The rail service in Italy is good, the trains are generally on time, clean and the tickets are not expensive, you can always use Credit Cards for payment.
From wherever you are making your journey within Italy the Italian State Railways have an excellent web site that allows you to search timetables (versions in English and German)
When travelling to large cities such as Rome for two or three nights I highly recommend you use the train, First class is not that much more and is extremely comfortable.

For motorail
A good site for motorail service in Europe is
www.railchoice.co.uk
For the Italian State Railway, including international trains to and from Italy.
www.trenitalia.it

For an excellent website that provides information about travelling to Italy by train visit Seat61, this website provides information about fares and timetables based on travel from the UK

Trainseurope
Trainseurope have over 10 years experience in booking European rail tickets for individuals as well as tour operator groups, and they will be happy to discuss any requirements you may have. In addition to arranging tickets from the UK to most destinations in Europe, we can also arrange tickets for travel between many European cities, making twin-centre city breaks a real possibility. Using the trains is also an excellent way of taking a day trip to visit many historical towns and cities.
The rail network in Italy is quite extensive and travelling between cities and towns by rail is really the best way to go. Once on board you can sit back and relax and take in the ever changing view from the window. Forget the hassle of driving…take the train and enjoy the journey.
For all point to point tickets as well as Eurostar connections, contact them and an experienced consultant will be happy to help you.

Click here for car trains from the Netherlands.