Rail holidays to Italy

Expressions Holidays offers rail holidays to Italy that allow you to sit back, relax and enjoy the scenic countryside of Europe change in front of your eyes. Travelling by train to and within Italy is an increasingly popular experience – as as you cross northern France, head through the Alps and then into the plains of northern Italy, the joy of travelling by rail is unbeatable.
We have put together a selection of suggested rail itineraries, which can be used as a starting point and adapted to your requirements. These suggested itineraries include train travel only, while our rail-drive holidays also include car-hire in Italy which allows you to explore rural areas at your own pace.  
Expressions Holidays will tailor-make your rail holiday according to your needs, navigating through the options to select the most convenient trains and most appropriate hotels - we offer a wide range of hotels in Italy, from charming boutique hotels to luxurious five-star resorts. We can create a rail holiday that combines a stay at any of our hotels in Italy, replacing the flight arrangements with rail travel. You may either choose to travel one way by train and one way by air, or to travel by train both ways.

Click here to download a pdf with full details of some of our rail holidays to Italy.

Client testimonial:
"My wife and I enjoyed every minute of our holiday, the hotels were wonderful and the people could not have been more helpful and you could not have been quicker with all your responses to our queries. Thank you again and we are recommending you to everyone we know." - Mr G, September 2016.

"We had a wonderful holiday - the hotels were great and the trains superb. All arrangements happened as they should. The Bisanzio in Venice gets a particular mention. Thank you for your help in organising this - we are already planning another trip - it was a wonderful 'taster' for future rail travel. I am very impressed with your service and will be recommending you to friends." - Ms C, Sept 2016.

Other types of touring holiday in Italy
We have also created a selection of suggested touring itineraries for self-drive holidays where you travel to France by ferry or Eurotunnel with your own car then drive southwards towards Italy, and fly-drive holidays where you travel by air and then collect a hire-car. Our range of rail-drive holidays allow you to travel by train to Italy and then collect a hire-car to explore. 

 An Expressions rail holiday is tailor-made according to your requirements and can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. From a single-centre stay in a destination that is reached by train to a touring holiday that visits multiple locations, we cater for your wishes.

Train travel to Italy
A rail holiday to Italy starts on the Eurostar from London St. Pancras, Ebbsfleet or Ashford stations in the UK to either Paris Gare du Nord.
Eurostar offers almost hourly departures every day, allowing you to travel from the centre of London to the centre of Paris on the same train in three hours. Not all trains stop at the Ebbsfleet and Ashford stations in Kent, but parking is plentiful at both stations and it allows you to avoid London. Check-in is 30 minutes prior to departure, customs formalities are completed before boarding and there is no limit to the amount of baggage that can be taken on board. The Eurostar trains themselves have 8 coaches which are split into Standard Class, Standard Premier and Business Premier as well as 2 cafeterias. Standard Premier customers are served a light cold meal and enjoy a more spacious environment than Standard Class, while Business Premier customers receive a hot meal and unlimited beverages as well as lounge access.
You may wish to stay for a night or two in Paris in one of our centrally located charming hotels, or you may prefer to board the train to Italy straight away. There are either daytime rail services from Paris to Milan and Turin, or overnight sleeper trains from Paris to Milan, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Bologna, Parma, Verona, Vicenza, Padua, Brescia and Rome.
Thello is a basic overnight service linking Paris with key Italian cities, namely Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome. You may travel in a two berth sleeper, three berth sleeper, or 4 and 6 berth couchettes. Sleeper cars offer a washbasin with power socket, toiletries bag, air-conditioning, room bell, deadbolt lock, wake up call if required, welcome drink and snack in cabin and newspapers. The couchettes offer air-conditioning as well as a welcome drink and snack in cabin.
Another option is to travel to Paris and then on to Switzerland by TGV with a stop in Zurich, Basel or Lausanne for a night. You then continue your journey to Italy the next day by Eurocity train, giving you breathtaking scenery as you cross the Alps.
TGV trains are high-speed trains that serve most of France and cross into neighbouring countries, covering large distances in a short space of time. There is a choice between Standard Class and First Class, the latter offering a more spacious seating environment but no meals included.
Most Eurocity trains have a restaurant car, while seating can either be in an open-coach or in 6-seater compartments. First Class entitles you to more space, more storage and a quieter travelling environment, as well as access to the First Class lounge at your origin station.
For a really special experience, we can arrange a journey on the elegant and sophisticated Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, either one way or both ways.

Train travel within Italy
Once in Italy, visitors can travel between major cities on Eurostar Italia Frecciarossa trains. These high-speed services offer standard class with comfortable seating and tables for 4, as well as three different levels of First Class which are more spacious and include some food and drinks. There is a restaurant car on all trains which serves a variety of hot and cold options, as well as a café-bar which serves more basic fare.

Our hotels
Each of the hotels that are featured by Italian Expressions has been personally selected to offer you exceptionally high standards of comfort, service and cuisine. Many of our hotels are among the most highly acclaimed in the whole of Italy. Others are full of charm and character or provide rest and relaxation amid an atmosphere of luxury and style.
Star ratings are an important indicator of facilities and price, but, just as important as a star rating is character and ambience. We believe that whatever the official star rating of our hotels, each hotel has unique qualities and a sincere individuality of its own.

Expressions Holidays is an independent specialist tour operator which was established in 1989 and offers tailor-made rail holidays within Europe and further afield, providing personal service with a professional approach. We pride ourselves on interpreting your demands and requirements to provide you with the holiday that you want, ensuring a successful match between client and holiday.. Not only are your holidays tailor-made to your individual requirements, but you also have the chance to deal with one person from beginning to end, offering you confidence and security and the best possible prices.

Personal and professional service
We personally know the majority of the hotels that we feature, and we put together our holidays with our clients in mind. Contact with Expressions Holidays means contact with the people who know the holidays, who will share their knowledge and experience with you – our team of travel consultants know the country and culture very well, and operate a concierge service that helps you to explore every aspect of special interest or activity that fits with your holiday.
All aspects of your holiday are personalised, from the itinerary to your holiday confirmation and documentation which provides you with information that is relevant to you. From the point of initial contact with us, you will deal with the same sales consultant, who will handle all aspects of your booking and ticketing.
We approach your holiday in a way that offers you the arrangements you want, not to slot you in to pre-existing arrangements. This might mean juggling dates, securing the last available room at a hotel or tailoring a complex itinerary involving numerous components. Your holiday is as individually fashioned and tailor-made as you want it to be.

How we price your holiday
All prices mentioned on our website and in our brochure are simply guides, as there are many variations that might affect the price including exchange rates, flight costs and special offers. To find out exact prices for the holiday that you are interested in, contact us for a tailor-made quotation.
All our holiday arrangements have been designed to afford you maximum flexibility and freedom of choice. We include travel arrangements, whether it be flight, ferry or tunnel crossing or rail travel as well as many nights' hotel accommodation as you want, in as many different places.

Our Price Guarantee
We guarantee that once you have made a firm booking with a deposit payment, there will be no increases in the price of your holiday due to currency movements. If, for any reason, there have been changes in the price of the holiday you want, you will be advised at the time of booking.

Full Financial Protection
Full financial protection is offered when you book a holiday with us. Our air holidays are ATOL protected, and we are a member of the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited to protect non-flight packages. We are also members of ABTA and AITO (the Association of Independent Tour Operators), an organisation of some of Britain’s best specialist tour operators.