Column: trains in Italy

Perhaps during your holiday in Italy you have taken the train to visit a city and you have been a bit put off. Summer is not the ideal time to travel by train in sweltering, crowded trains without air conditioning, but when the temperatures drop slightly again, it is certainly doable. The connections are generally good and the trains and stations, especially in the big cities, are often very nice.

It is a known fact that there are often delays with public transport in Italy. That image was confirmed once again when I wanted to go to Rome two weeks ago by train from Aversa, close to Naples.

Two types of trains

I had a choice of two types of trains. First the Red Arrow, or the fast intercity train that takes you from Napoli Centrale to Roma Termini within an hour, without having to change trains. An ticket for this train costs about 40 euros.

The second choice was a treno regional, a kind of sprinter that stops at all stations. Because of this, a ride to Rome takes about 2,5 hours. A ticket for this train is much cheaper: € 10,70 to be exact.

Since I wasn't in a hurry anyway and the arrival time of the regional one was better, I decided to buy a ticket for this slower train.

Attenzione: Annuncio di ritardo

I walked to the platform where my train would arrive a few minutes later, but I saw on the digital sign that the previous train, the fast train to Rome that would also arrive at that platform, had not yet passed. But shouldn't that train have come a few hours earlier?

And indeed: through the loudspeaker followed a Annuncio di ritardo, the train was delayed by no less than 140 minutes! Then it's not too bad at the NS… In the end I only had to wait half an hour for the regional train, I'm afraid the express train did not come that day.

Socializing on the train

Most Italians are very chatty and amicable. So if you sit next to or opposite someone on the train for a few hours, there is a good chance that they will start a chat with you. It's actually quite nice when someone asks you where you're from, where you're going or asks what kind of work you do. Yet here too the smartphone is starting to take the upper hand and more and more travelers have their eyes on their screens, but it is in any case not as bad as in the Netherlands.

Are you planning to take the train in Italy? It is easy to do and also quite fun, but take into account possible delays…

Do you really like the train? Then you can also consider to travel to Italy by train!

What kind of experience do you have with traveling by train in Italy?