Traveling Around Italy By Bus

Bus travel in Italy wasn't designed to go from region to region, i.e. Tuscany to Umbria or Lombardy to Veneto. This is best left to the train. Within regions, however, the bus can be a good way (and sometimes the only way) to explore some of the most scenic areas in Italy especially Italian hill towns. Buses are also the cheapest way to travel within a region. Be prepared for an adventure. We are not talking about tour buses here, but city or inter-city buses. On these buses you will rarely find anybody but Italians which only serves to enhance your travel experience.

Bus stations (autostazione) are most often found next to or very near train stations. If a town does not have a train station, the bus station can likely be found next to or very near the central plaza (piazza). Sometimes bus schedules are a little bit hard to come by, but Italians are very helpful and should be able to direct you to the right bus for your destination.

On city buses, tickets must be purchased before you board at a kiosk, the bus station or at a tobacco stand. On Inter-city buses tickets can be purchased on board or at the bus station, but you must have the correct change and/or dollar (Euro) amount. On city buses, you must also validate your ticket by punching them in machines at the front or rear of the bus. Large, on-the-spot fines are levied if you are caught without a validated ticket.

If your only experience with a bus has been Greyhound, you will be surprised to find Italian buses clean and very efficient. Italy is infamous for its train strikes, sometimes on very short notice. Buses can be the only means of transport between cities when this happens, so they are more useful than one might think if your vacation should happen to be put on hold because of a train strike.

No vacation in Italy is complete without a bus experience.