La Dolce Vita Orient Express: Rome · Venice · Portofino · Florence · Sicily · Istanbul
Thirty-one cabins on journeys from Rome across Italy
Orient Express · Sleeper
La Dolce Vita Orient Express is the sleeper train for travelling within Italy: every journey starts or ends in Rome, and the calendar runs from a one-day trip to Venice to The Grand Tour, four nights through Venice, Matera, Taormina and Palermo. The train belongs to the Orient Express brand, which is part of Accor, and the transport contract is with Arsenale Express S.p.A. of Rome. It has no connection with Belmond's Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, and the two names are easy to confuse.
There are 31 cabins on eleven carriages: seven sleeping carriages, two for the staff, the Restaurant Car and the Bar Car. Twelve are Deluxe Cabins of 7 m², where a sofa unfolds into a 140 by 190 cm double at night, and eighteen are Suite Cabins of 11 m², with a 140 by 190 cm bed, a sofa and a table with two armchairs. Every cabin has a private bathroom with shower. The single La Dolce Vita Suite is sold on request. The interiors are by Dimorestudio, Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran, inspired by Gio Ponti, Nanda Vigo, Gae Aulenti and Osvaldo Borsani.
Menus are by Heinz Beck, the three-Michelin-starred chef, served table d'hôte in the 40-seat Restaurant Car with selected wines and spirits in the fare. The Bar Car is a lounge by day, with a piano and a singer at night. Before departures from Rome, guests wait in the Orient Express Lounge at Ostiense station, which has showers and an Italian café. The fare also covers the transfer to the departure station, water, soft drinks, tea and coffee, the entertainment and taxes; premium wines and spirits, some à la carte dishes, the experiences off the train, gratuities and insurance are extra.
Orient Express's conditions of sale allow booking through a travel agency, and that is how we book La Dolce Vita: the cabin, what your fare includes and the deposit and cancellation terms are confirmed in writing before you pay.
- Cabin-selection guidance before the best categories sell through
- Every benefit confirmed in writing before you commit
- Hotels joined either side of the journey, as one trip
The route
Drawn to show the order of the stations, not the exact track.
The journeys
Rome to Venice
1 night
Rome to Venice by way of Bolgheri, with departures in December 2026 and in March and November 2027.
Venice to Rome via Florence
1 night
The southbound city pair, leaving Venice in the evening, and the journey that runs most often: thirteen dates between December 2026 and November 2027.
Rome, Portofino and Venice
1 night
Rome to Portofino and on to Venice, from May to October 2027. Its two-night version, Rome, Portofino, Venice and Tuscany, adds Tuscany and returns to Rome.
The Italian Wine Route
2 nights
Rome to Bolgheri and Verona and back to Rome, with departures spread from December 2026 to November 2027.
The Truffle Route
2 nights
Rome to Alba and back, for Piedmont's truffles and wine. November departures only.
Siena & The Palio
2 nights
Rome to Siena and back, on a single departure, 1 July 2027.
From Rome to Sicily via Maratea
2 nights
Rome south to Sicily by way of Maratea, May to October 2027. The reverse, From Sicily to Rome, runs April to October 2027, and a Naples routing runs in November 2026 and April 2027.
Italian Swing
3 nights
Rome to Apulia, Siena and Tuscany and back to Rome, in April and September 2027.
The Grand Tour
4 nights
Rome, Venice, Matera, Taormina and Palermo and back to Rome, the longest journey on the calendar that stays in Italy. May, June and September 2027.
From Istanbul to Rome, and From Rome to Istanbul
4 nights
Istanbul to Rome via Plovdiv, Sofia, Timișoara, Vienna and Venice, in October 2026 and October 2027; Rome to Istanbul via Venice, Budapest and Transylvania, in October 2027.
Gourmet Escape to Venice
Day journey
Rome to Venice in a single day of about nine hours, which Orient Express bills as a three-Michelin-starred culinary journey. June and September 2027.
