Leslie

I will be traveling to Italy at the end of April-Milan and I need sugguestions on places that I should go to in and around Milan. I will be there for 5 days and I would love to go further out but I'm just not sure what is the best way to get around. Also how far is Milan from Venice and the ocean in hours? I desperatlely want to see the coastline.

francesca

From Milan, you can take day trips to Parma and Bergamo, both lovely cities. Venice is a few hours by train (2 or 3?) and easy to get to. But I'd go for at least 2 days, it's a bit long a trip for a day trip.

francesca

From Milan, you can take day trips to Parma and Bergamo, both lovely cities. Venice is a few hours by train (2 or 3?) and easy to get to. But I'd go for at least 2 days, it's a bit long a trip for a day trip.

John

Within Milan there is the Duomo, the Galleria, and the Last Supper by Da Vinci to see. Check on this forum. I recall someone saying the Last Supper is going to be shut down for whatever reason for some time. I don't recall the dates.

anne

It's really easy to get around by train. A close stop is Como, 1/2 hour north of town, on Lake Como. It is a gorgeous area of the country. From Como you can take ferries or faster boats to the tiny and picturesque towns around the lake.
Florence is 3 hours from town, and worth an overnight (that's an understatement!), but could work as a full day trip. Venice is closer to 2 hours than 3 - also doable as a day trip. Genoa is only 1 1/2 hours away, and would get you to the coast...opposite side of Venice. But from Genoa you can easily see gorgeous little port towns such as Portofino.
Have fun!

elvira

The Last Supper is closed from March 1 thru May 27, but is open Easter week March 30 - April 4. Looks like you'll miss it. There is a Da Vinci Museum housed in the Naval Museum building which has his drawings, and models that have been created from the drawings. The explanations are all in Italian, so buy a guide (there's a museum shop).
If there's something going on at LaScala, try to get tickets. They have a website and you can order tickets online.
The Navagli district in the southern part of the city is a series of canals and locks, designed by DaVinci. It's turning into an artists' colony.
Sforza Castle is pretty neat, with a free museum of furniture, tapestries, etc.
There's the Brea Gallery with lots of modern art - never got to it, so I can't tell you how good it is.
Via Montanapoleone is the big shopping street, with all the designers. If you've shopped at Neiman-Marcus, 5th Ave in New York or Rodeo Drive, you've seen it all.
Be prepared: Milan is dirty and absolutely covered in graffiti. Almost every building is spray painted. Yuck.
The Lake Como region can be reached via train by going to Varenna and then taking a boat to one of the towns on the lake, like Bellagio (which has a beautiful church built in 1000AD, a great waterfront and a villa with gorgeous gardens). The lake is pretty calm so the ride is really gorgeous (you're right at the base of the "Little Alps"). You can also go to Como via train, and catch a boat there, too. The trainride to Varenna is very pretty as it goes along the lake edge.