The Italian Train Route that Stops Near 7 UNESCO Sites

Verona, Italy. Stock photo.

According to an analysis by Firebird Tours, the Frecciarossa 9759 train in Italy leaves Torino Porta Nuova station at 18:35 (6:35 p.m.) and arrives at Trieste Centrale at 23:45 (11:45 p.m.), with no change of train required.

Along the way, the train stops in Milan, Brescia, Verona, Vicenza, and Padua, creating a route that passes through some of Italy’s most important artistic, architectural, and historic centers.

Frecciarossa train in Italy. Stock photo.

Of course, the finding doesn’t mean that travelers can visit all seven properties while remaining on one train. It means that each site is accessible from a station served by the same direct service. In short, passengers wishing to explore multiple locations would need to break their journey and continue later by train.

Firebird Tours researchers compared the train’s scheduled stops with popular properties on UNESCO’s official World Heritage List. A site was included when at least part of its officially recognized boundary fell within five kilometers of a station. The analysis identified seven separate World Heritage properties meeting this criterion:

StationUNESCO World Heritage propertyYear it was added to UNESCOApproximate distance from the train station
Torino Porta NuovaResidences of the Royal House of Savoy1997Approximately 1.5km
Milan Porta GaribaldiChurch and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie with “The Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci1980Approximately 2.5km
BresciaLongobards in Italy. Places of the Power (568–774 A.D.)2011Approximately 1.3km
Verona Porta NuovaCity of Verona2000Nearest boundary within approximately 1km
VicenzaCity of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto1994City component within approximately 1km
PaduaPadua’s fourteenth-century fresco cycles2021Nearest component approximately 0.7km
PaduaBotanical Garden (Orto Botanico), Padua1997Approximately 2km

All in all, Padua/Padova is the only station on the route that contributes two separate UNESCO World Heritage listings.
The first is Padua’s fourteenth-century fresco cycles. This is a collection of 8 remarkable religious and secular buildings that include Giotto’s celebrated Scrovegni Chapel.

The frescoes of Scrovegni Chapel in Padua. Stock photo.

The second is Padua’s Botanical Garden, founded in 1545 and recognized by UNESCO as the world’s oldest surviving university botanical garden.

The journey also connects passengers with Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper in Milan, Verona’s Roman and medieval cityscape, the Palladian architecture of Vicenza, and the remains of the Longobard civilisation in Brescia.

Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” in the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria del Grazie in Milan. Stock photo.

In Turin, the qualifying property is the Residences of the Royal House of Savoy. This UNESCO listing includes 22 palaces and villas. Among them, 11 are located in central Turin, and another 11 are in the surrounding area. Note that the components within five kilometers of the train’s scheduled station were included in the analysis.

Frecciarossa 9759 also stops at Venezia Mestre before continuing to Trieste. Venice and its Lagoon may potentially add an eighth World Heritage property to the route as it covers more than 70,000 hectares, including the city, its islands, and the surrounding lagoon environment.

A view of Venice from the water. Photo by Karin Leperi Pezo.

The nearest part of the World Heritage property may fall within five kilometers of Venezia Mestre station. However, this result has been kept separate from the seven confirmed properties because it requires precise measurement against UNESCO’s official 2019 boundary map.

Central Venice’s best-known landmarks, including Piazza San Marco, are much farther than five kilometers from the station. It would, therefore, be inaccurate to suggest that Venice’s main monuments are immediately beside Venezia Mestre.

If the official boundary measurement confirms that part of Venice and its Lagoon is within the five-kilometer radius, it would become the route’s eighth qualifying World Heritage property.

Ivan Shirokov of Firebird Tours says, “Train travel can turn the journey itself into part of the cultural experience. This route links very different chapters of European history, from royal Turin and Roman Verona to Renaissance Vicenza and the historic landscapes of the Veneto(during one itinerary).”

Sources: Trenitalia and Rete Ferroviaria Italiana timetable information; UNESCO World Heritage Centre.

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Melanie Votaw is the Publisher and Executive Travel Writer of LuxuryWeb Magazine. She has visited more than 50 countries on 6 continents and written for such magazines as Executive Travel, Just Luxe, Business Insider, South China Morning Post, Travel Mindset, and more. She is a member of the International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association, New York Travel Writers Association, and International Travel Writers Alliance. Melanie's photography has won awards, and she has also written 43 nonfiction books as either the author or ghostwriter.

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