Rome/Madrid, 17 February 2025
Iryo, Trenitalia (FS Group) subsidiary operating in the high-speed sector in Spain, and ITA Airways, the main Italian airline, have signed an agreement to offer integrated 'train + plane' travel between Spain and Italy.
Thanks to this partnership, passengers will have access to a new series of combined trips, with a single booking: ITA Airways customers may easily reach destinations such as Cordoba, Valencia, Alicante, Seville and Malaga, currently not covered directly by ITA Airways flights, with Frecciarossa trains, while iryo passengers can reach over 20 airports in Italy, including Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence and Naples.
‘For the FS Group, Europe is not just a market: it represents a fundamental strategic opportunity to look at an increasingly integrated, intermodal and sustainable future mobility. Our vision is to promote seamless mobility between different European Countries, with trains connecting major cities and metros. In this scenario, intermodality becomes the beating heart of a European transport system that can reduce Co2 emissions and improve people's quality of life. For this reason, the 2025-2029 Strategic Plan aims to enhance international business, for which a 40% increase in passenger volume is estimated. The means to achieve the targets we have set is FS International, a company encompassing all segments not directly related to Italy, which already comprises 12K employees and a EUR 3 billion turnover’ said Stefano Antonio Donnarumma, CEO and General Manager of the FS Group.
‘This new agreement with iryo, a company of the FS Group, represents an important extension of the offer for the Spanish market and reinforces ITA Airways' commitment to intermodal travel, highlighting the values and ambitions that drive our strategy: sustainability, innovation and customer focus. Our goal is to enhance connectivity between Spain and Italy, providing connections from the Rome Fiumicino hub, via Madrid and Barcelona, to seven destinations in Spain. We are happy to cooperate with an innovative operator like iryo, and with a historical partner like Ferrovie dello Stato’ stated Joerg Eberhart, Managing Director and General Manager of ITA Airways.
With the combined ticket, passengers of ITA Airways and iryo will benefit from the offers and services of both companies. ITA Airways Customer Information Assistance and iryo staff, where present at the stations, will be ready to assist them in case of need. From the Madrid and Barcelona airports, it will be possible to reach many Spanish destinations by high-speed train. The local rail connection is already included in the booking, so no additional transfer fee is required.
‘Train+plane’ tickets can be purchased directly on the ITA Airways website ita-airways.com, at authorised travel agencies, ITA Airways ticket offices and the company's Customer Information Assistance Office.
Before boarding iryo trains, ITA Airways customers can request their tickets to be emailed to them at the time of booking, or they can obtain their iryo tickets directly by visiting www.iryo.eu.
iryo is the railway operator Intermodalidad de Levante S.A. (ILSA) trademark. It is the first private Spanish high-speed operator participated by Trenitalia, Air Nostrum and Globalvia. On 25 November 2022, the first Frecciarossa train departed between Madrid and Barcelona, and then new destinations were added, including Valencia, Cuenca, Seville, Malaga, Cordoba, Alicante and Albacete. Since its launch, iryo has transported over 13 million passengers.
In the current winter season, ITA Airways will fly to 55 destinations, with 15 intercontinental, 24 international and 16 domestic flights. In the Spanish market, ITA Airways currently offers 42 weekly frequencies (84 flights) between Spain and Italy, with direct connections from Madrid (21 frequencies) and Barcelona (21 frequencies) to the Rome Fiumicino airport. From here, passengers can enjoy convenient connections to the airline's international and intercontinental destinations, including routes to South America, such as São Paulo, Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro, which are already part of the airline's network.