Venezia Santa Lucia, the island terminus on the Grand Canal where Milan-bound trains depart.
Photo: Stefano Stabile / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)Venice to Milan by Train
A domestic route within Italy.
Reviewed by Eurotraintrip on 2026-07-30
- Duration
- 2h 27m – 3h 05m
- Price from
- 14.9 EUR
- Distance
- 260 km
- Operators
- Trenitalia FrecciarossaItalo
- Frequency
- Up to 31 combined Frecciarossa and Italo departures a day in each direction on this corridor
Compare and book Venice–Milan tickets
Check pricesWhat makes Venice to Milan different
- Trains leave Venice by crossing a 3.2km railway bridge across the lagoon that opened on 13 January 1846 - built on 222 masonry arches resting on roughly 80,000 wooden piles, it was Venice's first fixed link to the mainland, predating the parallel road bridge by nearly 90 years.
- The Brescia-Verona and Verona-Padova high-speed sections needed to give this corridor a fully dedicated fast track end-to-end are both still under construction as of 2026, targeted for completion in June and December 2026 respectively - until then, trains keep sharing older track for a large part of the run.
- Padova, one of the intermediate stops some Venice-Milan trains call at, is itself one of Italy's busiest rail junctions in its own right - around 18.5 million passenger movements and roughly 450 trains a day pass through its station.
Venice station
Departs from Venezia Santa Lucia, whose current building - clean modernist lines and a pale Istrian stone facade - was designed by Angiolo Mazzoni starting in 1924 and finished in 1952, replacing the original 1861 station; both took their name from a Palladian-era Church of Santa Lucia demolished in 1861 to make room for the tracks.
Milan station
Arrives at Milano Centrale, a 24-platform terminus that opened in 1931 to replace an 1864 station overwhelmed by traffic after the Simplon Tunnel opened in 1906 - today it handles around 500 trains and an estimated 120 million passengers a year.
Train vs. other options
ITA Airways still runs scheduled flights between Venice and Milan Linate, just 7km from central Milan, but one-way fares have started around EUR 117 - many times a cheap advance train ticket - while Marco Polo airport requires a similar Alilaguna-boat-or-bus transfer from central Venice as the walk to the train station takes. Even after landing, driving or taxiing into central Milan means passing through the Area C congestion-charge zone (about EUR 7.50-9 per entry) - something the train sidesteps entirely by dropping you at Milano Centrale.
Booking tips
- Book Frecciarossa Super Economy or Italo Low fares as early as possible - the cheapest allotments are released around 4 months ahead and can go under EUR 15.
- If you're departing from central Venice, remember any taxi, rental car or airport bus can only drop you at Piazzale Roma - budget a few extra minutes to walk or vaporetto the last stretch to Santa Lucia.
- Compare Italo against Trenitalia for the same departure window - Italo is sometimes EUR 5-10 cheaper on the same day.
Good to know: Santa Lucia sits in Venice's pedestrian-only historic core, so any taxi, rental car or bus can only get you as far as Piazzale Roma - from there it's about a 400m, 5-minute walk across the Calatrava-designed Ponte della Costituzione footbridge to the station, or a short vaporetto hop, neither of which a car can shortcut.
While you're in Milan
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Milan Cathedral, the Gothic marble Duomo at the heart of the city, begun in 1386.
Photo: NahidSultan / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)Fashion capital, Gothic cathedral, and the arrival point for EuroCity trains through the Gotthard tunnel: Milan rewards a short stopover if you book the Last Supper and the Duomo's rooftop terraces before you leave home.
Full Milan travel guide →Frequently asked questions
How long does the train from Venice to Milan take?
The fastest direct Frecciarossa and Italo trains take about 2 hours 27 minutes. Services that stop at Brescia, Verona, Vicenza and/or Padova can take up to around 3 hours.
How much does the Venice to Milan train cost?
Advance Super Economy (Trenitalia) or Low (Italo) fares start from around EUR 14.90 in standard class, rising as the cheapest seat allotments sell out.
How do I get to Venezia Santa Lucia station to catch the train?
On foot, by vaporetto, or via the Calatrava footbridge from Piazzale Roma - Santa Lucia has no road access, so a taxi or rental car can only drop you at Piazzale Roma, about 400m away.