La Dolce Vita Orient Express: The Carnival Party

It is a two-day, one-night journey from Rome to Venice built around Carnevale. The first day runs up through Tuscany with an afternoon in Bolgheri, and the night on board becomes a masquerade evening, before the train delivers you to Venice, the city where Carnival tradition is at its strongest.

It starts at Rome Ostiense, where the train has its own private lounge and a transfer brings you in from your hotel or the airport, and it finishes in Venice. Because it is a one-way itinerary, plan your travel home from Venice rather than from Rome.

Departure is in the late morning, so you settle into your cabin and then go straight to the Restaurant Car for lunch as the city gives way to countryside. That timing means you see the whole run north through Tuscany in daylight rather than passing it overnight.

After dinner the train becomes a stage for a Carnival masquerade, with guests invited to wear masks and dress for the occasion as the Bar Car fills with music. It is the heart of this particular itinerary and the reason many guests choose the February departure over any other date.

Guests are invited to join the masquerade, so bringing a mask and something festive to wear adds a great deal to the evening. Cabin storage is limited, so keep the outfit compact. Venice itself is full of mask makers if you would rather buy yours once you arrive.

Bolgheri is a small Tuscan village reached along a famous cypress-lined avenue, with narrow streets, a quiet pace and celebrated vineyard country all around it. You can wander the village at leisure in the afternoon or take one of the curated experiences built around Tuscan heritage and local traditions.

Deluxe Cabin and Cabin Suite are both offered. The train carries 12 Deluxe cabins, 18 suites and one La Dolce Vita Suite in total, all en-suite with a dedicated steward, so there are very few of each category on a single departure. Current fares are shown on this page.

Fares start from around EUR 4,440 per person based on two people sharing a cabin, and vary by category. As this is a one-date-a-year itinerary, the exact fare and remaining categories for the departure are shown on this page, which is the figure to work from.

The departure currently on sale leaves Rome on 8 February 2027, timed to the Venice Carnival season. It is a single annual date on a train with fewer than thirty cabins, so it is one of the first itineraries in the collection to sell out each year.

Included are your cabin for the night, all meals on board with menus curated by three-Michelin-starred chef Heinz Beck, selected beverages including drinks served with meals, the off-train experiences described in the itinerary, the live entertainment in the Bar Car and a dedicated cabin steward throughout.

Travel to Rome and home from Venice is not included, nor are personal expenses, gratuities, travel insurance or anything not expressly listed in the itinerary. Hotel nights in either city are quoted separately, and we are happy to arrange them together with transfers.

Lunch and dinner are both served in the Restaurant Car on day one, with menus curated by a three-Michelin-starred chef and built on seasonal Italian ingredients, and breakfast follows the next morning in your cabin or the Restaurant Car. Selected beverages are included with meals.

Usually yes, but the galley is small and menus are planned ahead for each departure, so tell us about allergies, intolerances or preferences when you book rather than on the day. We will pass everything on so the kitchen can prepare for you in advance.

Sole occupancy is offered on request with a supplement, since the headline fare assumes two guests sharing. Single-use cabins are limited on a train this small and especially so on the Carnival date, so ask as early as possible and we will confirm the rate.

A deposit of 30 percent of the tour price confirms your cabin and is non-refundable. The balance is due 125 days before departure, and bookings made within 125 days of departure are payable in full at the time of booking. Your written confirmation shows the exact amounts and the dates they fall due.

Yes, two reduced bands apply, under 5 and 5 to 12, with age taken at the departure date. The masquerade evening and the dining are very much adult in character and the cabins are compact, so it suits older children best. Please talk to us before booking a family cabin.

The train arrives in Venice on the second day, so the city is the destination rather than a stop, and you are free to stay on for Carnival once you disembark. Most guests book several nights in Venice afterwards, which we can arrange along with the transfer from the station.

Very busy and very theatrical: masked costumes in the streets, events in the squares and long queues at the main sights, with cold, often damp February weather. It rewards warm clothing, waterproof shoes and a willingness to explore the quieter districts away from the crowds.

Yes. Since most routes in the collection start or end in Rome or Venice, this one-way journey pairs naturally with a return itinerary a few days later, and we offer the complete collection. Tell us your dates and we will put together the combination that works.

Email travel@palacetours.com, call 786-408-0610, or message us on WhatsApp at https://wa.me/17864080610, where a travel specialist or our AI assistant will help. The departure listed on this page is bookable directly, and we can add hotel nights in Rome or Venice at either end.