On board: the cabins
Deluxe Cabin
7 m²
Twelve of them. A sofa by day that unfolds into a 140 by 190 cm double at night, and a private bathroom with shower. Two guests at most.
Suite Cabin
11 m²
Eighteen, the largest share of the train: a 140 by 190 cm bed, a sofa and a table with two armchairs, and a private bathroom with shower. One is adapted for guests with reduced mobility.
La Dolce Vita Suite
One only, sold on request: it is not in the online inventory for any departure. Orient Express describes a living area, a bedroom with its own bathroom and bathtub, a main bathroom with double sinks in travertine and Portoro marble, a walk-in wardrobe, a Journey Curator and a personal Suite Conductor, private transfers, and Heinz Beck's menu served in the suite.
The carriages
Restaurant Car
Forty seats and menus by Heinz Beck, served table d'hôte with selected wines included. Dress for dinner is smart to elegant.
Bar Car
A lounge during the day; at night, a piano and a singer.
Orient Express Lounge, Rome Ostiense
Where guests wait before boarding in Rome, with showers and an Italian café.
The Dimorestudio interiors
Designed by Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran of Dimorestudio, with Gio Ponti, Nanda Vigo, Gae Aulenti and Osvaldo Borsani as the references.
Booking this train
Choose by what you want from Italy. Rome to Venice and Venice to Rome via Florence are the one-night city pairs; The Italian Wine Route, The Truffle Route and Siena & The Palio are two-night round trips from Rome built around wine, truffles and Siena; Sicily, Italian Swing and The Grand Tour go further south, the last over four nights. Several journeys run on one or two dates only, among them The Carnival Party in February, Jingle Route before Christmas and Whispers at Midnight, leaving on 30 December, so your dates can make the choice for you. Each guest takes one carry-on into the cabin, so pack for the train separately, and we book the hotel nights either side into the same trip. Orient Express asks for a 15% deposit when you book more than 60 days ahead and the full amount 60 days before departure; inside 60 days the whole fare is due at booking. Cancelling costs 15% up to 61 days before departure, 50% from 60 to 31 days and 100% inside 30 days.
Questions, answered
Is La Dolce Vita the same train as the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express?
No. They are different trains run by different companies: La Dolce Vita belongs to Orient Express, which is Accor's brand, and the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is Belmond's. Choose La Dolce Vita for journeys within Italy, from Rome to Venice, Portofino, the wine country and Sicily, and the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express for the overnight crossing of the Alps between Paris and Venice in carriages built between 1926 and 1949.
Which cabin should I book?
The Suite Cabin, at 11 m², has room for a sofa and a table with two armchairs as well as the bed; the Deluxe Cabin, at 7 m², has a sofa that becomes the double bed at night. Both have a private bathroom with shower and take two guests at most, and no cabins interconnect. One Suite Cabin is adapted for reduced mobility. The single La Dolce Vita Suite is sold on request rather than online.
What does the fare include?
Orient Express includes the cabin, table d'hôte meals, selected wines and spirits, water, soft drinks, tea and coffee, the entertainment on board, taxes and the transfer to the departure station. Premium wines and spirits, some à la carte dishes, the experiences off the train, other transfers, gratuities and insurance are not included.
When does La Dolce Vita run?
In every month from late October 2026 to December 2027, January 2027 included. Most journeys run on a few dated departures rather than a weekly timetable: Venice to Rome via Florence has the most, thirteen between December 2026 and November 2027, while Siena & The Palio has one.
Can we take the whole train?
Yes, on request. Orient Express sets separate terms for a charter of the full train or for a party of eight cabins or more, and a charter can add a restaurant car or sleeping carriages.
Enquire
Hold a cabin on the La Dolce Vita Orient Express
Tell us your dates and we will confirm live availability, hold the strongest cabin category, and plan the hotels at either end around the journey.
Start PlanningOther trains we book
Across Europe
Great Britain
Asia
Southern Africa
Canada
Peru & the Andes
Australia