Milan
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1. Duomo
DuomoThere is no denying that for sheer size and complexity, the Duomo is unrivaled in Italy. It is the second-largest church in the country—the largest...
There is no denying that for sheer size and complexity, the Duomo is unrivaled in Italy. It is the second-largest church in the country—the largest being St. Peter's in Rome—and the fourth largest in the world. This intricate Gothic structure has been fascinating and exasperating visitors and conquerors alike since it was begun by Gian Galeazzo Visconti III (1351–1402), first duke of Milan, in 1386. Consecrated in the 15th or 16th century, it was not completed until just before the coronation of Napoléon as king of Italy in 1809. The building is adorned with 135 marble spires and 2,245 marble statues. The oldest part is the apse. Its three colossal bays of curved and counter-curved tracery—especially the bay adorning the exterior of the stained-glass windows—should not be missed. At the end of the southern transept down the right aisle lies the tomb of Gian Giacomo Medici. The tomb owes some of its design to Michelangelo but was executed by Leone Leoni (1509–90) and is generally considered his masterpiece; it dates from the 1560s. Directly ahead is the Duomo's most famous sculpture, the gruesome but anatomically instructive figure of San Bartolomeo (St. Bartholomew), who was flayed alive. As you enter the apse to admire those splendid windows, glance at the sacristy doors to the right and left of the altar. The lunette on the right dates from 1393 and was decorated by Hans von Fernach. The one on the left also dates from the 14th century and is ascribed jointly to Giacomo da Campione and Giovannino de' Grassi.
Piazza del Duomo, Milan, Lombardy, 20122, Italy02-36169340Sight Details
Rate Includes: Cathedral €5; museum €5; cathedral, museum, and archaeological area €10; stairs to roof €15; elevator €20 -
2. Fondazione Prada
Porta RomanaNew structures of metal and glass and revamped buildings once part of a distillery from the 1910s now contain this museum's roughly 205,000 square feet....
New structures of metal and glass and revamped buildings once part of a distillery from the 1910s now contain this museum's roughly 205,000 square feet. The modern art showcased here is not for the faint of heart. Permanent pieces, such as Haunted House, featuring works by Louise Bourgeois and Robert Gober, are avant-garde and challenging, and temporary exhibitions highlight cutting-edge Italian and international artists. Don't hesitate to ask one of the helpful, knowledgeable staffers for guidance navigating the expansive grounds, which can be confusing. And don't miss the Wes Anderson–designed café, Bar Luce, for a drink or snack, or the restaurant Torre for an aperitivo or a full meal with panoramic views from on high. The Fondazione is a hike from the city center; expect a 10-minute walk from the metro station to the galleries.
Largo Isarco 2, Milan, Lombardy, 20139, Italy02-56662611Sight Details
Rate Includes: €15 for full visit admission, which includes a ticket to Milano Osservatorio, Closed Tues. -
3. Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
DuomoThis spectacular late-19th-century Belle Époque tunnel is essentially one of the planet's earliest and most select shopping malls, with upscale tenants that include Gucci and...
This spectacular late-19th-century Belle Époque tunnel is essentially one of the planet's earliest and most select shopping malls, with upscale tenants that include Gucci and Prada. This is the city's heart, midway between the Duomo and La Scala. It teems with life, which makes for great people-watching from the tables that spill out from bars and restaurants, where you can enjoy an overpriced coffee. Books, clothing, food, hats, and jewelry are all for sale. Known as Milan's "parlor," the Galleria is often viewed as a barometer of the city's well-being.
View Tours and ActivitiesPiazza del Duomo, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy -
4. Navigli District
NavigliIn medieval times, a network of navigli, or canals, crisscrossed the city. Almost all have been covered over, but two—Naviglio Grande and Naviglio Pavese—are still...
