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How to travel from Milan/Milano to Naples/Napoli by train
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Milano / Milan / Mailand to Napoli / Naples by train
A sequence of three connected high speed railways enables high speed trains to rush from Milano to Napoli.
This high speed route is shared by 'Frecce' services operated by the national rail operator, Trenitalia, and competing Italo services.
For those who favor cheapest price over journey time, there is also the opportunity to save money by taking the much slower Intercity trains which still snake their way along the older 'classic' railway lines.
There's also an overnight service available.
Routes you can take to go from Milano / Milan / Mailand to Napoli / Naples
When travelling between most cities by train there is only one logical option, though on other journeys there is a choice between different trains or alternative routes. If different options are available you can use the info to decide which is best for you.
Choose one of the following options:
Looking for connections?
Route Information
Option 1: taking the Frecce high speed trains
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
4hr 15min - 5hr min (aprox)
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
1 - 3 x trains per hour
Purchase Tickets
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for: Comparing different train services; Booking international journeys with connections; Travelling between the UK to destinations beyond Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris - and for international travellers who don't reside in western Europe.
Trainline Guide
Other Ticket Providers
Italia Rail Guide
Italiarail lives up to its name by selling tickets for rail journeys within Italy and the core feature of its service is that it is primarily designed to be used by international visitors to Italy.
So the English translations of place names are used when looking up journeys and the terms and conditions for using each type of ticket are clearly explained.
It also clearly points out the additional costs of upgrading to other classes and types of tickets while spelling out the additional benefits of doing so.
Though Italiarail will charge a booking fee, typically of around €3.
The Early Bird service
Italiarail has launched an 'early bird' pre-booking service for journeys by Frecce trains.
Tickets can be booked up to a year ahead of travel at a flat-rate price per route, before the tickets have been released for sale by Trenitalia.
If when they are placed on sale, the price is cheaper than what you have already paid to Italiarail, it will automatically refund the price difference.
Conversely, if the price is more expensive, you won't be charged the price difference.
You can also have the peace of mind of securing your seat(s) on the Frecce train(s) when you are first planning a trip.
If before the tickets are placed on sale, you decide to change your plans, you can request a refund; but once the tickets are released for sale, you will then be bound by the terms and conditions of the ticket(s) you have booked.
Trenitalia Guide
Trenitlalia is the national rail operator in Italy and in addition to its cheaper types of ticket; it also typically offers other discounts available to non-Italians, which include:
- Group Offers, provides for a discount of up to 50% when 3-5 Adults travel together.
- Family Offer for when groups of 2 - 5 people are travelling together and at least one of the party is a aged 11 and under.
- The Children Free Offer is available for journeys by Frecce trains, when groups of 2 - 5 people are travelling together and at least one of the party is a aged 15 and under.
Those aged 15 and under travel for free, but the Adults will need to purchase full price 'Base' tickets.
Save A Train Guide
Omio Guide
Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.
The three key advantages of using Omio are
- it offers prices in multiple currencies
- it usually offers price comparison with other modes of travel including flights and buses
- when visiting Europe, you can book journeys in multiple countries in one transaction.
The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.
Travel Information
Final Destination: Napoli or Salerno or Reggio de Calabria or others
All trains also call at: Roma Termini
These trains reverse direction on departure from Roma Termini station.
Some trains also call at: Napoli Afragola; take care book tickets to Napoli Centrale if you're heading to the city centre.
Some of these trains also call at: Milano Rogoredo
Depending on where you'll be setting off from in Milano, taking the trains from this station can be time saver.
Milano Centrale is on the northern edge of the city centre, so these trains initially head north and then make their way around the city, so that they can take the route south towards Napoli.
Milano Rogoredo station is on Line M3 of the Milano Metro, though the same line also links the heart of the city to Milano Centrale station.
But if you'll be boarding a Metro train at Duomo station, which lives up to its name with a location by Milano cathedral, you'll be heading north to board these trains at Milano Centrale, so the end-to-end journey can be quicker if you head towards Milano Rogoredo.
Local trains head to Milano Rogoredo from multiple stations in the city centre, including Milano Porta Venezia and Milano Porta Vittoria.
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
When looking up this journey it's worth paying attention to the journey times as there are in effect three different service patterns used by these 'Frecce' trains.
- Fastest of all is the Mon-Saturday departure, typically scheduled to depart at 06:35 and the daily train at 19:35 as these trains are non-stop between Milano Centrale and Roma Termini.
- Most of the trains on the more direct route are 5 -10 mins slower because they make additional station calls.
- Slowest of all are the trains which divert off the direct route to call in Firenze/Florence, where they also reverse direction.
This diversion to the main station in Florence/Firenze adds around 10-15 mins to the journey time, but most of the trains which also call in Firenze, make up to four other station calls, hence they're up to 40 mins slower than the fastest trains.
The Frecciarossa 1000 trains are more likely to be used on the faster services, but when you look up the journey on Trenitalia or ItaliaRail, you'll be able to see which specific type of train will be used on each departure.
This is a journey of four contrasting parts.
