Dusseldorf to Milan

What date? I see a single connection in Frankfurt in 9 1/2 hours on August 14 for 64.90 EUR, about $72 at current exchange rates. What are you seeing?

And why not fly? Takes only 5 hours when you factor in travel time to/from airports.

Hi,
I assume you have a good reason to take the train for that trip - be it the environment, fear of flying, or whatever. If not, then fly Düsseldorf-Milan and save half a day.
With that assumption,
- Why do you need first class? Second class is perfectly appropriate, and first class tends to come at a steep premium in Germany and Switzerland.
- Best route with only 1 change of train is a choice of Düsseldorf-Basel-(Bern)-Milan, D.dorf-(Basel)-Zürich-Milan and D.Dorf-Mannheim or Frankfurt-(Basel)-Milan, brackets denote places the train goes through.
- A scenic choice from Düsseldorf to Switzerland is train number EC9, it follows the Rhine river gorge between Koblenz and Mainz. It only takes a little bit longer than the fast ICE, it should also be a little bit cheaper. It goes all the way to Zürich, where you can change for a train to Milan.

For booking the whole route in one purchase
- Raileurope and trainline will work but might not let you pick every connection.
- SBB (Swiss railways) will work too but I find it fiddly and it does not have access to all the cheap fares

You should also look at separate tickets if you want to save money:
- With trainline as above
- WIth DB (German railways) from Düsseldorf to Zürich or Basel
- With Trenitalia from Zürich to Milan. To use Trenitalia, Zürich is Zurigo and Milan is Milano in Italian

It sounds complicated, I know, and to be honest, it is, a little. This is after all a long journey across three countries.

Thank you Sam and Balso!

We need the train ride because it is our first time to travel through Europe. And the child needs a comfortable bed which is the reason why I'm asking for 1st class :-) I will read your replies again and will try to comprehend everything. Thank you both!

Erma

That was a 2nd class ticket price I quoted. 2nd class will be fine if you buy a ticket for the child. Normally a child that age is free, but the assumption is you will hold the baby without talking up another seat. First class is 84.90 EUR, about $95.

Those are Supersparpreis tickets, completely nonrefundable.

Thank you, Sam!

Look for tickets at www.bahn.com. They run the trains, so that will be the best price.

I appreciate your help, Sam. Thanks again!