train on ferry to Sicily
 

I'm planning a trip to Siciy with a barking mad friend who wants to ride the train from Naples and experience the whole train on a ferry thing.

Anyone done it?
Advice?

I've seen seat61 and the video

In 1985 I went on a train ferry between Denmark and Germany. I was a teenager and it was quite thrilling. I don't expect they have that train ferry any more, there must be a better way nowadays. It was very early in the morning and I was still a bit groggy from the night. You could not actually tell we were on a boat, it was a very smooth ride. I don't expect it's always like that!

Lavandula

thanks Lavandula

The train is split in usually 2 parts at Villa San Giovanni, then put on the train ferry and recomposed at Messina Marittima.
The whole procedure takes about 1 hr.
Once on board, one can usually go out of the train wagon.
There were many ttrain ferries in the last century, but AFAIK the Villa San Giovanni - Messina one is the last that remained.

We are planning on doing this in September. My origin plan was to fly LHR to Rome and stay at a friends place there before getting the train to Naples, spend a few days around there before heading down on the train to Sicily via Messina and flying back from Palermo. Given the current state of the world , I am now considering a longer trip entirely by train and teh big question seems to be whether it is better buying an Interail pass or individual tickets. It seems including the Eurostar form St Pancras on a pass can be a particularly good deal, but need to research further.

We wanted to do this in 2022, from Messina to Naples. But eventually decided to fly from Catania as the train/ferry took the good part of a day and would cut i to our time in Naples. Regret it though, it would definitely have been fun.

It's something I would love to do, but DH isn't interested. I hope you report back so I can enjoy it through your eyes.

I made this (rather short) crossing from Messina to Villa San Giovanni in 2022. We had spent 2 weeks in Sicily, ending in Taormina and were headed to the mainland (Calabria). While the experience was unique, we only saw this as a means of convenient transportation and it made perfect logistical sense for our itinerary.

While the full journey from Naples may be an interesting experience, a flight directly into Palermo or Catania will be a lot quicker, preserving time for Sicily which seems the real focus of your travels.

Personally speaking, there are so many gems en route from Naples to Sicily - the Cilento coast, Maratea, Calabria ... I would hesitate to breeze through that part of Italy without breaking journey.

bilboburgler, DH and I took a train from Siracusa to Napoli and it was a gas. We kept waiting for the train to stop so we could get on the ferry but nooo, the train occupied the lower level of the ferry! The train stopped for a while after the crossing so that may have been the change neckervd mentioned above.

Two experiences of only partial relevance --

• Train on ferry from Copenhagen to Stockholm many years ago. Fascinating! But not something that I, personally, would make a priority.
• Ferry from Lipari to Naples some years ago, if not part of such a distant past. Had Stromboli been active, I would have seen it against a night (as in post sunset) sky. Sunrise was just before Capri, so the view of the Faraglioni and Vesuvius and Naples were absolutely stunning. Now THAT was an experience I'm glad to have made a priority.

If you really want to save time, take either the overnight train (sleeping cars)
Naples dp 22.33 - Taormina ar 6.47 - Siracusa ar 9.07, resp Cefalu ar 8.16 - Termini Imerese ar 8.36 (connecting train to Agrigento ar 10.47) - Palermo ar 9.06
or the overnight ferry (with board restaurant and cabines) Naples dp 20.00 or 22.30 - Palermo ar 7.00

not looking to save anytime but thanks for all the feedback

I meant to write that after waiting what seemed to be a long time, I left the train and saw that we were IN the ferry and ON the sea. I found people on the top level enjoying the cruise, autos on the next level, and the train on the bottom. Yes, please share your experience.

Yep, people still do it, and I’d say it’s worth doing once just for the novelty. I’d go for an Intercity Notte from Naples rather than a daytime seat, because the train ferry bit is fun but the overall journey is long, and the sleeper makes it feel much less punishing. Also, if you’re continuing beyond Messina to Catania or Syracuse, double check Sicily-side disruption notices before you lock anything in, because there are still some regional replacements on that line into mid June. Useful checks here and here.

We did it twice in June 2024. There is just enough time to get off the train and grab a snack at the ship's snack bar. I will say, they shut the AC off as they are loading the train and it can get a bit stuffy if it is hot out at the time.