Green Routes to Trento: A Comprehensive Guide to Sustainable Travel Across Europe by Train

As a general consideration: the website of Deutsche Bahn is still the best tool to plan European railway routes. Among all the railway services listed below, only Italo (see Italy) is not in it. So plan your route there, and then follow the points below to book.

Booking some of these routes – especially the long ones – might end up being very pricey, so it might make more sense to use an Interrail pass. Just be aware that some trains will also need reservations – and these cost a supplement.

Any issue not covered here? Contact Jon with your query and – time permitting, and he’s doing this as a volunteer – he will try to help you out.

Grateful for this guide? Jon is currently crowd-funding research into railways in South Eastern Europe. You can find out about this work here.

 

Italy

Routes to Trento are simple from all over Italy, sometimes requiring a change in Verona Porta Nuova but often connections are direct – for example from Roma Termini. Please note that tickets for high speed trains to Trento are available from Trenitalia already, but tickets for its private rival Italo are normally available 3-4 months ahead of a trip, but are likely to be cheaper than with Trenitalia. Some routes with changes in Verona Porta Nuova will require you to collect a paper ticket for the Verona – Trento leg, but this can be done easily in Italy at any Trenitalia ticket machine (available at all larger stations).

 

Austria

Simple daytime connections from Wien, Linz, Salzburg and Vorarlberg, with a change in Innsbruck. If travelling from Klagenfurt or Villach, then routes via Lienz and Fortezza/Franzenfeste make more sense.

Make sure you book tickets from ÖBB if travelling through Innsbruck, and do not book with Trenitalia – as Trenitalia obliges you to get tickets on paper for the Innsbruck-Trento leg, and these can only be collected from ticket machines in Italy, and not in Austria! If travelling via Lienz this problem does not apply, as tickets can be collected at Fortezza/Franzenfeste when changing there. Tickets for routes from Austria are already available for the days of the conference, including the especially cheap Sparschiene tickets.

 

Germany

It is possible to travel to Trento in a day from pretty much all of Germany – get to München first and change there for Trento. Tickets should be booked with Deutsche Bahn or ÖBB (whichever is cheaper, or whichever will give you the best reduction with whatever reduction card you have). As any route from Germany is going to route you through Innsbruck, do not book any of it with Trenitalia (see note about Austria, above).

Please be aware that early September is still the end of the high season for train travel, and reliability of Germany’s railway is not what it was. Hence it is not advisable to book a tight connection in München onto the last direct train of the day that departs 15:34 and arrives 20:02 – you can increase the time to change using the Stopover function on Deutsche Bahn’s site. However if you do miss a connection – even if you have cheap a DB Sparpreis or ÖBB Sparschiene ticket you still have the rights to take the next available train even if you miss the one stipulated on your ticket.

If travelling from northern Germany – especially Hamburg and Hannover – then the ÖBB Nightjet to Innsbruck is an option, and is one of ÖBB’s brand new night trains complete with mini compartments (like pod hotels) – if your trip involves a night train, book only with ÖBB. However Nightjet trains are normally only bookable 3 months ahead of a trip, and can then sell out very quickly!

 

Belgium and Netherlands

If travelling daytime, get to Germany first – and route via München, and book with Deutsche Bahn. However be aware that the ICEs from Amsterdam to Frankfurt, and Bruxelles to Frankfurt, count among Deutsche Bahn’s least reliable routes, so try to plan in enough time to change to allow for this if you can.

An alternative from Netherlands is to use the ÖBB Nightjet Amsterdam-Innsbruck, and change there for Trento - book with ÖBB. From Bruxelles using a night train is more complicated – you need to change in Rosenheim rather than in Innsbruck, but here too book with ÖBB.

 

UK

There is a theoretical connection from London to Trento in a day, via Paris, Zürich and Innsbruck – with just 14 minutes to change in Zürich. While a portal like Trainline can sell you this in one transaction, it will issue you at least three tickets – meaning you have no passenger rights if you miss the connection in Zürich. Trento to London is no less fraught – it routes via Bruxelles with tight connections in both München and Frankfurt, which given Deutsche Bahn’s reliability issues is not for the faint hearted.

Night trains are not especially helpful here either – there are night trains every other night from Paris Est to Rosenheim, and Bruxelles Midi to Rosenheim, but booking these needs split ticketing – Eurostar from London to Bruxelles or Paris, and then ÖBB for the rest of the trip.

