A vintage diesel locomotive pulling carriages from the 1930s and 1950s rolls through forests in the Majella National Park and the Abruzzo highlands, in central Italy, giving passengers a glimpse of hidden hamlets.
Over the course of just over 100km (62 miles), the so-called Italian Trans-Siberian Railway, also known as the Parks Railway, slips into gorges, snakes through 58 tunnels and traverses huge viaducts.
The route from Sulmona, 161km east of the Italian capital, Rome, to Isernia, 107km north of Naples, was the first of some 1,000km of line reopened in a project by Fondazione FS, part of Italy’s state-controlled national rail company Ferrovie dello Stato (FS).
The project, “Timeless Tracks”, takes tourists to forgotten parts of Italy, offering an alternative to the fast-paced mass tourism of its major cities.
“These are tracks that have lived through different eras; they have carried soldiers to the front, cows to pasture [ …] They were mistakenly considered unproductive during the 1960s and 70s but are now once again of value,” says Luigi Cantamessa, Fondazione FS’s general manager.
“What were considered to be the dry branches of Italy’s train network, have now proved to be the green shoots,” Cantamessa adds.
“People are used to places like Florence that everyone knows,” says Norma Pagiotti, a 28-year-old from Florence travelling on a train with two friends.
“But then there are other areas that need to be discovered. [This] is the right kind of tourism that does not spoil the authenticity of places,” she adds.
Caterina Quaranta, another train passenger, from Taranto in southern Italy, says: “The train reminds me of my youth. I feel a bit nostalgic for the things of the past, which were simpler. Now everything is fast, short-lived.”
The trips attract both Italians and foreign visitors, families with children, younger people who get off to hike and cycle, and older people “who have time to spare”, according to local guide Laura Colaprete.
Fondazione FS’s Cantamessa says: “It’s for those who don’t want mass market, cluttered destinations, [but for] conscious travellers looking for something special.
“These are not trips that serve you frozen pizza for lunch.”
After ascending almost 1,000 metres (3,300 feet), the Italian Trans-Siberian’s first stop is at Palena, a medieval hilltop town known for its breathtaking views.
As passengers disembark, musicians play traditional folk music, and vendors selling local delicacies such as lamb skewers and pizzelle – soft pancakes made in an iron mould – and artisanal products await.
“The train helps several small towns around here. This line was a dead line before,” says Gino Toppi, 60, as he helps his wife at the food stall in the small station.
Bocconi University, in Milan, recently estimated that for every €1 spent by passengers on tickets – which cost between €30 and €70 (US$32.50 and US$76) – up to a further three are spent on food, accommodation, tours and souvenirs.
That helps support the economies of villages whose populations have long been in decline because of falling birth rates and younger people leaving for bigger cities.
“There certainly are benefits. This is a way to show my products,” says Annalisa Cantelmi, a herbalist.
“These tourists are slowly discovering these new territories, their traditions and people,” she adds.
