Journey Search
By Train from Roma / Rome (Italy) to Firenze / Florence (Italy) - Option 1: taking the 'Frecce' high speed trains operated by Trenitalia
Journey Summary
Depart Roma / Rome (Italy)
Roma Termini
Arrive Firenze / Florence (Italy)
Firenze S. M. Novella
Journey information
Train
Final Destination:
The Frecciargento trains = Venezia or Bolzano or Bergamo
The Frecciarossa and Frercciarossa 1000* trains = Milano or Torino or Venezia
*Frecciarossa 1000 trains are now used on a few of these services.
Some of these trains also call at: Roma Tiburtina
The high speed train journey from Rome to Florence:
The high speed line between Rome and Florence is more scenic than most, it's not a beautiful journey, but there is a wow factor of travelling across the rolling landscape at more than 240 km/h*.
*The direttissima between Rome and Florence was the first high speed railway line to be built in Italy, so it has a slower maximum speed than the other Italian high speed lines.
The alternatives to taking these Frecce trains:
As our guide to travelling by train in Italy explains, travellers often have a choice of train services when making journeys between major Italian cities.
This is the case when travelling by train from Rome to Florence/Firenze, on this route you can pay a higher price, for taking a faster train, or save money by taking a slower train
There are four options to choose between when making a Rome to Florence train journey.
(1) Taking these Frecce trains, which are operated by Italy's national rail company, Trenitalia.
(2) Trenitalia’s Frecce trains compete with alternative Italo trains on the high speed route between Roma and Firenze.
They match the journey times of these Frecce trains and can be cheaper, though Trenitalia does not sell tickets for those Italo trains.
However, prices and departure times with these Frecce trains can be compared on Loco 2 and Trainline - see the links below.
(3) Or you can take the much slower Intercity trains, which unlike the Frecce and Italo trains, don't take the high speed line between Rome and Florence.
They're usually cheaper than the high speed services when booking in advance and they will be (much) cheaper, if you will be buying tickets last minute at the station.
However, they arrive at Firenze Rifredi station and NOT at the city centre station, Firenze S. M. Novella.
So you will need to take another train between these two stations, if you will be heading to Florence/Firenze city centre.
(4) Or if you will be buying tickets last minute at the station, or travelling with an InterRail or Eurail pass, the cheapest, but slowest, option of all, will be taking the Regionale Veloce trains.
Though, if you are booking in advance, the Intercity trains can be a few euros cheaper than the Regionale Veloce trains.
If you are new to travelling by train in Italy, our Italian Train Travel Guide is packed with info and useful links to help ensure you’ll have a stress-free trip.
From the right there are distant views of the Apennine foothills
Racing over the river Paglia and entering Umbria
The view from one of the many viaducts on the Rome to Florence high speed line
Approaching Florence through the countryside of Tuscany
The Castello di Sammezzano can be seen on the right as the train nears Florence
Ticket information
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 4* months ahead of the travel date (usually)
*Not all departures will be bookable more than 3 months ahead.
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THE HIGH SPEED TRAIN SERVICE:
Trenitalia’s Frecce trains compete with Italo trains on the high speed route between Roma and Firenze/Florence.
So the high speed (AV) train service between between Roma** and Firenze/Florence is provided by;
(1) these Frecce trains operated by Trenitalia, and
(2) Italo trains which compete with the Trenitalia trains on the high speed line between these cities.
**Some of these Frecce trains also depart from Roma Tiburtina station.
If you will be travelling from Roma Termini, then use this specific station when looking up tickets and prices.
To see the trains from both Termini and Tiburtina choose Roma (Tutte Le Stazioni) as the departure station on Trenitalia.
Select Firenze S. M. Novella as the arrival station - some Frecce trains from Roma arrive at Firenze Campo Di Marte station, which is not in the city centre.
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BOOKING A TICKET FOR A HIGH SPEED TRAIN:
Trains departing at different times can be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so you may need to look through the day's departures to find the cheapest fares.
Tickets for the Trenitalia Frecce trains are placed on sale around 4 months in advance, but the Italo train tickets are made available around 5 months ahead.
Trenitalia does not sell tickets for the Italo trains - and Italo does not sell tickets for the Trenitalia trains.
If you're booking no more than 4 months ahead and have no particular preference for the train that you will be taking - the price and departure times of the Frecce and Italo trains can be directly compared on Trainline or Omio and you can avoid paying a booking fee.
Complimentary seat reservations are included when booking tickets for either of these train services.
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Alternative money saving options:
You can usually save money by avoiding the high speed trains when travelling from Rome to Florence/Firenze.
When the cheapest 'Super Economy' tickets are still available on the alternative Intercity (IC) trains - those trains are usually the cheapest option of all
However, those IC trains don't arrive at Santa Maria Novella station in Florence/Firenze city centre.
Though if you want to compare the price of the Intercity trains with both these Frecce trains AND the Italo trains, you will need to look up the journey on Omio or Trainline.
When the cheapest discounted tickets for the Intercity trains have sold out, the even slower Regionale Veloce trains become the cheaper option for a journey by train from Rome to Florence/Firenze.
If you will be buying tickets last minute at the station, you'll save by taking those Regionale Veloce trains.
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Using Eurail or InterRail Passes:
If you will be travelling in Italy with a rail pass, you have three options when taking the train from Rome to Florence/Firenze.
(1) Pay the €10 rail pass reservation fee which is charged to travel on these Frecce trains
(2) Pay a €3 rail pass reservation fee to take the alternative Intercity trains (though you will also need to take a Regionale/Regional Veloce train from Firenze Riferedi station to Firenze S.M. Novella station).
(3) Avoid paying any additional rail pass reservation fees at all by taking the Regionale Veloce trains.
Rail passes aren't valid on the Italo trains.
