Marble spires of the Duomo in the foreground and the Porta Nuova skyscrapers behind
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Milan in 2 days

  • 2 days
  • 8.9 km on foot
  • 17 stops
  • Audio guide

With two days, Milan stops being a layover and becomes a destination. The first day pairs classic Milan with dark Milan; the second is given over to history, with room for a park and a skyscraper district. The pace is comfortable: around nine kilometres of routes, long lunches and an aperitivo to finish.

Day 1Duomo, fashion and legends

In the morning, "Must-see Milan: from Brera to the Navigli", with La Scala, the Galleria and the Duomo. Have the risotto alla milanese near the Navigli and head back to the centre: the afternoon is free for the Museo del Novecento, which looks onto Piazza Duomo, and a stroll through the Fashion Quadrilateral. At dusk, "Dark Milan: devils, plague-spreaders and skulls", from the Devil's Column to San Bernardino alle Ossa, with a cotoletta for dinner to end on a high.

  1. Morning

    Must-see Milan: from Brera to the Navigli

    Mixed · 3.2 km · 2 h

    1. Palazzo di BreraA former Jesuit college turned temple of art, with a naked bronze Napoleon in the middle of the courtyard.
    2. Teatro alla ScalaA modest façade for the world's most famous opera house, born in 1778 on the ruins of a church.
    3. Galleria Vittorio Emanuele IIMilan's «drawing room»: a glass-and-iron covered street with a bull in the floor that everyone treads on for luck.
    4. Milan Cathedral (Duomo)Almost six centuries of building, a forest of pinkish marble spires and a golden Madonna watching over the city.
    5. The Columns of San Lorenzo and the TicineseRoman columns, a basilica with a huge dome and the square where Milan sits down to chat at dusk.
    6. The Navigli and Vicolo dei LavandaiThe canal that brought the Duomo's marble, a century-old stone washhouse and Milan's favourite bank for an aperitivo.

    Start the audio guide See the route

  2. Lunch

    Try Risotto alla milanese at Trattoria Milanese. Via Santa Marta, 11

  3. Afternoon

    Museo del Novecento

    Twentieth-century Italian art in the Arengario, right beside the Duomo: Futurists such as Boccioni and Pellizza da Volpedo's "The Fourth Estate". Its big windows frame the cathedral. A perfect afternoon stop, a couple of steps from the route.

    Directions

    Fashion Quadrilateral

    The district of Via Montenapoleone, Via della Spiga and Via Sant'Andrea, with neoclassical palaces and the windows of the big fashion houses. Even if you don't shop, it's a lovely stroll; the Museo Poldi Pezzoli, on Via Manzoni, is close by.

    Directions

  4. Early evening

    Dark Milan: devils, plague-spreaders and skulls

    Mysteries & legends · 3 km · 1 h 50 min

    1. The Devil's ColumnA Roman column with two holes that, legend says, were made by the devil's horns as he charged at Saint Ambrose.
    2. The Colonna InfameThis was the home of the barber Gian Giacomo Mora, executed in 1630 as a plague-spreader after a trial under torture.
    3. Via BagneraA narrow, winding alley where Antonio Boggia, regarded as Italy's first serial killer, carried out his crimes.
    4. The half-woolly sow of Piazza dei MercantiA sow half covered in wool, carved on a medieval arch, holds the legend of Milan's founding.
    5. Casa degli OmenoniEight stone giants guard the house of Leone Leoni, sculptor to emperors and a man with a violent temper.
    6. San Bernardino alle OssaA small church beside Santo Stefano hides a chapel whose walls are covered in skulls and bones.

    Start the audio guide See the route

  5. Dinner

    Try Cotoletta alla milanese at Antica Trattoria della Pesa. Viale Pasubio, 10

Day 2Romans, saints and Sforza

Today is "From Mediolanum to the Sforza: twenty centuries on foot": the Columns of San Lorenzo, Sant'Ambrogio, Santa Maria delle Grazie, San Maurizio and the Castello Sforzesco. Start early and give each church some time. Enjoy an ossobuco at an unhurried lunch, then spend the afternoon in Parco Sempione, right behind the Castello, and in Porta Nuova, where the Bosco Verticale contrasts with the medieval Milan you've just walked through.

  1. Morning

    From Mediolanum to the Sforza: twenty centuries on foot

    History · 2.7 km · 1 h 45 min

    1. The Columns of San LorenzoSixteen Roman columns that have stood for nearly two thousand years, a reminder that Milan was once an imperial capital.
    2. The Basilica of Sant'AmbrogioThe church founded by the most influential bishop of his age, which became the spiritual heart of Milan.
    3. Santa Maria delle GrazieThe Dominican convent Ludovico il Moro wanted as his family mausoleum, and where Leonardo painted the Last Supper.
    4. San Maurizio al Monastero MaggioreA plain façade hiding the so-called «Sistine Chapel of Milan» and a church split in two by a wall.
    5. Castello SforzescoThe fortress of the Visconti and the Sforza: blown up, occupied, half demolished and finally revived by a stubborn architect.

    Start the audio guide See the route

  2. Lunch

    Try Ossobuco at Trattoria Milanese. Via Santa Marta, 11

  3. Afternoon

    Parco Sempione

    The park behind the Castello Sforzesco, with the neoclassical Arco della Pace at the far end. A good place to sit down after the history route; Gio Ponti's Torre Branca offers views (check the opening hours).

    Directions

    Porta Nuova and Bosco Verticale

    Twenty-first-century Milan: Piazza Gae Aulenti and Stefano Boeri's Bosco Verticale towers, covered in trees. Take the metro to Garibaldi and an hour is plenty; the contrast with medieval Milan is total.

    Directions

The map

Milan in 2 days, on the map

Each route’s stops are numbered in order; the stars are the extra sights.

Mixed Mysteries & legends History Extra sight

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Before you go

Tips for Milan in 2 days

  • If you want to see Leonardo's Last Supper, book well ahead: it's next to Santa Maria delle Grazie, a stop on day two, and tickets run out fast.
  • Save your legs for the routes and take the metro between areas: Duomo, Cadorna and Garibaldi link almost everything in this plan with no fuss.
  • Check museum and cemetery hours before you set out: some close on Mondays. And in August, many small restaurants shut for the holidays.

Questions

Milan in 2 days: your questions

Is two days enough for Milan?

Yes, for the essentials. Two days let you walk all three routes unhurried, go inside one museum and see a couple of districts. If you want more museums, shopping or a trip to a lake, add a third day.

How far do you walk on this plan?

The routes add up to about 8.9 km: 6.2 on day one (must-see and mysteries) and 2.7 on day two (history). Add the strolls to the extra sights and a few metro rides, which help a lot.

Is it worth going up to the Duomo terraces?

If the weather is good, yes: you see the spires up close and the city from above. Go early or mid-afternoon and check the day's opening hours; in this plan it fits well on day one, after the must-see route.

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