# Italy by train: real times, and where it stops > Seven Rome routes with the fastest and the median time, plus the places the national network does not reach: Matera, Campobasso and most of Molise. URL: https://myitalia.it/plan/trains Last updated: 2026-09-02 Seven fast routes leave Rome with fastest times between 1 hour 13 and 4 hours 25, and the useful number on each is not the fastest but the median, which runs 5 to 30 minutes longer. ## The 7 routes, fastest and median | From Rome | Fastest direct | Median direct | |---|---|---| | Naples | 1h13 | 1h18 | | Florence | 1h35 | 1h41 | | Bologna | 2h03 | not published | | Milan | 2h55 | 3h15 | | Venice | 3h59 | 4h04 | | Bari | 4h14 | 4h23 | | Turin | 4h25 | 4h55 | Every figure comes from a direct query to the Trenitalia sales system for Tuesday, September 8, 2026, counting only solutions with no change. The Italian timetable changes in mid-December, so these expire then, and Italo's times on the same pairs are not verified in our fact set. ## Why the median is the number to plan with Rome to Milan is 2 hours 55 at its best, 3 hours 15 in the middle, and 7 hours 13 on the slowest direct service sold that day. Rome to Turin is 4 hours 25 against a median of 4 hours 55. A page that gives you only the record time is describing a train you will probably not board. Frequency changes the same picture again. Florence has 48 direct Frecciarossa a weekday, Naples 45, Milan 46, and Bari 6. On the first three, a mistake costs 20 minutes. On the fourth it costs 2 hours. ## Where the fast network stops: Lecce Lecce is the southeastern end of the Frecciarossa map, 5 hours 47 to 6 hours 20 direct from Roma Termini on the 2026 timetable, at base fares of 46.90, 54.90 and 58.90 euro on the 3 direct services sampled. Any solution involving a change via Intercity or Regionale takes between 8 hours 29 and 11 hours 15. That is the honest frame for the deep south by rail. It is reachable in a long morning, not in a hop, and the price of a direct seat is close to a domestic flight without being close to it in time. ## Matera: no national railway at all There is no national railway at Matera. The city is served only by the narrow gauge Ferrovie Appulo Lucane. The new Ferrandina to Matera La Martella line, 20 km of electrified single track costing 525 million euro with part of the funding from the national recovery plan, has been in construction since 2023 with activation planned for 2028. You will read that Matera is the only provincial capital in Italy without a national rail link. That claim is repeated widely in the press and is not confirmed on an official source, so it is not stated here as fact. ## Campobasso: the train that finishes on a bus There is no train into Campobasso from Rome. In the 2026 Trenitalia timetable every solution ends with a replacement bus over the Boiano to Campobasso section, and the quickest combination takes 3 hours 23 minutes for 17.75 euro. Two separate dates were checked across a full day, and in none of the results did a train reach the city. Isernia is the exception in the region: 5 direct regional trains a day from Roma Termini, 2 hours 5 minutes to 2 hours 19 minutes, at 14.05 euro in 2026, departing at 6:15, 9:07, 13:07, 14:35 and 20:07. That is the whole rail offer of Molise from the capital, and it is why a car matters there and not in Tuscany. ## What to read next 7 route pages carry the arrival end in detail: what the station puts you next to, what you should have booked before boarding, and what the local transport costs when you step off. Start with [Rome to Florence](/plan/trains/roma-to-firenze) if your trip is the usual triangle, or [Rome to Bari](/plan/trains/roma-to-bari) if it is not. ## FAQ ### How long do the main Italian train journeys take from Rome? Fastest direct services in September 2026: Naples 1 hour 13, Florence 1 hour 35, Bologna 2 hours 3, Milan 2 hours 55, Venice 3 hours 59, Bari 4 hours 14, Turin 4 hours 25. Medians run 5 to 30 minutes longer on every route. ### Why do you publish a median as well as a fastest time? Because the fastest train is not the one you will be on. Rome to Milan is 2 hours 55 at best, 3 hours 15 in the median and 7 hours 13 on the slowest direct service sold that day. A single headline figure would be true and useless. ### Can you reach Matera by train? Not on the national network. Matera is served only by the narrow gauge Ferrovie Appulo Lucane. A new 20 km electrified