There are many possible stops in the towns along the railway: Santa Maria Maggiore, Re, Verdasio, Intragna, to name just the main ones.
https://www.vigezzinacentovalli.com/
THE BERNINA RAILWAY
The Bernina Express is one of the best-known trains in the world. From Tirano, in Lombardy, to the Engadine pearl of St. Moritz, the Red Train, named for the unmistakable flaming colour of its carriages, belongs to the Rhaetian Railway, is more than a hundred years old and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008.
The complete journey takes about two and a half hours. With an audio guide in four languages you can fully enjoy the wonders of the Alpine landscape between Italy and Switzerland, between the Albula region and the Bernina massif.
55 tunnels, 196 viaducts and gradients of up to 70 per thousand. The highest point of the Rhaetian Railway, the Bernina Hospice, lies at an altitude of 2,253 metres. The Thusis - Valposchiavo - Tirano section is simply enchanting.
Another renowned feature of the Bernina Express is its panoramic carriages, from which you can always enjoy a 360° view of the unspoilt Alpine scenery. In summer you can also travel in the open-top carriages. An experience.
https://www.rhb.ch/it/treni-panoramici/bernina-express
THE VAL D’ORCIA RAILWAY
The Val d’Orcia Railway crosses one of the most fascinating areas of Tuscany, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004. A stretch of cultivated fields, rows of cypresses and vines, hills whose colours change with the seasons. In short, the Tuscan nature and landscape immortalised in the paintings of the masters of Italian art.
Not to mention the historic villages the line skirts: Monteroni d’Arbia, Buonconvento, San Quirico d’Orcia, Roccastrada, to name a few.
At 51.2 km long, it links Asciano station in the province of Siena (still active, on the Empoli-Siena-Chiusi line) with Monte Antico in the province of Grosseto (still active, on the Siena-Grosseto line, via Buonconvento).
The line, opened in sections between 1865 and 1872, went into slow decline after the Second World War, until passenger and freight services were closed on 27 September 1994.
Since 1996 the Val d’Orcia Railway has been used for tourist trains. For example the Treno Natura, running on the Siena-Monte Antico line, with a rich calendar of trips on historic trains from March to December.
https://www.ferrovieturistiche.it/it/fvo/
CINQUE TERRE EXPRESS
Another Italian railway wonder is the Cinque Terre Express, a regional train running through the national park declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
From La Spezia to Levanto in an hour and a quarter, the trains call at the five fishing villages that are perhaps the most famous in the world: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso.
The train stops in each of these fairy-tale villages. With the Cinque Terre Express you can easily get off to visit them and climb back on board. All without stress, fully enjoying an environment unique in the world for the miraculous coexistence of human settlements and nature.
https://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/it/cinque-terre-express-cosa-e-come-funziona
ITALY’S TRANS-SIBERIAN
“Travelling on the Ferrovia dei Parchi is not a simple train trip,
but a small, great geography lesson unfolding outside the window.”
The Ferrovia dei Parchi is affectionately nicknamed the “Trans-Siberian of Italy”. The name is attributed to the journalist Luciano Zeppegno, who in 1980 described this line as “the little Trans-Siberian” because of the heavy snowfalls which, especially on the stretch across the great plateaus of Abruzzo, make it resemble the famous Moscow-Vladivostok Trans-Siberian.
It is a magnificent route for a slow journey starting in Abruzzo and reaching Molise, through nature reserves, karst plateaus, broad valleys and narrow gorges.
In particular, the historic train runs from Sulmona to Isernia. Journeys on the historic train of the Abruzzo Trans-Siberian can usually be made at weekends. If you can, do not miss the experience of the “Christmas market trains”.
Remember to check the official websites for the service offered and the conditions before you set off. Have a good journey.
