These direct international trains from Basel to northern Italy take two glorious routes across Switzerland.
The trains which travel via Brig and Domodossola are faster and more frequent, but the slower route via Luzern can be cheaper.
When travelling between most cities by train there is only one logical option, though on other journeys there is a choice between different trains or alternative routes. If different options are available you can use the info to decide which is best for you.
4hr 6 min
Daily
Monday to Friday: 3 x trains per day
Sat / Sun; 4 x trains per day
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for: Comparing different train services; Booking international journeys with connections; Travelling between the UK to destinations beyond Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris - and for international travellers who don't reside in western Europe.
Trenitlalia is the national rail operator in Italy and in addition to its cheaper types of ticket; it also typically offers other discounts available to non-Italians, which include:
Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.
The three key advantages of using Omio are
The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.
Final Destination: Milano Cle.
All trains also call at: Domodossola (connect for Centovali trains) and Stresa (for Lake Maggiore)
Some trains also call at: Gallarate, where connections are available into local trains which make multiple stops in a cross-city tunnel including at Repubblica and Porta Venezia.
These trains typically be depart at 06:28; 10:28; 12:28 and 17:28.
However, on the new timetable, the usual departure at 10:28 has had to be removed on the new timetable, due to a long-term construction project on the Italian section on the route, which has temporarily limited the capacity.
Astoro trains are used for most of the international EC services, which are continuing on to Milano, but the first departure of the day is usually a combination of an Astoro train and an ETR 600 train.
The railway between Arona and Stresa is closed completely from June 9th to September 8th, so during these dates the EC express train services will be turning around in Domodossola and won't be serving Milano.
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 these videos were taken from a train travelling in the opposite direction, but they showcase how fine the views can be on a sunny day...
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 railway is also by the lake shore to the south of Stresa.
The train will reverse direction on departure from Bern so when boarding Basel hope that your assigned seats are on the right hand side.
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings typically open: 4 months ahead of the travel date
Trains departing at different times can be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so you may need to look through the day's departures to find the cheapest fares.
Check that you're booking for the direct trains - using the journey time to guide you.
4hr 31min
Daily
2 x train per day
SBB is the main national rail operator in Switzerland, but tickets for journeys by the other significant operators including BLS and SOB can be be booked on the SBB website.
SBB also sells tickets for journeys to many destinations which involve a combination of SBB trains and services provided by the many independent operators who serve the Alpine resort towns.
However, if you will be making a long-distance return day trip, look out for he possibility of SaverDay passes being cheaper than tickets.
Though if you download the SBB app, booking tickets on SBB's mobile services can be simper than using the website.
Also watch out for the fact that booking international tickets can be comparatively quirky.
Trenitlalia is the national rail operator in Italy and in addition to its cheaper types of ticket; it also typically offers other discounts available to non-Italians, which include:
These trains have been temporarily suspended due to the repair work in the Gotthard Base Tunnel.
This train travels through the epic Gotthard Base Tunnel and now the Ceneri Base Tunnel but this still a journey with some wow moments, from either side of the train.
These scenic highlights are all south of Luzern where the train will reverse direction.
Between Luzern and Arth-Goldau station there are views over Lake Zug on the left.
The most scenic part of this journey by train from Basel to Bellinzona comes to the south of Luzern.
Though to the north of Luzern there are views on the left over the Sempachersee
The train will reverse direction on departure from Luzern.
Between Luzern and Arth Goldau from the left of these these trains) there are some fabulous views over Lake Zug.
The next beautiful vista to look out for comes after departure from Arth-Goldau station, when on the right, the train will pass by the Lauerzersee.
The train then travels through a dramatic landscape to the north of Schwyz.
Just to the south of here, also look out on the right for glimpses of the Luzernsee.
South of Lugano station the best views switch back to the right as the railway runs by the Lago di Lugano.
The final wow moment comes when the train crosses Lake Lugano; and as the video below shows, there will be fabulous views from both sides of the train.
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings typically open: 4 months ahead of the travel date
The other 4 x daily trains from Basel to Milano take a faster route via Bern and Brig, but these train which are usually scheduled to depart from Basel at 11:03 and 15:03 can be cheaper.
They also plus a six hour gap between departures of the trains of the alternative route.
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