Milan is the fashion and financial capital of Italy, but the city is also home to some surprising Roman ruins, including the Colonne di San Lorenzo (Columns of San Lorenzo. This row of 16 towering marble columns, part of a 2nd-century bath or temple complex, is among the top attractions in the Ticinese neighborhood today.
One of Milan’s jewels of contemporary urban design, the futuristic Piazza Gae Aulenti was inaugurated in 2012 and is named after the Italian architect who designed Paris’ Musee d’Orsay. The square is lined by three steel-and-glass towers—one of which, Torre Unicredit, is Italy's tallest building—and is known for its vibrant nightlife.
Milan is Italy’s capital of fashion, and the wide boulevard of Corso Buenos Aires is one of the city’s main shopping thoroughfares. Said to have Europe’s densest collection of clothing stores, this bustling street offers an endless array of ready-to-wear brands to browse, elbow to elbow with Milanese fashionistas.
Via Monte Napoleone (sometimes written as Montenapoleone) is the most luxurious shopping street in the Italian fashion capital of Milan. It is lined with designer boutiques including Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Valentino, and Prada as well as many jewelry shops. The decadent drag is located in the heart of Milan’s Fashion Quarter and is known as the most expensive street in Europe.
Built in 1866, Milan’s Monumental Cemetery (Cimitero Monumentale) is the 2nd-largest cemetery in the city and the final resting place of wealthy folks and families including the Brunis, Bernocchis, and Camparis. The vast cemetery is an open-air museum featuring Italian sculptures, elaborate obelisks, and massive tombs commemorating the dead.
Milan’s historic Ambrosiana Museum and Library (Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana) was founded in 1618 by Cardinal Federico Borromeo. The cardinal donated more than 30,000 books, 15,000 manuscripts, and 12,000 pieces of artwork by famous artists such as Caravaggio, Raphael, Botticelli, and Leonardo da Vinci.
The Church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro in Milan is a unique “two in one”, with the 9th-century church of San Satiro incorporated into the later 15th-century church of Santa Maria, both in design and in name.The Renaissance trompe l'oeil apse attributed to Donato Bramante makes it a must-see.
Soaring over the Bernina Pass and climbing to a dizzying 7,392 feet (2,253 meters) above sea level, the famous Bernina Express is one of Europe’s most beautiful railway routes. Running for 75 miles (122 kilometers) from Chur in Switzerland to Tirano in Italy, it’s the only railway that connects the North and South Alps, and offers dramatic mountain views.
The largest outlet shopping center in Europe, the Serravalle Designer Outlet outside Milan has more than 200 designer shops. Many stores offer discounts of 30 to 70 percent off retail prices all year round on brands like Furla, Armani, Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, Salvatore Ferragamo, and many more.
The Como-Brunate Funicular offers an easy escape from Como’s lakeside crowds. Shuttling you high to Brunate in mere minutes, the funicular doesn’t lend itself to views on the ride up. However, some of the best—and lesser-seen—Lake Como views await at the top. Let your gaze sweep over the mountain-framed lake from traditional restaurants, stroll cobbled streets to the Voltiano Lighthouse, or use Brunate as a starting point for hikes around the Larian Triangle Ridge.
10 Corso Como is one of Milan's trendiest addresses. Home to the Galleria Carla Sozzani art gallery, it also houses an ultra popular café, a fashion boutique, a roof garden, a restaurant, and a tiny hotel. If you want to see and be seen in Italy’s capital of chic, there is no better place.
La Triennale Museum (La Triennale di Milano) explores the history of Italian design, highlighting innovative works in furniture and industrial design, architecture, and decorative arts. Fittingly located in Milan (Italy’s design capital), the museum lies within the Palazzo dell’Arte—a venue originally built for the Triennale decorative arts show.
The Porta Nuova neighborhood in Milan was named after its elegant Neoclassical city gate built in 1810 by Giuseppe Zanoia. Known as the “new gate”, Porta Nuova is quite recent in comparison to the city’s ancient Roman gates, and is an architectural highlight of this business district, along with a number of award-winning skyscrapers.
A chapel made from some truly unusual materials, San Bernardino alle Ossa is decorated by more than 3,000 human bones, arranged in Rococò-style patterns on the walls, cornice, pillars, and doors. Also of note are a series of 16th-century paintings, a ceiling fresco, and baroque-style decorations lining the walls.
Step back into Naples’ layered history at the Basilica di San Lorenzo Maggiore, a gem of a basilica and monastery with a museum sitting above extraordinary Roman ruins. The basilica has one of Naples’ finest Gothic interiors and lies above the remains of a macellum—an ancient market that feels very much like an underground Pompeii.
