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How to take the rail journey from Rome/Roma to Munich/München
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Roma / Rome to / Munich by train
The only international rail service from Rome is the Nightjet train which serves both Munich / München and Vienna on routes which travel through the night.
Though if you are happy to make a connection you can travel by day when taking a train from Rome / Roma to Munich / München
Routes you can take to go from Roma / Rome to München / Munich
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 - direct on a night train
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
13hr 21min (approx)
Frequency
Nightly
Travel Info
1 x train per night
Purchase Tickets
OBB Guide
OBB is the national rail operator and its booking service offers journeys by express trains within Austria, as well as international journeys which don't involve making a connection outside of Austria.
It pays off to book online, as the discounted 'Sparscheine' tickets are only ever made available on the website, and when making international journeys to and from Austria, these Sparscheine tickets tend to be cheaper.
OBB can offer particularly good value for money when travelling with children on international rail journeys, but something to watch out for when travelling between Austria and Germany on daytime trains, is that reservations are an optional extra; but if you book 1st class tickets with the Germany railways website DB, the reservations are complimentary.
OBB often takes a unique approach to its booking path, but a key thing to keep in mind is that the first price you will see for any journey is that of a Second Class seat.
The costs of upgrading to first class, a reservation, or a sleeping cabin etc, is then added to this price.
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.
DB Bahn Guide
DB is the national railway operator in Germany, so its website can be used for booking journeys by German express trains; the ICE and IC trains and it doesn't charge booking fees.
It also sells tickets for journeys by direct trains on all international routes from Germany regardless of whether DB is operating the train service.
It also sells an extensive range of end-to-end journeys which involve making connections both within Germany and in neighboring countries, but journeys between Germany and Britain cannot be booked on DB.
A key feature of DB website worth keeping mind is that it offers 1st class ticket purchasers complimentary seat reservations on journeys both within and to/from Germany.
Seat reservations for daytime in both 1st and 2nd class can also be booked separately from tickets.
Travel Information
The train is usually scheduled to depart from Roma Termini between 20:00 and 20:30 and arrive in Munchen/Munich between 09:15 and 09:30
Final Destination: Munchen Hbf (This train does not call at Munchen Ost).
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
Connect in Munich for ICE trains on these routes:
- Hamburg via Hannover, Kassel and Wurzburg; usually scheduled to depart at 09:53
- Dusseldorf via Koln/Cologne and Frankfurt; usually scheduled to depart at 10:45
- Berlin via Leipzig and; usually scheduled to depart at 10:51
Connections are typically available in Roma Termini when travelling from (the departure times may vary);
- Departing Lecce at 12:40 and Bari at 14:35
- Villa S. Giovanni at 13:55 and Salerno at 17:45
- Napoli at 18:09.
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open:
6 months ahead of the travel date on OBB.
3 months ahead of the travel date on DB Bahn.
3 months ahead of the travel date on Trenitalia.
Comparing ticket prices across the agents is particularly recommended for this journey.
These trains are provided by Austria's national rail operator, OBB, they travel through Austria on this journey between Italy and Germany.
The train conveys:
- Compartment Seats (Sitzwagen)
- Couchettes (Liegewagen); 4 berths AND 6 berths
- Standard sleeping cars (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
- Deluxe sleeping cars with showers (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
The first price you will see on the OBB ticketing site will be for the compartment seats.
Using rail passes:
Rail pass users must reserve before boarding this train.
Click the train details for more info including the rail pass reservation fees:
You can now book rail pass reservations without paying booking fees on the OBB website (OBB operates these trains).Though the process for doing so isn't particularly obvious, hence the step-by-step guide.
Making the rail pass reservation in advance online is particularly recommended if you will be traveling between June and September.
If you wait until arriving in Roma to reserve, your first choice of accommodation on the train may have sold out.
Route Information
Via stations: Bologna Centrale
Option 2 - travel by day, by making a connection
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
from 9hr 17min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
2 x optimum connections 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
DB Guide
DB is the national railway operator in Germany, so its website can be used for booking journeys by German express trains; the ICE and IC trains and it doesn't charge booking fees.
