The difference between Venice and Milan is like night and day. Our two and a half hour train ride took us from what felt like old-world traditional Italy, to a large, more modern city. Because Milan is the fashion and financial hub of Italy, you’ll find traditional Italian architecture surrounded by skyscrapers and high-end modern fashion boutiques. Like Venice, we only spent 48 hours of our trip in Milan. At the time I thought it was plenty, but looking back I think 3 days would’ve been ideal. There aren’t quite as many historic attractions to see in Milan as there are in some of the other cities we visited during our Italy trip.
Interested in how we spent the rest of our trip? Check out the other Italy posts here!
Useful Apps
To make your trip to Milan, Italy a little bit easier, I’d recommend downloading some of these apps before you go!
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Directions: I’ve used Google Maps without a problem, but CityMapper is an alternative.
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Translation: Again I used Google Translate, because I like the option to take photos of menus. But I’ve also heard good things about DeepL.
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Find Water Fountains: Acea Waidy WOW – you can find it on the Apple and Google Play stores.
Attractions
We were thankful to have bought tickets to tour the Duomo di Milano, as it started to DOWNPOUR right before we went inside. Thanks to my anxiety brain, I couldn’t help but worry about the water we were all tracking across the floors the entire time. Our tickets included access to the archaeological area underneath, as well as the rooftop terraces. Spend the extra money for the lift instead of the stairs, your legs will thank you for it. Luckily the rain had knocked off before we got up to the roof.
Fun fact, the Duomo in Milan is actually larger than St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.
If you’re a science nerd like my engineer husband, a stop at the Museo Nazionale Scienza e Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci is a must. It is the largest science and technology museum in Italy, and has so many different interactive exhibits dedicated to the life work of Leonardo da Vinci. I guess I never realized how diverse his work really was, from architecture and engineering, to painting and musical instruments. Jasper was like a kid in a candy store.
Other things to see and do:
- Go shopping in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the oldest active shopping gallery in Italy. You’ll find all the high end fashion stores there. Keep walking out onto Corso Vittorio if you’re looking for something a little more budget friendly. Ironically, the only clothing I purchased during our time in Milan was my first ever pair of Levi’s jeans!
- There are plenty of art galleries, restaurants, and nightlife options to be found along the Naviglio Grande.
Looking for more to do on your trip to Milan, Italy?
Check out these exciting options:
Food and Drinks
Unlike other cities in Italy, cuisine in Milan is more of a melting pot. The city puts its own spin on many traditional Italian dishes, hence the ‘alla Milanese’ you’ll often find on restaurant menus. Popular dishes in Milan include:
- Panettone (sweet bread/fruit cake that originated in Milan)
- Risotto alla Milanese (creamy rice dish with saffron, giving it a distinct yellow color)
- Ossobucco (braised bone-in veal shank)
- Minestrone alla Milanese (soup filled with veggies, beans, and rice instead of traditional pasta)
- Cotoletta alla Milanese (breaded veal cutlet)
We were only here for 48 hours and we walked around so much that we somehow only ended up eating two meals a day. I’m honestly not sure how we didn’t starve!
Where We Ate
Starbucks Reserve Milano Roastery
Piazza Cordusio, 1, 20123.
Did it feel blasphemous going to a Starbucks while in Italy? Maybe, but I had to check it out. The space was gorgeous (and massive), and the pastries were so much better than the ones you’ll find at Starbucks in the States.
Camparino in Galleria
Piazza Duomo, 21, 20121 Milano.
Located in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping gallery right by the Duomo is the original Campari bar. You can grab a drink at the old school ‘Bar di Passo’ downstairs, or make dinner reservations upstairs in the more modern ‘Sala Spiritello’ like we did. It was my first time trying Campari and I liked it, but Jasper decided he prefers Aperol because it’s not as bitter.
e/n enoteca naturale
Via Santa Croce, 19/a, 20122 Milano.
We stopped at this natural wine bar for aperitivo (pre-meal drinks) before heading to our dinner reservation. Unfortunately it was raining, so we opted for sitting inside, but they have a large outdoor seating area that looked perfect for warm days.
El Brellin
Vicolo Privato Lavandai, 20144 Milano.
We were honestly shocked by how empty it was when we arrived for our 8pm reservation, but apparently we were ‘early birds’ compared to everyone else who showed up over the next two hours. The outdoor garden space here is gorgeous, and the food did not disappoint. This meal started a trend of splitting a bottle of wine at dinner for the rest of the trip. I normally have to BEG Jasper to do this, since he’s not a big wine drinker. It maybe wasn’t the best idea in this particular instance, especially after also having 3 glasses at the wine bar beforehand. I managed to forget our umbrella at the restaurant, and taking the subway back to our hotel while tipsy was an adventure!
For Next Time
Since it was such a short trip, we didn’t get to stop at every place I wanted to try. So these are some places that are still on my list for our next visit!
Slow Sud
Via delle Asole, 4, 20123 Milano.
Traditional cuisine from Southern Italy.
Panzerotti Luini
Via Santa Radegonda, 16, 20121 Milano.
Popular Milanese bakery specializing in panzerotti – a savory fried dough similar to a mini calzone.
Orsonero Coffee
Via Giuseppe Broggi, 15, 20129 Milano.
A small modern specialty coffee shop that also serves pastries.
Hotels
We didn’t really want to spend a ton of money on our accommodations, since we were spending two full weeks in Italy. While that meant for the most part we stayed in guest houses or bed and breakfasts, in Milan we did chose a hotel instead. This trip made us realize we definitely prefer hotels and would rather try to save money elsewhere!
Where We Stayed
Hotel Vecchia Milano
Via Borromei, 4, 20123 Milano.
We opted to stay about a 10 to 15 minute walk from the super-touristy Duomo area, but later regretted it when we had to drag ourselves back to it at the end of the day. If you’re looking for somewhere modern with all the bells and whistles, this is definitely not the spot for you! We liked that it was clean, quiet, and cheaper than many other nearby hotels.
Other Nearby Options
When I’m researching where to stay for our trips, I always use Booking.com and/or Expedia. Sometimes they have cheaper rates than the hotel websites themselves (and sometimes they don’t), so always be sure to check! Now I do want to preface that we haven’t personally stayed in any of these hotels yet, but they’re ones we’ve considered and will likely use for our next trip to Milan. They’re all centrally located and highly rated!
Hotel Rio
Via Giuseppe Mazzini, 8, 20123 Milano.
Clerici Boutique Hotel
Via Clerici, 11, 20121 Milano.
ODSweet Duomo Milano
Piazza Duomo ang, Via Giuseppe Mazzini, 2, 20123 Milano.
What should we check out on our next trip to Milan, Italy? Let me know in the comments!
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