In medieval times, a network of navigli, or canals, crisscrossed the city. Almost all have been covered over, but two—Naviglio Grande and Naviglio Pavese—are still navigable. The area's chock-full of boutiques, art galleries, cafés, bars, and restaurants, and at night the Navigli serves up a scene about as close as you will get to southern Italian–style street life in Milan. On weekend nights, it is difficult to walk among the youthful crowds thronging the narrow streets along the canals. Check out the antiques fair on the last Sunday of the month from 9 to 6. During the summer months, be sure to put on some mosquito repellent.
View Tours and ActivitiesSouth of Corso Porta Ticinese, Milan, Lombardy, 20142, Italy -
5. Palazzo Reale
DuomoElaborately decorated with painted ceilings and grand staircases, this former royal palace close to the Duomo is almost worth a visit in itself; however, it...
Elaborately decorated with painted ceilings and grand staircases, this former royal palace close to the Duomo is almost worth a visit in itself; however, it also functions as one of Milan's major art galleries, with a focus on modern artists. Exhibitions have highlighted works by Picasso, Chagall, Warhol, Pollock, and Kandinsky. Check the website before you visit to see what's on; purchase tickets online in advance to save time in the queues, which are often long and chaotic.
View Tours and ActivitiesPiazza del Duomo 12, Milan, Lombardy, 20122, Italy02-88445181Sight Details
Rate Includes: Varies by exhibition, Closed Mon. -
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6. Pinacoteca di Brera
BreraThe collection here is star-studded even by Italian standards. The museum has nearly 40 rooms, arranged in chronological order—so pace yourself. One highlight is the...
The collection here is star-studded even by Italian standards. The museum has nearly 40 rooms, arranged in chronological order—so pace yourself. One highlight is the somber, moving Cristo Morto (Dead Christ) by Mantegna, which dominates Room VI with its sparse palette of umber and its foreshortened perspective. Room XXIV offers two additional highlights of the gallery: Raphael's (1483–1520) Sposalizio della Vergine (Marriage of the Virgin), with its mathematical composition and precise, alternating colors, portrays the betrothal of Mary and Joseph. La Vergine con il Bambino e Santi (Madonna with Child and Saints), by Piero della Francesca (1420–92), is an altarpiece commissioned by Federico da Montefeltro (shown kneeling, in full armor, before the Virgin); it was intended for a church to house the duke's tomb.
View Tours and ActivitiesVia Brera 28, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy02-722631Sight Details
Rate Includes: €15, Closed Mon. -
7. The Last Supper/Il Cenacolo/Santa Maria delle Grazie
Sant'AmbrogioLeonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, housed in this church and former Dominican monastery, has had an almost unbelievable history of bad luck and neglect....
Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, housed in this church and former Dominican monastery, has had an almost unbelievable history of bad luck and neglect. Its near destruction in an American bombing raid in August 1943 was only the latest chapter in a series of misadventures, including—if one 19th-century source is to be believed—being whitewashed over by monks. Well-meant but disastrous attempts at restoration have done little to rectify the problem of the work's placement: it was executed on a wall unusually vulnerable to climatic dampness. Yet Leonardo chose to work slowly and patiently in oil pigments, which demand dry plaster, instead of proceeding hastily on wet plaster according to the conventional fresco technique. After years of restorers patiently shifting from one square centimeter to another, Leonardo's masterpiece is free of centuries of retouching, grime, and dust. Astonishing clarity and luminosity have been regained, helped by lighting, and a timed entry system where small groups are ushered into climate-controlled rooms with automatic glass doors, to prevent humidity. Before and after viewing the masterpiece you can read displays about the restoration process. Despite Leonardo's carefully preserved preparatory sketches, in which the apostles are clearly labeled by name, there still remains some small debate about a few identities in the final arrangement. There can be no mistaking Judas, however—small and dark, his hand calmly reaching forward to the bread, isolated from the terrible confusion that has taken the hearts of the others. Art historian Frederick Hartt offers an elegantly terse explanation for why the composition works: it combines "dramatic confusion" with "mathematical order." Certainly, the amazingly skillful and unobtrusive repetition of threes—in the windows, in the grouping of the figures, and in their placement—adds a mystical aspect to what at first seems simply the perfect observation of spontaneous human gesture. Reservations are required to view the work. Viewings are in 15-minute timed-entry slots, and visitors must arrive 30 minutes before their assigned time in order not to lose their place. Reservations can be made online. Reserve at least three weeks ahead if you want a Saturday slot, two weeks for a weekday slot. Some city bus tours include a visit in their regular circuit, which may be a good option. The painting was executed in what was the order's refectory, which is now referred to as the Cenacolo Vinciano. Take a moment to visit Santa Maria delle Grazie itself. It's a handsome, completely restored church with a fine dome and a cloister, both of which Bramante added around the time Leonardo was commissioned to paint The Last Supper.
