MILAN

Milan is the second biggest city of Italy.

When To Go :

Of course it will be better to visit Milan on spring or autumn because of the hot weather in summer season but i visited on july. On the other hand you can visit on 19-25 September , during fashion week , which can be really interesting but you should be aware of the high ratrs of hotels during fashion week.

How To Go :

There are direct flights to Milan from many countries. There are 3 international airports in Milan ; Il Caravaggio International Airport(BGY) , Milan-Malpensa Airport(MXP) and Linate Airpor(LIN). Actually , only Linate Airport is located in Milan , Milan-Malpensa Airport is located inside the borders of Varese and Il Caravaggio Airport is located inside the borders of Bergamo. But the most used one is Il Caravaggio Airport. I also had a direct flight to Il Caravaggio Airport from Sabiha Gokcen Airport in Istanbul. There is a shutlle bus from Il Caravaggio Airport to Milan Central Railway Station for 12 euros and it will take around 45 mins. You can buy tickets at ticket Office at airport. You can have a 40mins walk to get to Piazza Del Duomo(Cathedral Square) from Milan Central Train Station or else you can use subway. You can also buy a 3 days transportation pass for 13 euros (july , 2023). On the other hand trams seem to be free while there is no payment point at the stations and no control in trams and i never saw anybody paying. But you will already have a 3 days pass so it will not an issue for you.

Note :

There is an important issue with transportation card. The 3 days pass is not valid for 72 hours. For example , first day when you buy the pass, counted as one day , regardless of the time you buy it. If you buy the pass at 15:00 , it will not be valid till 15:00 on the 4th day , it will be valid till midnight of the 3rd day. I experienced this only in Milan till now.

Where To Stay :

You can find many options in Milan to stay such as hotels , apartments etc. I would definitely recommend to make a reservation in advance , while difficult to reach at hotels without a reservation. Milan is quiet an expensive city for both living and touristic stay. It seems not possible to find a hotel for less than 150 euros for 3 people. If you visit in fashion week , you can even pay 2-3 times more.

Things To Do In Milan :

We don’t need to do the list with the places close to each other. Public transportation is really good in Milan , you can reach everywhere easily by tram.

1-) Cathedral Square(Piazza Del Duomo , Duomo Square) :

Cathedral Square or Duomo Square is the most famous square in Milan. Actually in Florence or in some other cities in Italy , you can easily get that most important or main squares are cathedral squares.

2-) Milan Cathedral :

A wonderful building. It is the 4th biggest cathedral in Europe. It has a much different architecture than other ones in Italy. Actually all the cathedrals have a different architecture in Italy , such as in Rome , Florence , Siena , Milan… Milan Cathedral seems to consist of sculptures while it has 4235 sculptures. Madonnina Statue on the top of the cathedral , totally solid gold. Statue Of St. Bartholomew by Marco D’Agate inside cathedral , one of the best culptures. You can buy tickets inside ticket Office next to the cathedral at the square. Ticket will be 8 euro (july 2023) and includes Duomo , Duomo Museum and Church of San Gottardo which you can enter from museum side. If you would like to go up to rooftop of Duomo , then you can buy a different ticket. Here you can see tickets ; https://ticket.duomomilano.it/en/biglietti/

3-) Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele 2 :

Another place to see at square , it is actually a bazaar or a mall which you can see famous brands.

4-) The Last Supper Museum :

Little museum that you will see the famous painting of Leonardo Da Vinci ; Last Supper. You should better buy tickets online , or else you may return without entering to museum. Online ticket is 16 euros ; https://cenacolovinciano.org/info/#biglietti . I saw a copy of the painting in Vatican Musuems.

5-)Church Of Holy Mary Of Grace (Santa Maria Delle Grazie) :

It is located right next to The Last Supper Museum. It is stated that Last Supper is located in this place but is a wrong information , entrances of 2 places are different. You can visit the church for free.

6-) Leonardo National Science and Technology Museum :

It is located in a 5 min walk from Santa Maria Delle Grazie , entrance fee is 10 euro ; https://www.museoscienza.org/en/visiting/tickets

7-) Basilica Of Sant’Ambrogio :

Another 5 mins walk and you will reach at the basilica and there is no entrance fee , also you can visit Temple Of Victory right next to it.