Once a working-class enclave, the Ticinese neighborhood today is one of the trendiest areas in Milan, known for its hip cafés, restaurants, and boutiques. By day, this urban hot spot is flooded with shoppers browsing the stores on Corso di Porta Ticinese and Via Torino. By night, locals gather here for an evening on the town.
Vicolo dei Lavandai, a narrow lane that was the public wash house from the Middle Ages until the 1950s, is a most charming corner in Milan’s trendy Navigli District. Where previously washerwomen scrubbed laundry from the stone stalls and brellins (wooden stools) along the central canal, hip restaurants and cafes beckon.
Milan's Museo del Novecento houses an excellent collection of 20th-century art and is one of the top museums in the city. Visit the galleries in Piazza del Duomo to see masterpieces by modern and contemporary artists including Modigliani, Picasso, Kandinsky, Mondrian, and Matisse, as well as special exhibits and concerts.
Lining one side of Milan’s stately Piazza del Duomo, the Palazzo Real (Royal Palace is one of the most spectacular vestiges of the city’s royal history and a highlight of the main square. Today, the building is home to the Palace Museum and the Great Museum of the Duomo of Milan, as well as revolving art exhibitions.
A walk through Milan’s Fashion Quarter is a great way to see the city’s highest high fashion. Along with Via Montenapoleone and Via della Spiga, Via Manzoni (officially Via Alessandro Manzoni) is one of the best drags for window-shopping the latest and greatest haute couture. Though unlike the other two streets, Via Manzoni permits vehicles and leads to the famous Teatro alla Scala.
The Leonardo da Vinci National Museum of Science and Technology is the largest of its kind in Italy and a must-see for science lovers of all ages. The museum holds more than 20,000 objects displayed in themed sections—one dedicated to the Renaissance genius, plus others covering areas such as transportation, energy, and communication. Admire models of da Vinci’s inventions, conduct your own experiments in interactive workshops, and check out a historical aircraft and steam train.
One of Milan’s highest and most unique scenic overlooks, the Torre Branca is a 300-foot-high (91-meter-high) steel tower designed by Gio Ponti in 1933 and set in the city’s Sempione Park. Take the elevator that whisks visitors to the observation deck at the top, and enjoy a bird’s-eye view over the city to the Alpine peaks on the horizon.
Note: The museum is temporarily closed to the public. After visiting Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper in Santa Maria delle Grazie, discover another side of the artist at the pretty vineyard he was granted by patron Ludovico Sforza, located just across the street. Reopened in 2015, this small plot was where Leonardo would relax while working on his iconic fresco.
The northern Italian lakes are popular destinations, beloved for their placid waters and mountain scenery. Among these, however, sleepy Lake Orta (Lago di Orta) is one of the least well known. Overshadowed by its famous neighbor, Lake Maggiore, and slightly farther from Milan, Lake Orta attracts visitors who want to get away from it all.
A short walk from the Duomo, Piazza Fontana is one of the prettiest squares in Milan’s center, a quiet respite from the hubbub of nearby Piazza della Scala and Piazza del Duomo. The piazza is named for its 18th-century neoclassical central fountain, designed by Giuseppe Piermarini and is encircled by trees and benches.
This award-winning skyscraper is one of the most important examples of contemporary architecture in Italy, and a highlight of the Porta Nuova neighborhood in Milan. Completed in 2010, the building was the tallest in Italy at the time and the winner of the 2012 International Architecture Award for the best new global design.
The Leonardo3 Museum is an interactive exhibition dedicated to Italy's greatest luminary: Leonardo da Vinci. The exhibit, known as The World of Leonardo, includes more than 200 interactive machines and working models based on Leonardo's designs and a digitized version of the entireCodex Atlanticus, containing the inventor’s notes and sketches.
Hop on the historic funicular from the city of Como and climb 2,362 feet (720 meters to the hilltop town of Brunate to take in the spectacular panorama over Lake Como as far as the Swiss Alps. If that isn’t enough of a bird’s-eye view, you can continue up the trail to the 1920s lighthouse for an even higher scenic perch.
Milan is known for its sophisticated style and unforgiving pace, but that doesn’t mean you can’t slow down and unwind in Italy’s fashion capital. If you need a break, QC Termemilano is an indulgent spa in the heart of the city with thermal baths, steam baths, relaxation rooms, massages, treatments, and more.
The ultimate destination for footie fans, Casa Milan is the striking new headquarters of the city’s leading football (aka soccer) club, A.C. Milan, and is located just 10 minutes from San Siro Stadium where games are held. Known for its futuristic façade embossed with the team’s colors, the building houses an A.C. Milan museum and shop.