It also sells tickets for journeys by direct trains on all international routes from Germany regardless of whether DB is operating the train service.
It also sells an extensive range of end-to-end journeys which involve making connections both within Germany and in neighboring countries, but journeys between Germany and Britain cannot be booked on DB.
On journeys within Germany and on most international journeys from and to Germany on trains operated by DB:
- For journeys by the express trains, EC. IC and ICE trains an adult (on German railways an adult is a person aged 15 and over) can take up to four children aged 6 - 14 with them at no additional charge.
- Tickets need to be booked for children aged 0 - 5, but there is no charge for them.
- Those aged 65 and over can take journeys at a discounted rate.
- Dogs, which are too large to be placed in pet carriers, require tickets which cost 50% of the adult rate.
When booking both types of the discounted 'Sparpreis' tickets seat reservations are an optional extra, so need to be added when booking if you want an assigned seat(s).
Travel Information
There are no direct daytime trains from Roma / Rome to München / Munich, but there are two EC trains per day from Bologna to München.
There are typically at least two high speed trains per hour from Roma to Bologna including both the Frecce services operated by Trenitalia and the Italo trains
However, because of the frequency of the trains from Roma / Rome, the ticket agents can offer multiple options which have the same departure time from Roma Termini
The longer journey times allow more time to make the connection between trains in Bologna.
The fastest end-to-end journeys with a time of a little over 9hr 15mins involve making a connection in Bologna in under 20 mins, which allows for little contingency time in the event of a delay to the train from Roma.
These are the connections which usually involve departing Roma at 09:10 and 13:10.
Making the connection in Bologna Centrale
The trains from Roma will arrive in the part of the station which is under ground and is also known as Bologna Centrale AV.
So you will need to use the escalators or stairs to ascend up from the AV platforms / tracks and them from the AV concourse.
You will then be at a mezzanine level, still under the ground, it has a car pick up / drop off area.
From here there are passage ways ,which cross the main above ground part of the station, beneath the railway lines
One of these passage ways has elevators which lead up to each platform / track in the over ground part of the station - that the train on to München will depart from
Another passage has escalators that lead up to these platforms / tracks - both passage ways also have staircases which lead up to the trains.
If you will happy to use the stairs / escalators the transfer from stepping off the train from Rome and boarding the train on to Munich will take at least 3 mins.
Though if you solely use the elevators / lifts the transfer can take around 10 minutes.
The additional daily options
There is typically a daily train at around 06:45 from Roma to Bolzano and the time between arrival and departure in Bolzano, is typically scheduled to be more than 40mins.
The arrival time in to München Hbf is typically scheduled to be before 16:30.
Or for those who prefer to relax between trains there is usually a Frecce train from Roma Termini to Verona, which typically has a connecting time between trains at Verona Porta Nuova of more than 1hr 50mins - though the end-to-end journey time will be more than 10hr 30mins
This journey is made up of 1 change.
Train 1
Between Roma Termini and Bologna CentraleYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
Most of the high speed (AV) trains from Rome to Bologna also call at Roma Tiburtina.
These are the faster Frecce trains because they are non-stop from Roma Termini to Bologna Centrale.
They also don't divert off of the direct route in order to call at Firenze S.M.Novella, the main station in Florence.
Final Destination: Milano or Torino
The high speed train journey from Rome to Bologna:
This is a journey of two distinct phases:
(1) 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.
(2) Once the train has passed Florence it will speed up, but nearly of the high speed line between Florence and Bologna is within tunnels.
Listen out for the announcements that the train is due to arrive in Bologna.
These trains arrive at the AV station at Bologna Centrale and that part of the station is underground, so it will only become obvious that the train has arrived in the station at the last minute.
The alternative train journey options:
(1) There are more frequent, particularly at weekends, slower Frecce trains - which do divert off of the high speed route in order to call at Firenze S.M.Novella station.
They can be cheaper than taking these faster trains, the least expensive 'Super Economy' tickets inevitably sell out quicker on these faster trains.