8-) Church Of Saint Maurice Al Monastero Maggiore :

After another 8-10 mins walk , you can reach at church. It is a smaller , but really beautiful church. You can visit for free.

9-) Castello Sforzesco :

With its architecture , can be the most different building in Milan. You can visit the most part of it for free or you can also visit museum part for 5 euros. Its garden part Simplon Park(Parco Sempione) can be walked till end and you will reach at Porta Sempione(Arco Della Pace).

10-) Brera Art Gallery :

Brera Art Gallery is located in Brera District which has a central location. Here you can see some pieces by Bellini , Caravaggio , Picasso. Well , it will not be that much interesting if you already visited Uffizi Gallery in Florence , Hermitage in St. Petersburg etc. Entrance fee is 16 euros , it was possible to buy ticket at the entrance but you can also buy online ; https://pinacotecabrera.org/en/visit/tickets/

11-) Monumental Cemetery :

It is a cemetery full of with artistic tombs of famous families and people and a must see. You can reach by metro from Duomo by M1 to Cadorna 3 stations , then change to S3 and reach to Domodossola after 1 station then another 3 stations to Monumentale by M5.

12-) Gae Aulenti Square :

You can use M5 again just for 1 station to Graibaldi Train Station and visit the square in front of it. This is an area high floor buildings which is for offices or shopping centers. Next to it you should see the famous building in Bam Tree Library.

13-) San Siro(Giuseppe Meazza) Stadium :

Home for both Ac Milan and Inter Milan. If you can catch a match , you should definitely watch or even you can go and see outside. You can also visit stadium and museum for 30 euros ; https://www.sansirostadium.com/en/museum-tour/tour You can reach at the stadium by metro. M1 from Duomo Station to Rho Fiera direction and you can change at Lotto Station to M5 and go till last stop.

Note : Here i will write the places to see shortly. Milan Central Train Station is also a must see and if you use train you will already see it. La Scala Theatre will be good to watch a perform if you have a luck or else you see it another time for 12 euros. Brera and Navigli districts also must see but we will mention below , for a dinner. At the next street of Brera Art Gallery , you can visit Museum Of The Resurgence for free.

SHOPPING

Milan is known as one of the fashion capitals. Most of the famous italian brands are originated in Milan and it is the most expensive and elite city of Italy. Main place for shopping is Gallery Of Vittorio Emmanuele 2.

FOOD

Milan is not good at food as all the rich cities. Well this is because of that i live in Turkiye. Although i don’t like enough , it is an italian city which you will find many options. Also Carrefour Markets are not expensive which you can find nearly every street. On the other hand if i compare to prices in 2022 , there seems a high inflation. For me it is the first time to see the price differencies in same shop between the same products in shelves and in the fridges. One Birra Moretti , an italian beer seems 1,5 euro while it was 0,5 euro last year. The best water ever , Santa Anna , seems only 0,6 euros. I didn’t like other market products much but the potato chips produces by Carrefour is really good and cheap. Cheese from Milan area is Gorgonzola. Also ;

1-) Luini :

Luini is kind of a patisserie where you can find many kind of pastries. It is located at a Street next to Duomo Square.

2-) Brera District :

Breara District is full of with little and beautiful streets. You will have many options and weather and atmosphere will be great especially for a dinner.

3-) Navigli District :

Navigli District can be visited anytime but especially at nights. Little trappizzino shops , ice creams shops are so famous and bars along the canal. You can enjoy the crowd with canal view while having your italian coctails.

4-) Milan Central Train Station :

Thee is a food court area inside the train station where you can find all restaurants for pastries , pastas , pizzas , meat , seafood etc.

Milan is known as the most elite city in Italy , all the streets are good to see , all the buildings are beautiful. You can see every part of the city. 3 days seem to be enough. You can reach to every by tram or subway. Interestingly , buses use the same stations with trams. Hope the mosquito problem was just for that night.

Bonus :

You can have a daily trip to Como. If you would like a guide in Russian language , you can contact Maria Filippova ; +393283456065