Hi! My husband and I are our three teenagers to Europe after Christmas. We fly into Rome then are going to fly out of Paris. My question today is what is the best route from Rome to Paris. We are thinking by train, but are open to suggestions. My girls really want to see Venice and my husband would like to ride through Switzerland. We only have a couple of days to get to Paris. Definitely want to see a lot but not overwhelm ourselves. Any suggestions for routes?
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
Rome to Paris via Venice and Switzerland in 2 days is absolutely ludicrous. Definitely see Venice. Forget Switzerland. Train from Rome to Venice and fly from Venice to Paris.
Posted by
Vacaville, Ca
1441 posts
You can take the government run train system, Trenitalia, from Rome to Venice. I prefer the privately owned company Italo, https://biglietti.italotreno.it/Booking_Acquisto_Ricerca.aspx?Culture=en-US. I think trying to do Italy, Switzerland & Paris in a short timeframe may be a bit too much. Just traveling through Switzerland to see the scenery would be cutting into your site seeing time in Italy & Paris. Especially if your only options is an overnight train, then you see nothing.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
I also would train from Rome to Venice and fly from Venice to Paris (www.skyscanner.com). The overnight train on the Venice-Paris route is not highly rated (compared to some newer, fancier night trains) and usually costs more than flying. The fastest trains via Switzerland take 12 hours with two connections.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you for the great advice!