Travel to Italy

Flying to Italy

The national carrier is Alitalia (www.alitalia.com). Other airlines flying to Italy from the UK include British Airways (www.ba.com), easyJet (www.easyjet.com) and Ryanair (www.ryanair.com). Seasonal carriers flying to Italy from the UK include Jet2.com, Monarch Airlines and Thomson Airways. American Airlines (www.aa.com) flies from the US to Italy.

Major airports are: Bologna Gugielmo Marconi Airport, Florence Airport, Milan Linate Airport, Milan Malpensa Airport, Naples International Airport, Palermo Falcone Borsellino Airport, Rome Ciampino Airport, Rome Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino Airport, Turin Caselle Airport, Venice Marco Polo Airport, Verona Villafranca Airport, Bari Karol Wojtyla Airport, Cagliari Elmas Airport, Marche Airport (Ancona Falconara Airport), Olbia Costa Ameralda Airport, Trieste Friuli Venezia Giulia Airport, Cantania Fontanarossa Airport, Genova Cristoforo Colombo Airport and Pisa International Airport Galileo Galilel.

Airport Guides

Flight times

To Rome: from London - 2 hours 30 minutes; New York - 8 hours 25 minutes.

Departure tax

None.

Travelling to Italy by Rail

Trenitalia runs regular services covering national and international routes (tel: +39 06 6847 5475; www.trenitalia.com).

High-speed trains run between Italy and cities in France, Germany and Switzerland. Schedules and tickets are available from ItaliaRail (www.italiarail.com).

Rail passes

InterRail: offers unlimited first or second-class travel in up to 30 European countries, including Italy, for European residents of over six months with two pass options. The Global Pass allows travel for 15 days, 22 days, one month, five days in 15 days, or seven, 10 or 15 days in one month across all countries. The One-Country Pass offers travel for three, four, six or eight days in one month in any of the countries except Bosnia & Herzegovina and Montenegro. The One-Country Pass does not apply to travel in the passenger's country of residence. Reductions are available for travellers under 28. Children under 12 are free when travelling with an adult using an Adult Pass. Supplements are required for some high-speed services, seat reservations and couchettes. Discounts are offered on Eurostar and some ferry routes. Available from InterRail (www.interrail.eu).

Eurailpass: offers unlimited train travel in up to 28 European countries, including Italy. Tickets are valid for 15 days, 22 days, one, two or three months, five or seven days in a month, and 10 or 15 days days in two months. The Global Pass allows travel across all participating countries. The Select Pass is valid in two to four bordering countries. The One-Country Pass offers travel in one of 27 countries. Adult passes are valid for first-class travel, while youth passes (under 28) are valid for second-class travel. Children under 12 are free when accompanied by an adult using an Adult Pass. The passes cannot be sold to EU citizens or residents. Available from Eurail (www.eurail.com).

offers unlimited train travel in up to 28 European countries. Tickets are valid for 15 days, 21 days, one month, two months, three months, five days in 10 days, 10 days in two months or 15 days in two months. The Global Pass allows travel across all participating countries. The Select Pass is valid in four bordering countries. The Regional Pass lets you travel in two bordering countries. The One Country Pass offers travel in one of 27 countries. 

Adult passes are valid for first-class travel, while youth passes (under 26) are valid for second-class travel. Children under 12 are free when accompanied by an adult using an Adult Pass. The passes cannot be sold to EU citizens or residents. Available from Eurail (www.eurail.com).

Driving to Italy

Getting to Italy by boat

Main ports: Ancona (www.porto.ancona.it), Brindisi (www.porto.br.it), Cagliari (www.porto.cagliari.it), Civitavecchia (www.civitavecchiaport.org), Genoa, Livorno (www.porto.livorno.it), Naples (porto.napoli.it), Palermo (www.portpalermo.it) and Venice (www.port.venice.it).

Ferry operators

Main ferry operators: Grimaldi Lines (www.grimaldi-lines.com), SNAV (www.snav.it), Liberty Lines (www.libertylines.it), Toremar (www.toremar.it), and Navigazione Libera del Golfo (www.navlib.it).
The main international routes are from Greece and Croatia. There are also links from Tunisia to Sicily and from Corsica to Italy. Cruise ships call at ports such as Genoa and Citavecchia.