Things to see in Milan
Attractions
Duomo (Milan Cathedral)
Begun in 1386, Milan's Duomo is the world's largest gothic cathedral, taking over 500 years to complete. The best time to visit is in bright sunshine, when the windows create a kaleidoscope of colour through the cavernous interior. Climb the steps to the roof to admire the forest of 135 spires and 3,600 statues.
Address: , Piazza del Duomo, Milan, 20122Telephone: +39 02 7202 2656.
Opening times:
Daily 0800-1900 (terraces 0900-1900).
Website: http://www.duomomilano.itAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Santa Maria delle Grazie and The Last Supper
The Last Supper is one of the most famous paintings in the world. Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece is painted directly onto the wall of the refectory adjoining the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. Centuries of repainting were stripped back at the end of the last century to reveal what is close to the original work.
Address: Corso Magenta, Piazza Santa Maria delle Grazie 2, Milan, 20123Telephone: +39 02 9280 0360.
Opening times:
Mon-Sat 0700-1200, 1500-1900pm; Sun 0730-1215, 1530-2100.
Website: http://www.cenacolovinciano.orgAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: Yes
Museo d'Arte Antica, Castello Sforzesco (Museum of Historic Art, Sforza Castle)
On the edge of the Parco Sempione, three municipal museums compete for attention within the 15th-century red brick Sforza Castle. The most venerable is the Museum of Historic Art which holds Michelangelo's last sculpture, the unfinished Rondanini Pietà, depicting the Virgin cradling the body of Christ.
Address: , Piazza Castello, Milan, 20121Telephone: +39 02 8846 3734.
Opening times:
Tue-Sun 0900-1730(Museum) Daily 0700-1930(Castle free entry).
Website: http://www.milanocastello.itAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Museo Teatrale alla Scala (Theatre Museum at La Scala)
Opera lovers will adore this museum, crammed with rich mementoes of the celebrated opera house, La Scala. Two collections are devoted to Milan's darling Giuseppe Verdi, whose Slaves Chorus from Nabucco remains the unofficial Italian anthem. Memorabilia include handwritten scores and the jewel-encrusted baton presented to Verdi after a triumphal reception of Aida.
Address: , Largo Antonio Ghiringhelli 1, Milan, 20121Telephone: +39 02 8879 7473.
Opening times:
Daily 0930-1230, 1330-1730.
Website: http://www.teatroallascala.orgAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Stadio Giuseppe Meazza (San Siro Stadium)
This world-famous stadium is home to Milan's two main football teams: AC Milan and Internazionale. The San Siro Museum tells the histories of both clubs and showcases memorabilia such as cups, medals and shirts as well as life-size replicas of players. Guided tours of this 80,018 capacity ground are available too.
Address: , Piazzale Angelo Moratti, Milan, 20151Telephone: +39 2 404 2432 (museum and tour).
Opening times:
Daily 0930-1700.
Website: http://www.sansiro.netAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Museo Del Novecento
This museum in the Palazzo dell'Arengario is now the permanent home for Milan’s collection of modern and contemporary art. Some of the works are grouped thematically, in areas like Futurism, the Novecento, Spatialism and Arte Povera, while others showcase outstanding artistic personalities such as Boccioni, Carrà, Soffici and Martini.
Address: Piazza del Duomo, Via Guglielmo Marconi, 1, Milan, 20122Telephone: +39 02 8844 4061.
Opening times:
Mon 1430-1930, Tue-Weds 0930-1930, Thu 0930-2230, Fri 0930-1930, Sat 0930-2230, Sun 0930-1930.
Website: http://www.museodelnovecento.orgAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Museo Bagatti Valsecchi
Built by two brothers in 1883 as their ideal Renaissance household, the Palazzo Bagatti Valsecchi is furnished with their vast collections of antiques from the 15th and 16th centuries. The result is a fascinating insight into the mentality of 19th-century Milan, which was nostalgically longing for the days of the Sforza.
Address: , Via Gesù 5, Milan, 20121Telephone: +39 02 7600 6132.
Opening times:
Tue-Sun 1300-1745 (appointment only in August).
Website: http://www.museobagattivalsecchi.orgAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci (Leonardo da Vinci National Science and Technology Museum)
Devoted to the history of science, most visit this museum to see the Leonardo Gallery, which showcases a host of models (both static and functioning) by Leonardo da Vinci. Illustrating his intuitive genius, designs for war machines, flying contraptions and architecture display da Vinci’s incredible foresight.
Address: , Via San Vittore 21, Milan, 20123Telephone: +39 02 485 551.
Opening times:
Tue-Thu 0930-1700, Fri-Sun 0930-1830.
Website: http://www.museoscienza.orgAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: NoUNESCO: No
Pinacoteca di Brera (Brera Picture Gallery)
Napoleon, whose statue by Canova stands in the courtyard, opened Milan's Brera Picture Gallery in 1809 - a collection enriched by objects confiscated on his Italian campaigns. Don’t miss the lyrical Pietà by Giovanni Bellini, depicting the death of Christ, and Mantegna's virtuoso treatment of the same subject, the body foreshortened and viewed from the soles upward.
Address: , Via Brera 28, Milan, 20121Telephone: +39 02 722 63 264/229.
Opening times:
Tue-Sun 0830-1915.
Website: http://www.brera.beniculturali.itAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Museo Poldi Pezzoli
The 19th-century aristocrat, Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli, put together this varied collection of art. It also includes some exquisite furnishings and historic arms. Even Antonio Pollaiolo's Portrait of a Lady, Milan's second favourite painting after The Last Supper, hangs here. Look out for works by Andrea Mantegna and Sandro Botticelli.
Address: , Via Alessandro Manzoni 12, Milan, 20121Telephone: +39 02 79 4889/ 6334.
Opening times:
Wed-Mon 1000-1800.
Website: http://www.museopoldipezzoli.itAdmission Fees:
Yes
Disabled Access: YesUNESCO: No
Tourist Offices
InfoMilano
Address: , Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan, 20121Telephone: +39 02 8845 5555.
Opening times:
Mon-Fri 0900-1900, Sat 0900-1800, Sun 1000-1800.
Website: http://www.turismo.milano.itInfoMilano offers all kinds of information of the city as well as maps and advice on guided tours, museums and places to stay. There is another tourist information office in Stazione Centrale, in front of platform 21.
Tourist passes
The MilanoCard (www.milanocard.it) offers free public transport and discounts on selected museums, monuments, restaurants and bike rental. You can buy either a one-day or three-day card online or from the tourist information office in Milan.
The Milan Pass (www.themilanpass.com) is a 48-hour city card that, once purchased, offers free entry to many of the major sights and comes with a book of vouchers for further discounts.
