tirano joining up with the Swiss Bernina Railway—surely one of the most beautiful railway routes in the world
🚂 Memories of a Different Railway Age
My affection for Italian trains goes back a long way. I still remember the days of the old Ferrovie dello Stato, with their rather drab, two-tone brown compartment-and-corridor carriages and sturdy Breda electric locomotives.
And even earlier memories linger: as a small child at Milano Centrale, startled by the sudden hiss of steam engines. Italy abandoned steam earlier than Britain, but those fleeting impressions remain vivid.
Today, steam survives only in special heritage trains—yet even these are unique in Italy, as they often run on the main national network, rather than on isolated private lines as in the UK.
🌍 The Journey Itself
Perhaps the greatest pleasure of train travel in Italy is something less tangible.
It’s the conversations that strike up naturally in a compartment.
It’s the rhythm of the rails.
It’s the sense of continuity with journeys past.
I often think back to a remarkable trip made as a child: travelling from England to Italy not by plane, but by rail and sea. The journey began on the Golden Arrow from London Victoria to Folkestone, continued by ferry to Calais, and then by overnight train with couchettes through France via Strasbourg, into Switzerland at Basel, across the Alps via the old Gotthard Tunnel route, and finally into Italy at Domodossola.
It was a continuous thread of travel—civilised, memorable, and deeply human.
That route still existed as late as 1977. Today, it has largely disappeared, replaced by the quicker, cheaper, but far less enriching world of low-cost air travel.
🚆 Final Thoughts
High-speed trains have their place, and they are undeniably impressive. But if you want to experience Italy, not just move through it, then slower trains—InterCity and regional—offer something far more valuable.
They remind you that travel is not just about arriving.
It’s about the journey.