Piazza Santa Maria delle Grazie 2, Milan, Lombardy, 20123, Italy02-92800360-reservationsSight Details
Rate Includes: Last Supper €15, Closed Mon. -
8. Acquario Civico di Milano
SempioneThe third-oldest aquarium in Europe, opened in 1906, is known as much for its Art Nouveau architecture as for its small but interesting collection of...
The third-oldest aquarium in Europe, opened in 1906, is known as much for its Art Nouveau architecture as for its small but interesting collection of marine life. You'll find 36 pools that house more than 100 species of fish, including an emphasis on Italian freshwater fish and their habitat, and one tank of species from the Red Sea.
Viale Gerolamo Gadio 2, Milan, Lombardy, 20100, Italy02-88465750Sight Details
Rate Includes: €5; free every 1st and 3rd Tues. of month after 2, Closed Mon. -
9. ADI Design Museum Compasso d'Oro
GaribaldiMore than 350 of the most renowned Italian industrial design objects from the last 65 years are showcased in this former Enel electricity plant (with...
More than 350 of the most renowned Italian industrial design objects from the last 65 years are showcased in this former Enel electricity plant (with two original transformers still visible in one gallery), which opened as a museum in 2021. The items in the permanent collection were selected during biennial judging for Compasso d'Oro (golden compass) awards from 1954 until today. Some of the exhibits are grouped by category, like cars (1960 Abarth-Fiat Monza Zagato, 1959 Fiat 500, and 2014 Ferrari F12berlinetta) and coffeemakers (Alessi's 9090 from 1979 and Napoletana from 1981). There's even a 1960 Flying Dutchman boat from Alpa.
Piazza Compasso d'Oro, 1, Milan, Lombardy, 20154, Italy02-36693790Sight Details
Rate Includes: €12, Closed Mon., Tickets may be purchased online, or at the museum with a credit card or mobile wallet (no cash accepted) -
10. Armani/Silos
TicineseAbout 600 pieces, from about 1980 to the present, by famed Milanese fashion designer Giorgio Armani are displayed on four floors of this airy 48,000-square-foot...
About 600 pieces, from about 1980 to the present, by famed Milanese fashion designer Giorgio Armani are displayed on four floors of this airy 48,000-square-foot museum, housed in a 1950s building that was formerly a Nestlé cereal storage facility. The collection is divided by theme: Ethnicities; Androgynous, including many of Armani’s famous suits; and Stars, with clothes worn to the Oscars and other celebrity-studded events. A digital archive lets you explore Armani's full body of work, and a café lets you stop for a restorative espresso. Temporary exhibitions explore photography, architecture, and other themes related to design.
Via Bergognone 40, Milan, Lombardy, 20144, Italy02-91630010Sight Details
Rate Includes: €12, Closed Mon. and Tues. -
11. Basilica di Sant'Ambrogio
Sant'AmbrogioMilan's bishop, St. Ambrose (one of the original Doctors of the Catholic Church), consecrated this church in AD 387. St. Ambroeus, as he is known...
