I am trying to arrange travel from Rome to Munich. One portion of the trip requires that I use Trenitalia (high speed trains) from Rome to Verona. I would then transfer in Verona on a Eurocity train to Munich.
The suggested itinerary has the Italian train arriving at Verona at 12:37pm and the train departing for Munich at 13:04.
Is this a safe amount of transfer time? I have read that Italian trains tend to run late. Can anyone provide insight? Thanks.
There is always the chance that the train may be delayed. I would book two separate legs so that you can build in more time in between.
Donna
A Swiss friend tells me of skiing from Zermatt into Italy and then taking a train back into Switzerland. Before they do the ski run they always check on the Italian train work action situation.
http://italyexplained.com/how-to-deal-with-italian-train-strikes/
The transportation strike tracking site is Commisione di Garanzia
Sciopero (the word “sciopero” means “strike”). This post on my friend
Madeline’s Italy Beyond the Obvious blog details how to read the site;
here are the basics of what you’ll need to know.
What to Do if You’re in Italy During a Transportation Strike First
things first – in the immortal words of Douglas Adams, DON’T PANIC. As
I said, when you look up strikes before your trip that gives you a
chance to figure out alternate plans if need be.
I have read that Italian trains tend to run late
I'm sure you've also read that Mussolini fixed that about 90 years ago.
I would be comfortable with that plan, but it's not guaranteed. Even if the train were 20 minutes late, the connection would still be feasible for someone who is prepared to move quickly. (Changing platforms at Verona involves stairs, or there is an elevator.) If you want a longer cushion of time at Verona, you can leave Rome an hour earlier or plan to depart Verona an hour later; those train options exist.
We have been on dozen of Italian trains and they have all run pretty much on time. Maybe a few minutes one way or the other and never ran into a strike. The worse time I have ever had with trains late and cancelled was in Germany five years ago. You can always have delayed trains but as rule the Italian trains run on time as well as well as anyone else. We had done many transfers under 15 minutes with no problems. American airlines have a worse time records than Italian trains.
In my experience, the high speed trains are reasonably punctual most of the time, but of course there are always exceptions. Last year I had to endure a bit of a wait of about 45 minutes as there was a problem on the high speed lines between Rome and Florence which affected both Trenitalia and Italo trains. The Regionale trains seem to have more of a problem with punctuality, especially during busy times.
In the same situation, I'd probably take a chance on the the trains that you mentioned. In all likelihood you won't have any problems (but be sure to check the strike situation for the day you'll be travelling).
The delays are much more likely on the regionale trains, not yours. The only time I encountered a significant delay was due to snow.
I think I would plan on having lunch in Verona Station - or if the train is late, grab some sandwiches and take aboard. That gives you a buffer.
I ran into a delay on a high speed train in Italy (Bologna to Rome, I believe) because the train ahead of it had done something that resulted in the HS train being diverted onto tracks that could not handle high speed. It made us lose about 40 minutes. That said, that was the only time in maybe 15 total HS train rides that I've taken in Italy over the years where there was a significant delay.
The only time I had an issue with train punctuality in Italy was the day of a strike. But, there can always be mechanical problems, as in some of the examples above. I like the idea of planning for lunch in the station, if you can.
I think that if you are not familiar with the Rome Termini station ( which is rather big), make sure to arrive in station well in advance. Trains usually are on time in Italy. I've been living in Italy for 6 years now and only once when I took a train from Torino to Reggio Calabria did I have a significant delay. Should you arrive too late in Verona and miss your train for Munich, you can have a nice evening/afternoon in Verona😉 and take another train. Verona is very nice indeed.
By the way, there are many airplane connections between Milan and Munich (I think 8 or 12/day at various price)... Just in case.