single-track line from Ferrandina to Matera La Martella, costing 525 million euro partly from EU recovery funds, has been under construction since 2023 for activation in 2028. ### Is there a train to Campobasso? No train reaches it from Rome. In the 2026 Trenitalia timetable every solution ends with a replacement bus on the Boiano to Campobasso section. The quickest takes 3 hours 23 minutes and costs 17.75 euro; no Frecciarossa or Italo service runs there. ### How far south do the fast trains go? Lecce is the southeastern terminus of the Frecciarossa network: 5 hours 47 to 6 hours 20 direct from Roma Termini in the 2026 timetable, at base fares between 46.90 and 58.90 euro. Anything with a change via Intercity or Regionale runs over 8 hours. ### Do I need a car to see Italy? Not for the cities on this page, all of which sit on the network and most of which put you inside a limited traffic zone on arrival. You need one for the places the network skips, which is a much shorter list than it looks and includes most of Molise. ## Sources | Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until | |---|---|---|---| | In treno ad alta velocita' Roma Termini-Firenze Santa Maria Novella il collegamento diretto piu' veloce impiega 1 ora e 35 minuti; la mediana dei Frecciarossa diretti e' di circa 1 ora e 41 minuti (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | In treno ad alta velocita' Roma Termini-Napoli Centrale il collegamento diretto piu' veloce impiega 1 ora e 13 minuti; la mediana dei Frecciarossa diretti e' di circa 1 ora e 18 minuti (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | In treno ad alta velocita' Roma Termini-Bologna Centrale il collegamento diretto piu' veloce impiega 2 ore e 3 minuti (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | In treno ad alta velocita' Roma Termini-Milano Centrale il collegamento diretto piu' veloce impiega 2 ore e 55 minuti; la durata mediana dei Frecciarossa diretti e' di circa 3 ore e 15 minuti (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | In treno ad alta velocita' Roma Termini-Venezia Santa Lucia il collegamento diretto piu' veloce impiega 3 ore e 59 minuti (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | In treno ad alta velocita' Roma Termini-Torino Porta Nuova il collegamento diretto piu' veloce impiega 4 ore e 25 minuti; la mediana e' di circa 4 ore e 55 minuti (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | In treno Roma Termini-Bari Centrale il collegamento diretto Frecciarossa piu' veloce impiega 4 ore e 14 minuti, con soli 6 Frecciarossa diretti nel giorno feriale rilevato: la relazione non e' servita da linea ad alta velocita' continua (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 | | Matera e' l'unico capoluogo di provincia italiano non collegato alla rete ferroviaria nazionale: la nuova linea Ferrandina-Matera La Martella, 20 km a semplice binario elettrificato per 525 milioni di euro anche da PNRR, e' in costruzione dal 2023 con completamento previsto nel 2028 | [Gruppo FS Italiane](https://www.fsitaliane.it/it/opere-strategiche/nuova-linea-ferrandina-matera-la-martella.html) | medium | 2027-08-31 | | Nessun treno arriva a Campobasso da Roma: nell'orario Trenitalia 2026 tutte le soluzioni si concludono con un autobus sostitutivo sulla tratta Boiano-Campobasso; il collegamento piu rapido dura 3 ore e 23 minuti e costa 17,75 euro | [Trenitalia (motore di ricerca soluzioni lefrecce.it)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2027-03-31 | | Isernia e l'unica citta molisana raggiunta da treni diretti da Roma: cinque regionali al giorno da Roma Termini in 2 ore e 5 minuti - 2 ore e 19 minuti, a 14,05 euro (2026) | [Trenitalia (motore di ricerca soluzioni lefrecce.it)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2027-03-31 | | Da Roma Termini a Lecce il Frecciarossa diretto impiega tra 5h47 e 6h20 (orario 2026); le alternative con cambio via Intercity o Regionale superano le 8 ore. | [Trenitalia (Le Frecce - endpoint ufficiale di ricerca soluzioni di viaggio)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions); [Trenitalia / RFI - ViaggiaTreno](http://www.viaggiatreno.it/infomobilita/resteasy/viaggiatreno/cercaStazione/LECCE) | medium | 2027-06-30 | ## Other languages - it: https://myitalia.it/it/organizza/trains.md - es: https://myitalia.it/es/planifica/trains.md - fr: https://myitalia.it/fr/preparer/trains.md - de: https://myitalia.it/de/planen/trains.md