Can you catch a train from Munich direct to Rome, or does it stop along the way.? I've been looking at and getting some advice from www.capitainetrain.com, which has been great, but has anyone here done this trip? ; )

From what I understand, booking a few months in advance can get you cheaper tickets, and can secure seats?

OPTION 1, SLEEPER...

A direct City Night Line sleeper train leaves Munich 21:08, arrives Rome Termini 09:22 next morning.

Book at www.bahn.de/en and print your own ticket.

Fares from €59 with couchette, from €104 with bed in a 2-bed sleeper with washbasin, breakfast included, shower at the end of the corridor, or from €134 with a bed in a 2-bed deluxe sleeper with shower & toilet, breakfast included.

Booking opens 92 days ahead (or should do), fares vary so book early for the cheapest rates.

See the photos at www.seat61.com/citynightline.htm

OPTION 2, DAYTIME TRAINS

Now you must split the booking.

Book a morning train from Munich to Verona at www.bahn.de/en from €39

Allow at least 45 mins to change trains in Verona.

Book Verona to Rome from €29 at www.trenitalia.com

If you take the 09:28 from Munich, this goes beyond Verona to Bologna, so you'd split this booking at Bologna rather than Verona.

I am not quite sure why Seat61 recommends a 45-minute layover in Verona. The station is not all that large and you might have to go from one platform to another but that's it.

You can also, and perhaps more easily, book the Italian portion at www.italiarail.com

It seems to me to have heard once that it cannot be completely excluded that Italian trains can sometimes be late, even those arriving at Verona.

Thanks for your help, can you tell me are the day time trains scenic? I don't mind changing at Verona or bologna into Rome, like dukey1 said if the stations aren't that big, we don't mind the wait.

Mind you the sleeper sounds good too, leave Munich at night and arrive in Rome the following morning.

Thanks again! : )

Depending on how late a train is, sometimes even a station with only a couple of platforms is "too big" but remember that Verona has several platforms and to get from one to another you have to negotiate ramps/stairs. I simply don't think as a <B>general</B> rule you'd need to allot 45 minutes but better to be safe than sorry I suppose.

Dukey: I would have perfectly agreed with you about 30 years ago. At this time, train travel was still easy and customer friendly in Italy. You could just hop into any train, even after having booked seats in another one. Standard tickets were valid in all trains.

But nowadays, you can only book specific trains and get in serious trouble if you lack them (even if that's because the previous trenitalia train you used was late). I made the experience, that the information offices in Italian railway stations are of absolutely no help in such cases (even if you speak fluently Italian).

Therefore, a layover of 45 min isn't a bad thing. In the case your train arrives in time, it allows you to sit down in a railway station bar and to enjoy a cappuccio and a brioche without any hurry.

Verona station is certainly quite a bit smaller than the one at Bologna, so easier to change platforms, but fewer services. The other thing to remember is that on anything other than very local trains in Italy you have to have a seat reservation, which you get with your booking. Miss a train and you've lost your booking.

The trains are scenic but it's a long haul.
We always take the CityNightLine and follow Man in Seat 61's excellent advice.
It is very easy to print your own ticket from the bahn.de website. You can go there and look at the route. Make sure to book the CNL where you don't change trains (leaving 21:08 arriving 9:22).