Things to do in Milan: the Duomo, The Last Supper and an aperitivo
Milan rewards two to four days. The Duomo, Leonardo's Last Supper, the Brera streets and an evening aperitivo on the canals are all within a short walk, tram or metro ride of each other. The one thing to know is that The Last Supper is sold in named, timed tickets that go on sale months ahead, so book it before almost anything else.
The short answer
- First trip
- Start with the Duomo and its terraces, cross the Galleria to La Scala, then give an afternoon to Brera and the Castello Sforzesco.
- Where to stay
- Near the Duomo for a first visit, in Brera for quiet evenings, in Porta Venezia or the Navigli for restaurants and bars.
- How many days
- Two full days cover the main sights. Three or four add Fondazione Prada, the Navigli and a day trip to a lake.
- Best time to go
- April to June and September to October, when days are mild. July is hot, November is the wettest month and January is cold.
- Book ahead
- The Last Supper, 2 to 3 months ahead, as soon as your dates go on sale. La Scala performances go on sale 2 to 3 months ahead too.
- From the airport
- From Malpensa, the Malpensa Express train or an airport bus to Milano Centrale. From Linate, metro M4 to San Babila in 12 minutes.
Where to stay in Milan, in brief
Centro storico, around the Duomo
first visits and short stays
The streets around the Duomo and the Galleria put the cathedral, La Scala and most first-day sights within ten minutes on foot, and two metro lines meet at Duomo. The catch is the crowds around the square from morning to late evening, and that the better dinners are a short ride away.
Brera
couples and quiet evenings
Cobbled streets, galleries and small restaurants around the Pinacoteca di Brera, about 12 minutes on foot from the Duomo and close to the Castello Sforzesco. It is lively in the evening without the noise of the Navigli. The catch is its size: the district is small, and rooms go fast when the fairs are on.
Navigli and Ticinese
aperitivo and nights out
Bars and restaurants line the Darsena and the Naviglio Grande, with metro M2 at Porta Genova and the number 3 tram to Piazza XXIV Maggio. It is the liveliest area after dark and the noise carries late at weekends, so ask for a room on a side street. The Duomo is about 25 minutes on foot.
Porta Venezia
restaurants and calmer evenings
Early 1900s Liberty-style apartment blocks, the Giardini Pubblici and restaurants around Via Melzo. Metro M1 reaches the Duomo in three stops. The catch is that the main sights are not on your doorstep, so you will take the metro for most of them.
Porta Nuova, Isola and Garibaldi
modern hotels and rail links
Glass towers around Piazza Gae Aulenti, the Bosco Verticale and the street art and small restaurants of Isola. Garibaldi station has two metro lines, and the Malpensa Express stops there as well as at Centrale. It feels newer and less historic than the center, and you will ride to most sights.
Milano Centrale
early trains and airport buses
The airport buses and the Malpensa Express stop at the station, metro M2 and M3 start there, and the high-speed trains leave from it. The streets around it are practical rather than pretty, and some feel rough late at night, so look at the exact street before you book.
Things to do in Milan
Duomo di Milano and its terraces
The cathedral, its archaeological area and the roof terraces open every day, and the museum closes on Wednesdays. The terraces put you among 135 spires, reached on foot or by lift to the first level. Cover your shoulders and knees, leave large bags at the hotel and carry only water.
A few days ahead in summer and at weekends, from the cathedral's own ticket site
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II and Piazza della Scala
The glass-roofed arcade links Piazza Duomo to Piazza della Scala and holds shops, cafés and the historic bar Camparino. Walk it for the mosaics and the roof, then eat elsewhere, since the tables here charge for the setting.
Teatro alla Scala and its museum
The museum is open every day from 9.30am to 5.30pm, with the last entry at 5pm, and closed on 7, 25 and 26 December, 1 January, Easter, 1 May and 15 August. The 2026 to 2027 season opens on 7 December with Otello. Performance tickets are registered in the buyer's name and cannot be canceled.