The easiest (and cheapest and most reliable) to probably to break the trip somewhere in the middle – for example in Frankfurt or Köln.

If travelling from somewhere in the UK other than London then follow Seat61’s guide to combine UK rail with Eurostar.

 

Switzerland

Routing via Zürich, and then to Innsbruck and Trento is in almost all cases the easiest way to do it, and book with ÖBB. Going from Switzerland to Italy directly will normally involve two changes in Milano Centrale and Verona Porta Nuova and will not be bookable in one transaction. If routing from Switzerland direct to Italy then SBB or Trenitalia can sell you a ticket, and Switzerland to Italy is always an eTicket (so the Italian paper tickets problem – see Austria above) does not apply here – if your connection does need a paper ticket it will be for the part between Verona and Trento.

 

Hungary

Route to Wien first, then follow the guidance for Austria above. It might work out cheaper to book from Budapest to Wien or Innsbruck with MÁV, and then from Wien or Innsbruck to Trento with ÖBB. Having two separate tickets in this situation – unless you happen to be routing onto the last train of the day and there is the danger of getting stuck somewhere – is not a problem as ÖBB will generally let you on the next train if you explain the situation to them.

There is a way from Budapest to Innsbruck by night train – it is the Budapest-Zürich service. But it involves a change at 4am in Innsbruck, so is not for the faint hearted. If you want to do it, book with MÁV to Innsbruck and then with ÖBB to Trento.

 

Czechia

Route to München, Wien or Linz first, and then follow the guidance for Austria above. It is doubtful that České dráhy can give you a price for the whole trip, so book with them as far as München, Wien or Innsbruck, and then with ÖBB from there. If routing via München Deutsche Bahn can possibly give you a price for the whole trip – but just be aware that the Praha-München route is slow and not very reliable, so avoid a tight change in München onto the last train of the day to Trento.

 

Denmark

Route to Hamburg first, then follow the instructions for Germany – especially regarding the Hamburg-Innsbruck night train. Book to Hamburg with either Deutsche Bahn or DSB (whichever is cheaper), and then follow the instructions for Germany.

 

Sweden

If starting from Lund or Malmö, get to København and from there to Hamburg, and then follow the Germany instructions. If further into Sweden route onto the Stockholm to Berlin night train that is bookable with SJ, and change in Hamburg and route from there with Deutsche Bahn – with a further change in München. You will need at least 2 bookings – one with SJ and one with Deutsche Bahn.

 

France

Much more complicated than it ought to be. So take a deep breath, and try this.

From Lille, route to Paris first, then head to Germany to München and follow the Germany guide above. A portal like Trainline can probably give you a price for the complete route, but will issue you multiple tickets – leaving you without passenger rights in case something goes wrong. The cheapest way is likely to book with SNCF Connect as far as Mannheim, Karlsruhe or München, and then with Deutsche Bahn for the rest to Trento. This method also works from Paris and Strasbourg.

From Grenoble or Lyon, route to Genève first – and book that with SNCF Connect. From there route via Zürich and Innsbruck, and book with ÖBB. For some reason not all the trains from Grenoble are timetabled for September yet, so you will have to wait before trying to book this one.

 

Slovenia

Route to Villach first – and then follow the Austria instructions above, and route via Lienz. Book the whole lot with ÖBB. If for some reason ÖBB cannot sell the whole route, book as far as Jesenice with SŽ, and from there with ÖBB. SŽ does not offer online tickets for international routes.

 

Croatia

The poor timetable between Zagreb and Ljubljana means the only viable way to Trento from Zagreb involves the Zagreb to Zürich night train, and alighting in Innsbruck and changing there. Book with ÖBB.

 

Romania

Viable from northern Romania, especially from Cluj Napoca. Night train Cluj to Wien, and from there follow the Austria instructions above. The headache here is with booking horizons – while Wien-Innsbruck-Trento is already available from ÖBB, Cluj Napoca-Wien is not – and indeed normally night trains in Romania are only possible to book 30 days ahead, but given this one is international the horizon is probably longer. Best is to enquire at a Romanian station and see what CFR tells you, and then book from Wien with ÖBB. Do not worry about tight connections – ÖBB will let you onto the next available train if your night train is delayed.

 

Spain

Forget it. Despite the EU ploughing money into Spain’s railway network, and even the new high speed line between Figueres and Perpignan, there is no viable way to get from Spain to Trento by train. Even Marseille – Milano is hell.