Double sleeper on a Trenitalia Intercity Notte train
 

2-bed sleeper on an Intercity Notte

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Sleeper trains in Italy

Trenitalia runs overnight trains with sleeping-cars & couchettes between northern and southern Italy.  They're branded Intercity Notte, ICN.

small bullet point  Sleepers

small bullet point  Couchettes

small bullet point  Basic seats

small bullet point  Travel tips

small bullet point  How much does it cost?

small bullet point  How to buy tickets

On what routes do they run?

small bullet point  Trieste, Venice <> Rome

small bullet point  Turin, Milan, Genoa <> Naples

small bullet point  Milan, Bologna <> Bari, Taranto, Brindisi, Lecce

small bullet point  Turin <> Bari, Brindisi, Lecce

small bullet point  Rome & Naples <> Palermo, Catania, Siracuse, see the Sicily page.

small bullet point  Milan & Bologna <> Palermo, Catania, Siracuse, see the Sicily page.

1 & 2 bed sleepers with shower & toilet

Branded Excelsior until 2024, now being rebranded Superior, these only operate on the Milan-Catania/Siracuse and Rome-Catania/Siracuse routes, see the Sicily page.

1, 2 & 3 bed sleepers with washbasin

Branded Deluxe until 2024 but now being rebranded Relax, these are the usual sleeping-cars.  A corridor runs along one side of the car off which open 12 compartments, each of which can be sold as 3-berth (triple or tripla), 2-berth (double or doppia) or single-berth (single or singolo).  There are two toilets at one end of the corridor near the attendant's compartment.

Each sleeper compartment has a washbasin and 220V power outlet (Italian 2-pin rectangular type), and locks securely from the inside.  The beds come fully made up with clean sheets, pillow, duvet.  For the daytime part of the journey, the beds fold away and a 3-seat sofa folds out to make a private sitting room (the centre seat folds back down to form a table between the two outer seats if there are only two of you).

A fresh towel and simple amenities kit is provided with soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, wet-wipe.  A small bottle of drinking water is provided.  Luggage goes in your compartment with you, on the rack above the window, in the large recess above the door, or on the floor.

There is a connecting door between adjacent compartments which can be opened if the bolt on both sides is slid back.  The door connects compartments with berth numbers that share the same first digit, for example 21, 23, 25 connects to 22, 24, 26.

In the morning the sleeper attendant serves you a light breakfast with coffee & juice.  Bring your own food & drink for the evening, with perhaps a bottle of wine!

Since the pandemic, Trenitalia no longer allows solo travellers to book 1 bed in shared sleeper compartments.  Only entire 1, 2 or 3 bed rooms (cabina intera) can be booked in the sleeper category.  So if you're solo you'll have to pay for a single if you want to use a sleeper rather than a couchette.

Sleeping-car on an Intercity Notte

Above, an Intercity Notte sleeping-car. Click the images below for larger photos.

Single sleeper on Italian Intercity Notte train   Double sleeper on Italian Intercity Notte train   Triple sleeper on Italian Intercity Notte train

Single sleeper (singolo)

 

Double sleeper (doppia)

 

Triple sleeper (tripla)

Single sleeper on Italian Intercity Notte train   Sleeper on Italian Intercity Notte train in daytime seats mode

Single sleeper, looking towards the corridor.

 

Sleeper in day mode as a private sitting room.

    Breakfast on Italian Intercity Notte train

Corridor.

 

Water, snack and amenities kit.

 

Light breakfast with expresso.

4-berth couchettes

Branded Comfort, this is the economical choice, ideal for families or budget travellers.  A corridor runs down one side of the car, off which open 9 securely-lockable compartments, each with 4 berths (2 upper, 2 lower).  Each berth is provided with sheets, pillow & blanket, but unlike the sleepers you arrange these yourself.  The upper bunks fold back against the wall and the lower berths become seating for evening and morning use.

There are toilets and washrooms at the end of the corridor.  Luggage goes in the compartment with you, on the overhead racks, under the lower berths, in the large recess above the door or on the floor.  An attendant travels with each pair of cars.  There's no catering car, so take snacks and a bottle of wine with you.

In the morning, a light breakfast of coffee, orange juice and snack is included in the fare, served by the attendant.

In couchettes, berths are sold individually, so one person = one ticket = one bed.  A solo traveller who books one ticket gets one berth in a shared couchette compartment.  Usually these are mixed gender (Promiscuo), but women travelling alone can choose a ladies-only compartment (Donna).  If you book 4 people you'll get a whole compartment (cabina intera) to yourselves.  There's also a fare for 3 people to have sole occupancy of a 4-berth compartment (a more spacious option than a 3-bed sleeper, arguably a better choice if your journey involves a significant daytime element).  See a trip report video.

Comfort couchette car on an Intercity Notte

Above, a Comfort couchette car on an Intercity Notte.

Comfort 4-berth couchettes   Comfort 4-berth couchettes in daytime seats mode

Comfort couchettes, view towards the corridor.

 

Comfort couchettes, daytime seats mode.

Comfort 4-berth couchettes   Comfort 4-berth couchette car corridor

Comfort couchettes night mode.

 

Comfort couchettes with door to corridor open.

Basic seats

All Intercity Notte trains (except those to/from Sicily) have ordinary seats branded Basic.  The seats are the same as the 2nd class seats used on daytime Intercity trains, 2+2 across the car width.  The name says it all, using a seat on an overnight train is a false economy, always book a couchette or sleeper in a safely-locked compartment.

Basic seats car on an Intercity Notte overnight train   Basic seats

Travel tips

How much does it cost?

How to buy tickets


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