Performances: 2 to 3 months ahead. Museum: buy online or at the door
The Last Supper at Santa Maria delle Grazie
Leonardo's mural is seen in a 15-minute visit with no more than 40 people at a time. Reservations are compulsory for everyone, tickets carry your name and cannot be changed or refunded, and you must arrive 30 minutes before your slot or lose the ticket. The museum is closed on Mondays.
2 to 3 months ahead, as soon as your dates go on sale
Castello Sforzesco and Sempione Park
The castle courtyards are open every day and free. The museums inside, including Michelangelo's unfinished Rondanini Pietà, close on Mondays. Behind the castle, Sempione Park runs to the Arco della Pace.
Pinacoteca di Brera
Raphael's Marriage of the Virgin and Mantegna's Dead Christ hang in this gallery inside the Palazzo Brera, open Tuesday to Sunday from 8.30am to 7.15pm with the last entry at 6pm. Entry is free on the first Sunday of the month with a reservation.
Reserve a slot for the free first Sunday; otherwise buy on the day
Pinacoteca Ambrosiana
A small gallery with Leonardo's Portrait of a Musician, Caravaggio's Basket of Fruit and Raphael's cartoon for The School of Athens, beside the library that holds Leonardo's Codex Atlanticus. Allow about 90 minutes, and note that it closes on Wednesdays.
The Navigli canals at aperitivo time
Walk the Darsena and the Naviglio Grande from late afternoon, when the bars along the water fill for aperitivo. It is loud at weekends, so for a quieter drink turn into the side streets away from the water.
Basilica di Sant'Ambrogio
The Romanesque church of Milan's patron saint is open on weekdays from 7.30am to 12.30pm and 2.30pm to 7pm, and on Sundays and holidays from 8am to 1pm and 3pm to 8pm. It shuts at midday, and a museum of its treasure opened in December 2025.
Fondazione Prada
Contemporary art in a former distillery south of the center, with the Torre tower, a cinema and Bar Luce, a café styled by the film director Wes Anderson. Check its site for opening days and current exhibitions before you go.
Porta Nuova, Bosco Verticale and Piazza Gae Aulenti
Milan's newest quarter has the two Bosco Verticale towers covered in trees, the raised Piazza Gae Aulenti and the Biblioteca degli Alberi park. The towers are private homes, so you look from outside.
What to book before you go
These sell out. Most of the rest of Milan can be decided on the day.
Every tour and ticket in Milan, and which to pick- The Last Supper2 to 3 months ahead
Entry is by named, timed ticket for 40 people at a time, and tickets are released in blocks, with a few extra each Wednesday at noon for the following week.
- A performance at La Scala2 to 3 months ahead
Sales for each performance open about two to three months before it, and tickets are registered in your name.
- Your hotel in a fair week3 to 6 months ahead
Milan Design Week and the Salone del Mobile run 13 to 18 April 2027, and women's Fashion Week runs 23 February to 1 March 2027, when rooms are scarce and dear.
- The Duomo terracesA few days ahead in summer
Tickets are for set time slots, and the cathedral recommends buying online to avoid queues at its ticket office.
What to skip in Milan
- Ticket sites that are not the official one
The cathedral warns about websites with no link to it that sell its tickets, and The Last Supper's tickets are named to stop resale. Buy only from the cathedral's own ticket site and the museum's own booking pages.
- A table on Piazza Duomo or under the Galleria arches
You mostly pay for the setting. Walk ten minutes to Brera, or take the metro to Isola or Porta Venezia, and eat at one of the places in our Milan food guide.
- A car in the center
Area C, the congestion-charge zone, covers central Milan, and the metro, trams and your feet reach every sight in this guide. If you hire a car for the lakes, collect it on the day you leave.
- Free corn for the pigeons on Piazza Duomo
People on the square hand you corn and then ask for money. Say no, keep walking, and keep your phone and wallet in a zipped pocket on the square and on the metro.
