Hotel near Roma Termini & best train to take to get to Siena

I'm not familiar with Hotel Serena but have stayed at Hotel Aberdeen which is close to Roma Termini, and would certainly recommend it. The hotel is very secure so I don't think safety would be a concern.

For travel from Rome to Siena, there are a couple of choices. One of the routes uses high speed Freccia trains to Firenze SM Novella, and then slower Regionales from there to Siena. However you could also take the Freccia to Florence and then travel by Bus from there to Siena (the bus station is close to Firenze SM Novella). The advantage to that is that you'll be dropped right in the centre of Siena, rather than at the bottom of the hill where the train station is located (from there you'd have to use a cab or bus to get up to the town).

Another option is to take the slower Regionale trains from Rome and through Chiusi-Chianciano Terme and then to Siena. There are also routes which use a bus for the last leg.

You'll have to decide which method works best for you. I'd be fine with any of them, but would probably use the Freccia to Florence and then either train or bus from there to Siena.

Hello thekirchners, to echo what Ken said - you can find tickets on the Trenitalia site.

Just be sure you search Roma Termini (the main train station) to Siena. You can tell what the selections are but the small logos in the upper-left hand corner. They will be on of:
Frecciarossa / R (for Regionale) - this will be the fast train to Florence and then the slow train to Siena
R / R - this is the slow train to a middle station and then a change to another train to continue on to Siena
R / (bus icon) - this is the slower regional and then changing to a bus in the middle and continuing on to Siena

Taking two slower R/R trains may be a bit cheaper if cost is a concern and will take roughly the same amount of time depending on which train you choose. Changing in a smaller station is probably less hectic than changing in Florence (Firenze on the train website) which is a busy station if that is a concern. Check the difference in the arrival time of one train and the departure of the next to see how long you will be waiting at the station. It is generally 15-30 minutes.

I haven't done it but the Siena - Chiusi train ride is supposed to be very scenic.

Hope that helps,
=Tod

So so helpful! Thank you kindly!

The best and fastest way to get from Rome to Siena is not by train, but by bus. All buses depart from the Tiburtina bus station (next to the homonymous train station). Several bus companies operate on that route, such as:

Flixbus
Itabus
MarinoBus

Follow Roberto's advice, backtracking from Florence to Siena doesn't makes much Sense.

I'm really grateful for all of your help!
I'd be happy to take the most scenic route. Looking on the directions it looks like there is a bus that goes through Orvieto. It's certainly not the straightest shot. I do like the idea of not back tracking but at the same time I've never been to Italy so it might be fun to see as much of the beauty as possible.
I'm also wondering if it makes a lot of sense to buy tickets ahead of time or it's ok to wait. Thank you!!!
I can't believe how helpful this forum is!

What do you know of Sais Bus? They have routes to Siena as well.