(1) Between Milano and Bologna the trains are at their fastest as on this stretch of high speed line they travel up to 290 km/h- which is fortunate as there's nothing much to see.
(2) Between Bologna and Firenze 99% of the journey is in tunnels
(3) The high speed line between Firenze and Roma isn't quite as fast as that between Milano and Bologna, but as the trains travel at up to 250 km/h pleasing distant views of hills can be seen from either side of the train.
Much of this part of the route is elevated on viaducts, and the video, was taken from one of these.
Then as the train races towards Roma across the farmland, it flashes by a series of villages.
(4) The trains once again attain their maximum speed on the high speed line between Roma and Napoli.
Tickets
*Save by booking in advance: Yes, for more details on how to obtain the cheapest prices for Frecce trains see the guide to Italian rail tickets.
Online bookings usually open: up to 6 months ahead of the travel date; though the booking period will be typically be shorter when looking up journeys for travel after the second Sunday in December.
The high speed (AV) train service between Milano Centrale and Napoli/Naples is provided by:
(1) these Frecce trains operated by Trenitalia and
(2) alternative Italo trains
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 up to 6 months in advance, but the Italo train tickets are typically made available around 3 to 4 months ahead.
Trenitalia does not sell tickets for the Italo trains - and Italo does not sell tickets for the Trenitalia trains.
So, 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 with Trainline or Omio, though look out for the fact that both of these services will charge a booking fee.
*Some Frecce and Italo trains depart from stations in Milano other Milano Centrale.
If you will be travelling from Milano Centrale then use this specific station when looking up tickets and prices.
Rail Pass Users:
If you will be travelling with a valid Eurail or InterRail pass, you will need to reserve prior to boarding these trains, either at the station (using a Trenitalia ticket machine or ticket desk) OR by booking them online.
How to book the rail pass reservations online is included on our guide to using rail passes in Italy.
If you will be travelling with a rail pass, it's worth targeting the faster trains, as the reservation fees are the same regardless of which Frecce service you travel by.
Route Information
Option 2: taking the Italo high speed trains
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
4hr 38min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
15 - 16 x trains per day
Purchase Tickets
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for: Comparing different train services; Booking international journeys with connections; Travelling between the UK to destinations beyond Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris - and for international travellers who don't reside in western Europe.
Trainline Guide
Other Ticket Providers
Italo Guide
Italo trains compete with the Frecce services, provided by the national rail operator, Trenitalia, on the high speed routes which link major cities in Italy.
The Italo booking site only sells tickets for journeys by its trains.
Happy rail Guide
Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.
HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.
Happy rail Guide
Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.
HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.
Omio Guide
Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.
The three key advantages of using Omio are
- it offers prices in multiple currencies
- it usually offers price comparison with other modes of travel including flights and buses
- when visiting Europe, you can book journeys in multiple countries in one transaction.
The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.
Travel Information
Final Destination: Napoli or Salerno
All of these trains also call at: Roma Termini - where they reverse direction
Some trains also call at: Napoli Afragola; take book tickets to Napoli Centrale if you're heading to the city centre.
Most of these trains also call at: Milano Rogoredo
Depending on where you'll be setting off from in Milano, taking the trains from this station can be time saver.
Milano Centrale is on the northern edge of the city centre, so these trains initially head north and then make their way around the city, so that they can take the route south towards Napoli.
Milano Rogoredo station is on Line M3 of the Milano Metro, though the same line also links the heart of the city to Milano Centrale station.
But if you'll be boarding a Metro train at Duomo station, which lives up to its name with a location by Milano cathedral, you'll be heading north to board these trains at Milano Centrale, so the end-to-end journey can be quicker if you head towards Milano Rogoredo.
Local trains head to Milano Rogoredo from multiple stations in the city centre, including Milano Porta Venezia and Milano Porta Vittoria
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
When looking up this journey it's worth paying attention to the journey times as there are in effect two different service patterns used by these Italo trains.
- Fastest are the trains which only make station calls at Milano Rogoredo and at Roma Termini (where they reverse direction), so are non-stop between Milano and Roma
- Slowest of all are the trains which divert off the direct route to call in Firenze/Florence, where they also reverse direction.
This diversion to the main station in Florence/Firenze adds around 10-15 mins to the journey time, but most of the trains which also call in Firenze, make up to four other station calls, hence they're up to 40 mins slower than the fastest trains.
These Italo trains take the same route as the Frecce trains.
This is a journey of four contrasting parts.
(1) Between Milano and Bologna the trains are at their fastest on this stretch of high speed line - which is fortunate as there's nothing much to see.
(2) Between Bologna and Firenze 99% of the journey is in tunnels
(3) The high speed line between Firenze and Roma isn't quite as fast as that between Milano and Bologna, but pleasing distant views of hills can be seen from either side of the train.
(4) The trains once again attain speeds of more than 285 km/h on the high speed line between Roma and Napoli.
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
**Online bookings open: around 3 months ahead of the travel date
The high speed (AV) train service between Milano Centrale* and Napoli is provided by:
(1) these Italo trains
(2) alternative Frecce trains operated by Trenitalia
Tickets for the Trenitalia Frecce trains are placed on sale around 6 months in advance, but the Italo train tickets are made available around 3 to 4 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 with Trainline or Omio, though look out for the fact that both of these services will charge a booking fee.