Milan's bishop, St. Ambrose (one of the original Doctors of the Catholic Church), consecrated this church in AD 387. St. Ambroeus, as he is known in Milanese dialect, is the city's patron saint, and his remains—dressed in elegant religious robes, a miter, and gloves—can be viewed inside a glass case in the crypt below the altar. Until the construction of the more imposing Duomo, this was Milan's most important church. Much restored and reworked over the centuries (the gold-and-gem-encrusted altar dates from the 9th century), Sant'Ambrogio still preserves its Romanesque characteristics, including 5th-century mosaics. The church is often closed for weddings on Saturday.
View Tours and ActivitiesPiazza Sant'Ambrogio 15, Milan, Lombardy, 20123, Italy02-86450895 -
12. Battistero Paleocristiano/Baptistry of San Giovanni alle Fonti
DuomoMore specifically known as the Baptistry of San Giovanni alle Fonti, this 4th-century baptistry is one of two that lie beneath the Duomo. Although opinion...
More specifically known as the Baptistry of San Giovanni alle Fonti, this 4th-century baptistry is one of two that lie beneath the Duomo. Although opinion remains divided, it is widely believed to be where Ambrose, Milan's first bishop and patron saint, baptized Augustine. Tickets also include a visit to the Duomo and its museum.
Piazza del Duomo, Milan, Lombardy, 20123, Italy02-72023375Sight Details
Rate Includes: €10, including admission to Duomo and museum; €20, including Duomo, museum, and roof with elevator, valid for 72 hrs -
13. Casa-Museo Boschi di Stefano
Buenos AiresTo most people, Italian art means Renaissance art, but the 20th century in Italy was also a time of artistic achievement. An apartment on the...
To most people, Italian art means Renaissance art, but the 20th century in Italy was also a time of artistic achievement. An apartment on the second floor of a stunning Art Deco building designed by Milan architect Portaluppi houses this collection, which was donated to the city of Milan in 2003 and is a tribute to the enlightened private collectors who replaced popes and nobles as Italian patrons. The walls are lined with the works of postwar greats, such as Fontana, de Chirico, and Morandi. Along with the art, the museum holds distinctive postwar furniture and stunning Murano glass chandeliers.
Via Jan 15, Milan, Lombardy, 20129, Italy02-88463614Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Mon. -
14. Castello Sforzesco
CastelloWandering the grounds of this tranquil castle and park near the center of Milan is a great respite from the often-hectic city, and the interesting...
Wandering the grounds of this tranquil castle and park near the center of Milan is a great respite from the often-hectic city, and the interesting museums inside are an added bonus. For the serious student of Renaissance military engineering, the Castello must be something of a travesty, so often has it been remodeled or rebuilt since it was begun in 1450 by the condottiere, or mercenary, who founded the city's second dynastic family: Francesco Sforza, fourth duke of Milan. Since the turn of the 20th century, the Castello has been the depository of several city-owned collections of Egyptian and other antiquities. Highlights include the Sala delle Asse, a frescoed room attributed to Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), and Michelangelo's unfinished Rondanini Pietà, believed to be his last work. The pinacoteca (picture gallery) features 230 paintings from medieval times to the 18th century, and the Museo dei Mobili e delle Sculture Lignee (Furniture Museum) includes a delightful collection of Renaissance treasure chests . A single ticket purchased in the office in an inner courtyard admits visitors to these separate installations, which are dispersed around the castle's two immense courtyards.
View Tours and ActivitiesPiazza Castello, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy02-88463700Sight Details
Rate Includes: Castle free, museums €5 (free every 1st and 3rd Tues. of month after 2), Museums closed Mon. -
15. Chiesa di San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore
Sant'AmbrogioNext to the Museo Civico Archeologico, you’ll find this little gem of a church, constructed starting in 1503 and decorated almost completely with magnificent 16th-century...
Next to the Museo Civico Archeologico, you’ll find this little gem of a church, constructed starting in 1503 and decorated almost completely with magnificent 16th-century frescoes. The modest exterior belies the treasures inside, including a concealed back room once used by nuns that includes a fascinating fresco of Noah loading the ark with animals, including two unicorns.
