Trenitalia Pass: Flexible Travel by Train through Italy Starting at €32/Ride (Alternative to Interrail)

The Italian railway company Trenitalia has an interesting offer for foreign tourists who want to see as much of Italy as possible within a specific time frame, travelling comfortably and environmentally friendly by train within the country.

For instance, one can book three flexible rides within 7 days for €129. Additional discounts are available for seniors aged 60 and above, as well as for youths and young adults between 12 and 27 years.

The tickets are valid exclusively for direct long-distance journeys. A journey with transfers counts as two rides and should be avoided if possible. One notable advantage compared to Interrail is that seat reservations are included without an additional charge.

The pass is available in three different versions (Easy, Comfort, and Executive), depending on the desired travel class for the journey. Additionally, one must decide in advance how many trips the pass should be valid for—options include 3, 4, 7, or 10 rides within a specified time frame.

Price Overview

The Trenitalia Pass is available for adults aged 28 and above in the following variants:

Rides	Easy	Comfort
3 rides in 7 days	€129	€169
4 rides in 7 days	€157	€212
7 rides in 15 days	€246	€336
10 rides in 30 days	€319	€424

Starting from these prices, there is approximately a 10% discount for seniors (60 years and above) and a 20% discount for youths/young adults up to and including 27 years. An overview of all prices can be found on Trenitalia.com.

Conditions

When purchasing and using the pass, there are several rules and conditions to consider:

• The journey is possible on trains of the following product categories:
  • Frecce (high-speed trains)
  • Frecce + Freccialink (bus connections)
  • InterCity
  • InterCity Notte (night train)
  • EuroCity (on routes within Italy)
• The pass can only be purchased by individuals residing outside Italy.
• The pass is personal and non-transferable.
• The first journey must take place within 11 months from the purchase date.
• From the first journey onwards, the pass is valid for the predetermined number of rides within the specified time frame.
• Up to 2 children aged 4 to 11 can travel for free with each adult.
• Children under 4 travel for free if they do not occupy a separate seat.
• A refund of 80% of the purchase price is possible if the refund request is made before the first journey.
• Seat reservations for the included rides are mandatory and free. Reservations can be made online, at ticket counters, in travel agencies, or through the Trenitalia call centre.

Difference between Easy, Comfort, and Executive Pass

The pass is available in Easy, Comfort, and Executive variants, determining which trains or travel classes you can use for your journeys.

A textual overview can be found on the Trenitalia website. The following table illustrates the distinctions:

Train type	Class	Pass Easy	Pass Comfort	Pass Executive
High-speed trains Le Frecce	2nd Class	✅	✅	✅
	Premium	❌	✅	✅
	Business	❌	✅	✅
	Executive	❌	❌	✅
Regional trains	2nd Class	❌	❌	❌
	1st Class	❌	❌	❌
InterCity	2nd Class	✅	✅	✅
	1st Class	❌	✅	✅
Night trains Intercity Notte	Seats	✅	✅	✅
	Sleeper car	✅	✅	✅
	2/3-passenger compartment Sleeper car	❌	✅
	Individual compartment Sleeper car	❌	❌	✅
	Compartment with shower Sleeper car	❌	❌	❌

Trenitalia Pass vs. Interrail

In Europe, the Interrail pass is particularly well-known. However, an Interrail pass in Italy comes with many disadvantages and only a few advantages:

• The Executive Class is not accessible with an Interrail pass (even in 1st class).
• A reservation fee of €13 is charged for each journey on Frecciarossa
• Sleeping car fees are exorbitant, sometimes more expensive than a regular ticket.

• With Interrail, travel by regional trains is possible.
• Transfers are included; only the days used are counted.

In contrast, the Trenitalia Pass includes all reservations without additional fees or seat charges. However, it is not valid for regional trains and is calculated per journey.

If you are already travelling with an Interrail Global Pass throughout Europe, a detour to Italy is a good choice. However, if your journey is solely in Italy, the Trenitalia Pass has clear advantages. It may be advisable to complement it with separately booked regional train tickets.

There are also specific pass offers for regional trains throughout Italy, as well as regional trains in the Cinque Terre, Lombardy, and South Tyrol regions.

My Experiences with the Trenitalia Pass

I used the Trenitalia Pass in 2021 for a small tour of Italy. At that time, I paid €212 (as a youth up to 27) for the Executive Pass with 3 trips in 7 days. The prices remain the same today, unaffected by inflation.

With the pass, I booked the following journeys:

• Night train Rome – Catania in a single compartment (Deluxe)
• Naples – Florence in the Executive Class (Frecciarossa 10000)
• Florence – Milan in the Executive Class (Frecciarossa 10000)

Everything worked wonderfully. The trains were clean and mostly punctual. The website is a bit cumbersome at times but ultimately serves its purpose. You can directly reserve seats online and change trains up to shortly before departure if desired. Normally, with Trenitalia, you have to book weeks in advance to find affordable tickets, making flexibility quite valuable.

The Executive Class in the high-speed train is especially worthwhile on longer journeys. However, the Executive Class has become more expensive in recent years, as there are no more discounts or vouchers available. In some cases, the pass is already cost-effective from the first journey.

Translated by Ditmar

Cover Picture: Ditmar Lange