Roma Tiburtina (Roma / Rome)

When heading to the Italian capital from the north by train, the journey time to Roma Tiburtina is around 10 mins faster – though it makes little difference to ticket prices when booking journeys to and from Rome by train
As indicated by this journey time, Tiburtina station is some distance from the city centre, though Termini station also isn’t particularly conveniently located for many of the tourist destinations in Rome city centre.

Worth knowing is that a few high speed Frecce trains to and from Rome and most of the Intercity trains to/from the city only call at Tiburtina station and don’t serve Roma Termini.
If your final destination in the city is adjacent to Termini station and you'll be travelling on these trains which don't call there, the most convenient option can be to book train tickets to Roma Termini and then travel on by Regionale trains to or from Tiiburtina station.
There is usually a minimum of three local (R for 'Regionale') trains per hour between the two stations.

However, the main tick in the box for using Tiburtina station is that it is served by line B of the Roma Metro.
This Metro line also calls at Termini, but if the end point of your journey is located along this Metro line B, there are two reasons why taking a train to Roma Tiburtina and then transferring to the Metro there can be a good option.

(1) Tiburtina is less crowded and therefore less chaotic than Termini.
Escalators and an elevator can take you down to the street level at Tiburtina, which is where the entrance to the Metro is located.
In the Metro station the trains to the city centre leave from a platform that can be accessed by going down a staircase.

(2) It can be a quicker and more reliable journey, because trains often get held up trying to access Termini station, so if you opt to make the transfer at Tiburtina, you can be in central Roma before your fellow passengers are leaving the train at Termini.

If you'll be heading to central Rome on a Regionale or Regionale Veloce train, which has travelled via Orte, transferring to the Metro at Tiburtina can be a particularly good option.
Those trains can arrive in Termini station at binaro (tracks/platforms) which are located some distance from the main concourse - which is where the Metro can be accessed.

An enormous and spectacular bridge spans railway lines at Tiburtina and it connects the binari (tracks/platforms) which the trains arrive at, to the exit and the Metro station.
So when you step off a train at Tiburtina you need to use these escalators to ascend up into this bridge – there are no lifts/elevators.

The exit from this bridge, which also leads to the Metro station, will then either be to the left or the right, depending on which escalator you have used – the main exit is at one end of the bridge and is clearly sign-posted.
The access to the Metro station is at street level, three levels below this bridge, but there are lifts/elevators available in addition to the flights of escalators.

When you are at street level, the metro station entrance is to the right across an open air concourse - not ideal in bad weather.
Once you’re in the metro station, the platform which the trains to central Roma/Rome depart from is closest to the entrance.

Take trains heading towards Laurentina. 
In addition to Termini the main city centre stops are Cavour and Colosseo – the latter station lives up to its name, with a location opposite the Colloseum and adjacent to The Forum.

In contrast to the above advice which applies when arriving at Roma Tiburtina by train, if you have a choice of boarding your train at Roma Termini OR Tiburtina stations, SMTJ doesn't recommend heading out to Tiburtina by Metro
(Though obviously it's worth heading there to access a train service, which only calls at Tiburtina and not at Roma Termini).

When taking the Metro from central Rome to Tiburtina the exit from the metro station at Tiburtina isn’t step free, you have to negotiate two flights of stairs - and then the access to the trains is three levels up from the street.
Although there are escalators and elevators, which provide the access into the train station at Tiburtina, the interchange at Termini is more convenient – despite the crowds.

Also if you’ll be taking a Regionale or Regionale Veloce train service, you’ll be much more likely to find seats available if you board the train at Termini.

If you do need or want to access Tiburtina station from central Rome/Roma by metro you can take any line B train heading to Jonio OR Rebibbia.