Corso Magenta 15, Milan, Lombardy, 20123, Italy02-88445208 -
16. GAM: Galleria d'Arte Moderna/Villa Reale
PalestroOne of the city's most beautiful buildings is an outstanding example of neoclassical architecture, built between 1790 and 1796. After it was donated to Napoléon,...
One of the city's most beautiful buildings is an outstanding example of neoclassical architecture, built between 1790 and 1796. After it was donated to Napoléon, who lived here briefly with Empress Josephine, it became known as the Villa Reale. The collection consists of works donated by prominent Milanese art collectors. It emphasizes 18th- and 19th-century Italian works, but also has a smattering of 20th-century Italian pieces.
Via Palestro 16, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy02-88445947Sight Details
Rate Includes: €5 (free every 1st and 3rd Tues. of month after 2), Closed Mon. -
17. Giardini Pubblici Indro Montanelli
Porta VeneziaGiuseppe Piermarini, architect of La Scala, laid out these gardens across Via Palestro from the Villa Reale in 1770. Designed as public pleasure gardens, today...
Giuseppe Piermarini, architect of La Scala, laid out these gardens across Via Palestro from the Villa Reale in 1770. Designed as public pleasure gardens, today they are still popular with families who live in the city center. Generations of Milanese have taken pony rides and gone on the miniature train and merry-go-round. The park also contains a small planetarium and the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale (Municipal Natural History Museum).
View Tours and ActivitiesCorso Venezia 55, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy02-88463337Sight Details
Rate Includes: Gardens free, museum €5 (free every 1st and 3rd Tues. of month after 2 and 1st Sun. of month), Museum closed Mon. -
18. Milano Osservatorio—Fondazione Prada
DuomoThis contemporary photography and visual languages exhibition space, developed in partnership with Fondazione Prada, is spread over two floors in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II....
This contemporary photography and visual languages exhibition space, developed in partnership with Fondazione Prada, is spread over two floors in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. Exhibitions, which rotate several times a year, explore the cultural and social implications of expression. The space itself, bombed after World War II and then fully restored, is worth visiting just for the unique view of the Galleria dome through the large windows. You can reach the gallery via the elevator next to the Prada store.
Piazza del Duomo, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy02-56662611Sight Details
Rate Includes: €10; €15, including Fondazione Prada, Closed Tues. -
19. MUDEC (Museo delle Culture)
TicineseHome to a permanent collection of ethnographic displays as well as temporary exhibitions of big-name artists such as Basquiat and Miró, MUDEC is in the...
Home to a permanent collection of ethnographic displays as well as temporary exhibitions of big-name artists such as Basquiat and Miró, MUDEC is in the vibrant Zona Tortona area of the city. British architect David Chipperfield designed the soaring space in a former factory. The permanent collection includes art, objects, and documents from Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Book in advance for the most popular temporary exhibits. There’s also a highly rated restaurant, Enrico Bartolini Mudec, as well as a more casual bistro.
Via Tortona 56, Milan, Lombardy, 20144, Italy02-54917Sight Details
Rate Includes: Permanent collection free, special exhibitions from €10, Closed Mon. until 2:30 pm -
20. Museo Bagatti Valsecchi
QuadrilateroGlimpse the lives of 19th-century Milanese aristocrats in a visit to this lovely historic house museum, once the home of two brothers, Barons Fausto and...
Glimpse the lives of 19th-century Milanese aristocrats in a visit to this lovely historic house museum, once the home of two brothers, Barons Fausto and Giuseppe Bagatti. Family members inhabited the house until 1974; it opened to the public as a museum in 1984. The house is decorated with the brothers’ fascinating collection of 15th- and 16th-century Renaissance art, furnishings, and objects, including armor, musical instruments, and textiles. The detailed audio guide included with admission provides a thorough insight into the history of the artworks and intriguing stories of the family itself.
View Tours and ActivitiesVia Gesu 5, Milan, Lombardy, 20121, Italy02-76006132Sight Details
Rate Includes: €10, Closed Mon. and Tues.
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