Transport
Tyrrhenian Salerno–Reggio line with Frecce and Intercity trains (Lamezia, Paola, Reggio), slow and partly single-track Ionian line. Ferrovie della Calabria for the Sila and buses. Airports of Lamezia Terme (main), Reggio and Crotone. Villa San Giovanni–Messina ferries. Toll-free A2 Mediterranean motorway, SS106 Jonica being upgraded. A car is indispensable.
Sections: Arrival · Airports · Trains · Buses · Car & licence · Cycling · Accessibility
Rail
The Tyrrhenian railway from Salerno to Reggio Calabria carries Frecciarossa, Frecciargento and Intercity trains to Paola, Lamezia Terme Centrale, Vibo-Pizzo, Rosarno, Villa San Giovanni and Reggio (about 4–5 hours from Rome); Cosenza is linked to Paola by a branch and to Sibari. The Ionian line from Reggio to Catanzaro Lido, Crotone, Sibari and Taranto is slow, single-track and partly non-electrified; RFI is electrifying and speeding up the Sibari–Catanzaro Lido section. Intercity trains to Sicily cross the Strait on train ferries. Ferrovie della Calabria run the narrow-gauge Cosenza–Catanzaro Lido line (open in sections), the tourist Treno della Sila and a bus network across the region.
Airports and the Strait
SACAL runs the three airports: Lamezia Terme, the main one, with domestic and European flights and bus and train links (Lamezia Centrale station a few kilometres away); Reggio Calabria Tito Minniti, for Rome, Milan and some seasonal routes, also used from Messina; Crotone Sant'Anna, with few routes. From Villa San Giovanni, Caronte & Tourist and Bluferries (FS Group) ferries cross the Strait to Messina in about twenty minutes with continuous departures; from Reggio, Blu Jet hydrofoils run to Messina and, in summer, Liberty Lines services to the Aeolian Islands. The port of Gioia Tauro is freight only.
Roads
The toll-free A2 Mediterranean motorway (former Salerno–Reggio Calabria), completed in 2016 after decades of works, is the Tyrrhenian backbone; the SS106 Jonica, running along the whole east coast, is single-lane each way over long stretches, has a high accident rate and is being upgraded by ANAS in stages; the SS280 links Lamezia to Catanzaro, the SS107 Paola–Cosenza–Crotone crosses the Sila. In inland villages public transport is limited to a few bus runs: without a car you cannot live there. Reggio and Catanzaro have urban bus networks; Cosenza an unfinished tram-train line.
Sources
Updated: 2026-10-14
Updated: 2026-10-14
Updated: 2026-10-14
Updated: 2026-10-14
Updated: 2026-10-14
Reviewed: 10/23/2026 · by piero.avolio · rev. 1 · Period: → 2027-04-30
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