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.
Eurail and InterRail passes can't be used on Italo trains.
Route Information
Option 3: taking the Intercity trains
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
8hr 39min (Intercity trains)
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
2 x trains per day
Purchase Tickets
Trenitalia Guide
Trenitlalia is the national rail operator in Italy and in addition to its cheaper types of ticket; it also typically offers other discounts available to non-Italians, which include:
- Group Offers, provides for a discount of up to 50% when 3-5 Adults travel together.
- Family Offer for when groups of 2 - 5 people are travelling together and at least one of the party is a aged 11 and under.
- The Children Free Offer is available for journeys by Frecce trains, when groups of 2 - 5 people are travelling together and at least one of the party is a aged 15 and under.
Those aged 15 and under travel for free, but the Adults will need to purchase full price 'Base' tickets.
Italia Rail Guide
Italiarail lives up to its name by selling tickets for rail journeys within Italy and the core feature of its service is that it is primarily designed to be used by international visitors to Italy.
So the English translations of place names are used when looking up journeys and the terms and conditions for using each type of ticket are clearly explained.
It also clearly points out the additional costs of upgrading to other classes and types of tickets while spelling out the additional benefits of doing so.
Though Italiarail will charge a booking fee, typically of around €3.
The Early Bird service
Italiarail has launched an 'early bird' pre-booking service for journeys by Frecce trains.
Tickets can be booked up to a year ahead of travel at a flat-rate price per route, before the tickets have been released for sale by Trenitalia.
If when they are placed on sale, the price is cheaper than what you have already paid to Italiarail, it will automatically refund the price difference.
Conversely, if the price is more expensive, you won't be charged the price difference.
You can also have the peace of mind of securing your seat(s) on the Frecce train(s) when you are first planning a trip.
If before the tickets are placed on sale, you decide to change your plans, you can request a refund; but once the tickets are released for sale, you will then be bound by the terms and conditions of the ticket(s) you have booked.
Travel Information
Final Destination: Napoli
These trains also call at: Roma Tiburtina
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
If you want to make the train journey from Milan to Naples, these InterCity trains are much slower than the alternative Frecce and Italo trains, because unlike those trains, these Intercity trains don't travel on the high speed lines.
So why would you consider spending more than an additional three hours making the Milano to Napoli journey on these trains?
The simple answer is price , you can typically save at least €20 by taking these InterCity trains.
They are usually scheduled to depart from Milano Centrale daily at 05:00 and 14:48.
Between Firenze/Florence and Napoli these Intercity trains travel through a similar landscape, the foothills of the Apennine Mountains, as the high speed trains, though their slower speeds allows more time to take in the scenery.
Though between Bologna and Firenze is the most scenic part of the journey by these Intercity trains and the high speed trains travel between those two cities in a series of tunnels.
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 3 months ahead of the travel date
Take these Intercity trains from Milano to Firenze/Florence and you can save at least €20 in comparison to taking the faster Frecce or Italo train.
If you have a rail pass you can save €10 by taking these trains, as Eurail and InterRail users don't have to make reservations to travel on the Intercity trains, but paying the €3 optional reservation fee is virtually essential, because if you don't, you'll be lucky not to have to constantly find different seats during the journey.
So think twice! You can save more than 4 hours by taking the Frecce trains and the journey will also be more comfortable.
This is a journey on which the balance definitely tips in favour of paying the more expensive supplement to travel on the Freece trains.
If you do, then target the faster Frecce trains, they won't cost you any more than the slower Frecce trains and will save you around a further 20-25 mins.
How to book the rail pass reservations online is included on our guide to using rail passes in Italy.
Route Information
Option 4: Travelling overnight
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
10hr 33min
Frequency
Nightly
Travel Info
1 x train per night
Purchase Tickets
Trenitalia Guide
Trenitlalia is the national rail operator in Italy and in addition to its cheaper types of ticket; it also typically offers other discounts available to non-Italians, which include:
- Group Offers, provides for a discount of up to 50% when 3-5 Adults travel together.
- Family Offer for when groups of 2 - 5 people are travelling together and at least one of the party is a aged 11 and under.
- The Children Free Offer is available for journeys by Frecce trains, when groups of 2 - 5 people are travelling together and at least one of the party is a aged 15 and under.
Those aged 15 and under travel for free, but the Adults will need to purchase full price 'Base' tickets.
Travel Information
Final Destination: Salerno
The train also calls at: Roma Tiburtina (arrives 05:58 usually)
This train is typically scheduled to depart from Porta Garibaldi station in Milano at 22:13 and arrive in Napoli at 08:46, note that it does not depart from the city's main station, Milano Centrale.
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
This train is scheduled to arrive in Napoli/Naples shortly before 09:00, while on Mon-Sat the first Frecce train of the day doesn't arrive there until around 10:30, while on Sundays the earliest arrival time is around 11:30.
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 3 months ahead of the travel date - usually
See the 'Train Guide' below for info on the type of accommodation available and the how tickets can be booked.
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