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Köln / Cologne / Koeln to Milano / Milan / Mailand by train
How to take the rail journey from Cologne/Köln to Milan
Taking the train from Cologne/Köln to Milano is typically a fabulous experience, with only one easy transfer required between two of Europe's smartest trains.
When looking up this journey you will see other options which require additional conditions, but there is no need to make more than one transfer.
If you would rather travel 'overnight' you won't be taking a sleeper train as they are not a viable option on this route.
Instead the through the night option, mirrors this daytime journey of taking an ICE train to Basel and an EC train on to Milano
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Routes
From Köln/Cologne Hbf to Milano Centrale
Journey Summary
8hr 46min
Daily
Travel Information
There are no direct trains between Koln/Cologne and Milano and the only viable* end-to-end journey option sold by the ticket agents with just 1 x change of train, involves departing daily at 12:54 and transferring between trains at Basel SBB station (and NOT Basel Bad Bf station).
*You could gamble on departing from Koln/Cologne before 07:00 and making a connection of around 10 mins in either Frankfurt or Mannheim into the daily direct EC train from Germany to Italy.
But we don't recommend doing so as those tightly timed connections cannot be guaranteed.
This routing includes a 47 min connection in Basel, but if the ICE train does arrive late, if need be you can depart Basel at 18:04 and make a connection in Arth-Goldau on to a train on to Milano.
The alternative options
If you will be travelling from Koln/Cologne to Milano with a valid InterRail or Eurail pass, or won't mind booking separate ticket for the Germany to Switzerland and Switzerland to Italy journeys, there are many other options available.
For example when SMTJ made this journey with an InterRail pass the route followed was:
08:55 ICE train to Basel at
train to Zurich from Basel
(lunch near Zurich station)
15:33 EC train from Zurich to Milano; this route was chosen as it is a tad more scenic than the route from Basel to Milano.
1 x connection per day
Change trains in: Basel
Tickets
Online bookings usually open: 6 months ahead of the travel date
Book 1st class ticket journey tickets and your seat reservation is included on both the ICE train and the EC train
Book 2nd class tickets and your seat will be reserved on the EC train, but not on the ICE train, unless you opt to add the reservation.
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Trainline | * |
Train 1
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
Final Destination: Basel SBB
These ICE trains travel at up to 285 km/h on Germany's fastest high speed line between Siegburg/Bonn and Frankfurt Flughafen.
They also take another higher speed route later in the journey between Karlsruhe and Offenburg.
But aside from the thrills of travelling at high speed, this isn't a particularly scenic journey.
So if time is on your side, or if you will be travelling with a rail pass, an alternative option is to travel by the EC trains on the exceptionally scenic route through the Rhine Valley.
Train 2
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
Final Destination: Milano Cle.
All trains also call at: Domodossola (connect for Centovali trains) and Stresa (for Lake Maggiore)
The train will reverse direction on departure from Bern
If your reserved seat is on the left of the train (when facing the direction of travel) there are some fabulous views over the beautiful Thunersee
On departure from Thun station:
And then on departure from Speiz station:
Though not only was that video captured on a different, more sunny, day - it was taken when travelling in the opposite direction.
It's been included here to showcase, what you will see from the right on this part of the journey - when heading south!
After departing from Brig these trains travel through The Simplon Tunnel which was the world's longest regularly used railway tunnel for much of the 20th century.
When the trains exit the tunnel, they travel through an impressive gorge in the mountains before descending to Domodossola.
Then for much of the journey between there and Arona the railway line is beside Lake Maggiore; and again the views of the lake are on the left*.
As can be seen the view over the lake can be worth seeing even on a grey day.
The beautiful islands in the video are just to the north of Stresa station.
**The train will reverse direction on departure from Bern ** so when boarding Basel hope that your assigned seats are on the right hand side.
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