Italy has really been upping their railway game, with lots of new vintage tourist routes, such as this one between Rome and the Dolomites, launching over the last few months. But they’re not stopping there.
National railway operator Trenitalia have just announced plans for some brand-new services to launch in the summer, including a weekend route which travels overnight.
The service will be run by Frecciarossa between Milan in the north and Lecce, a city in southern Italy. Departing from Milan at 10.45pm, the train will stop by Milano Rogoredo, Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna Centrale, Foggia, Barletta, Bari Centrale, Monopoli, Fasano, Ostuni, Brindisi, before arriving in Lecce at 7.57am. In the other direction, services will leave Lecce at 9.05pm and arrive at Milano Centrale at 7.35am.
According to Chris Ogilvie on X (fka Twitter), the Milan – Lecce service will launch in June and cost €39.
🌒 2 new night trains from Trenitalia 🇮🇹
— Chris Ogilvie (@Ogilvie_CJ) May 18, 2024
1,500km - 11hrs - €39
Milan - Lecce/Reggio Calabria
This is brutal.
No dining/sleeper car
- 12 stops on a Frecciarossa day train with the lights on in “Smart class” with a vending machine.
Will YouTube travel vloggers be onboard?! pic.twitter.com/z0J50apawm
Trenitalia also announced the return of trains on the Putignan-Rutigliano line of the Southeast Railways, as well as up to 13 daily connections run by Frecciarossa and Frecciargento between Puglia and Rome, two of which will extend all the way to Florence.
So why all the new services? Well, according to the CEO and General Manager of Trenitalia, customer satisfaction results have improved over the last couple of years, and the operator has since invested in younger, more modern fleets of trains. Domestic demand for rail services is on the up, too.
‘The train plays a central role in people’s lives, not just as a means of transport but also as a place to foster and spread a shared culture of health, inclusion and sustainability,’ Trenitalia President Stefano Cuzzilla told Lecce Prima, ‘The Trenitalia Summer experience allows us to offer a unique model of excellence, thanks to thousands of trains and buses moving millions of people every day.’
More on the railways
From this dazzling train route launching in southern Vietnam to this brand-new service set to connect some of Europe’s most exciting cities, train travel isn’t slowing down anytime soon. Keep an eye on our news page for the latest rail stories.
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