(2) Trenitalia’s Frecce trains compete with Italo trains on the high speed route between Roma and Bologna.
They can be cheaper than the Frecce trains, though Trenitalia does not sell tickets for those Italo trains, but prices and departure times can be compared on Omio and Trainline - see the links below.
The Italo trains all divert off of the direct route to call at Firenze S.M.Novella, so they're all around 20 mins slower than these faster Frecce trains.
(3) The cheapest option of all for taking a train from Rome to Bologna, is to take a much slower Intercity train.
Train 2
Between Bologna Centrale and München Hbf/Munich main stationYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
From early April Railjet trains will also begin to operate on this route.
Final Destination: Munchen Hbf
The destination of these trains can be shown by ticket agents as 'München Hbf Gleis 5-10'
This is because Gleis 5-10 are in a separate part of the station, which is a 2 - 3 min walk away from the main concourse.
These trains also calls at: Munchen-Ost
If the end point of your journey is in central Munchen/Munich, around Marienplatz - then the quickest option is to leave a train at Munchen Ost station and connect there into an S-Bahn (local train) to the city centre.
In Munchen/Munich the S-Bahn trains are similar to Metro trains as they cross the city centre in a tunnel.
The train journey between Verona and Rosenheim is one of the most incredible in Europe, but the best of the stunning views can can be seen from the left of the train after departure from Verona.
The train will reverse direction on departure from Verona.
The highlight of the journey comes when the train travels between Brennero and Innsbruck.
The views this section of the journey, are captured in this video, filmed from a train travelling in the opposite direction.
Though after Innsbruck the best of the views on this part of the journey are on the right hand side.
(This video was also filmed from a train travelling in the opposite direction)
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings usually open: up to 6 months ahead of the travel date - but this period of time is shorter when looking up journeys in August to October.
When looking up the journey on the DB website, you can use the tool which increases the minimum transfer time between trains, in order to see additional options.
A choice of tickets
Three types of tickets are available:
Two types of discounted tickets, which will be cheaper the further ahead you book - Sparpreis Europa and Super Sparpreis Europa
One type of non-discounted ticket - Flexpreis Europa.
A key difference between these types of tickets is refunds:
- Super Sparpreis tickets are cheapest, but they can't be refunded at all.
- Sparpreis tickets can be refunded for a fee, but the refund will be in the form of travel vouchers to be used for alternative / future journeys.
- Flexpreis Europa tickets can be refunded at no additional charge.
Making the connection:
If a delay to the train from Roma causes the booked connection on to to be missed, it should be possible to go the ticket desk at Bologna Centrale and have tickets re-issued for the onward train.
Though if you set off from Roma and the connection involves taking the 15:50 train on from Bologna, if it's missed you won't be able to arrive into Munich by the end of the day
There is relatively new E.U. legislation which protects travellers against financial loss in the event of missed connections due to train delays, but it only applies to 'through tickets'.
Though the operators of the Frecce and EC trains (not the Italo rains) have also signed up to Agreement on Journey Continuation (AJC) policy for when a traveller holds separate transport 'contracts' for an end-to-end journey involving more than one train.
So this agreement applies both when 'a bundle' of tickets / contracts is issued as the result of a single transaction - and if travellers have bought several different tickets for their journey, even from different sales channels/ticket providers.
As long as the passenger had planned enough connecting time to change trains (called “reasonable connecting time”), the AJC will apply.
So in usual* circumstances, if a delay to the train from Roma causes the booked connection to be missed, replacement tickets/reservations will be issued at Bologna Centrale.
*= But that new E.U legislation specifically states that in exceptional circumstances, the train operators do not need to issue replacement tickets - and the terms and conditions on the Trenitalia website reiterate this.
These exceptional circumstances specifically stated in Regulation (EU) 2021/782 of the European Parliament include:
- extraordinary circumstances not connected with the operation of the railway, such as extreme weather conditions, major natural disasters or major public health crises...
- ...the behaviour of a third party... such as persons on the track, cable theft, on-board emergencies, law enforcement activities or sabotage.
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