The train is a delightful way to travel on Sicily, although large swaths of the island are not served. The main line runs east from Palermo to Messina and then south to Syracuse via Catania. Trains on these routes are fast and comfortable. A web of secondary lines with much slower trains and more limited service covers some other parts of the island.

Some night trains and daytime fast trains serving the lines to Palermo and Syracuse use the train ferry at Messina to link up to the rail network on the mainland. You can ride as far afield as Naples, Rome, Florence, and Milan without changing trains.