Best time to visit Milan
April to June and September to October are the best months for walking around the city. Average daily highs are about 19°C in April, 24°C in May, 28°C in June, 25°C in September and 19°C in October (Linate airport averages, 1991 to 2020). July and August are hot, with highs near 30°C and spells above 35°C, and some restaurants close for part of August. November is the wettest month, with about 112 mm of rain, and January is cold, with highs near 7°C.
Event weeks change the picture. Milan Design Week and the Salone del Mobile run 13 to 18 April 2027, women's Milan Fashion Week runs 23 February to 1 March 2027 and men's 15 to 19 January 2027, and rooms are scarce and dear in those weeks. La Scala opens its season on 7 December, and its museum is closed that day.
- From Malpensa airportThe Malpensa Express train runs to Milano Centrale, stopping at Garibaldi, about every 30 minutes through the day, and a second route runs to Cadorna. Allow 45 to 60 minutes. Buses to Centrale, on Via Sammartini, run about every 20 minutes between the four operators.
- From Linate airportMetro M4, the blue line, runs from the terminal to San Babila in 12 minutes. Change there to M1 for the Duomo, one stop away.
- Metro, trams and ticketsFive metro lines and 17 tram lines cover the city, and restored 1920s trams still run. You can pay with a contactless card or phone: tap in at the metro gate and out at the end, and the system applies the cheapest fare, moving to a day fare from the fourth trip. Contactless does not work on Trenord regional trains.
- On footThe center is compact: the Duomo is about 12 minutes from Brera, 15 from the Castello Sforzesco and 25 from the Navigli. Take the metro or a tram for The Last Supper (M1 Conciliazione or M2 Cadorna), Fondazione Prada and Porta Nuova.
Milan in three days
- Day 1
The Duomo and its terraces first thing, then the Galleria and Piazza della Scala, with the La Scala museum if you like opera. Walk north to Brera for the Pinacoteca and an aperitivo. The Pinacoteca is closed on Mondays, so on a Monday do the Navigli evening on this day instead.
- Day 2
The Last Supper at your booked time, then Sant'Ambrogio and the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, which is closed on Wednesdays. Spend the evening on the Navigli: a walk along the Darsena and the Naviglio Grande, then aperitivo and dinner.
- Day 3
The Castello Sforzesco courtyards and Sempione Park to the Arco della Pace in the morning, then Porta Nuova: the Bosco Verticale from outside, Piazza Gae Aulenti and the Biblioteca degli Alberi. Swap in Fondazione Prada if you would rather see contemporary art.
Day trips from Milan
- Lake ComoTrains from Milan reach Como San Giovanni in about 40 minutes, and Navigazione Laghi ferries link Como with the lakeside villages. A funicular climbs to Brunate in about 7 minutes for the view back over the lake.
- BergamoAbout 50 minutes by train from Milano Centrale. A funicular climbs to the walled upper town, Città Alta, where the Venetian walls are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Pavia and the CertosaAbout 30 minutes by train from Milano Centrale. The Certosa di Pavia monastery has its own station, the one before Pavia, and is about 1.5 km on foot from it.
Milan: questions people ask
How many days do you need in Milan?
Two full days cover the Duomo, The Last Supper, Brera and the Castello Sforzesco at an easy pace. A third adds the Navigli, Fondazione Prada or Porta Nuova, and a fourth gives you a day on Lake Como or in Bergamo. One day is enough for the cathedral and a walk, but not for The Last Supper as well.
Where should you stay in Milan on a first visit?
Choose the streets around the Duomo for the shortest walks, or Brera for a quieter evening. Porta Venezia and the Navigli suit people who plan their days around restaurants and bars. If you arrive late or leave on an early train, a hotel near Milano Centrale saves a transfer, but check the street first.
How do you get tickets for The Last Supper?
Book through the museum's own site, cenacolovinciano.org, because reservations are compulsory for everyone and tickets carry your name. They go on sale in blocks every few months, so check the museum's news page for the next release, and extra tickets appear each Wednesday at noon for the following week. Arrive 30 minutes before your slot.
What is the best time to visit Milan?
April to June and September to October are the most comfortable, with average highs of about 19°C to 28°C. Avoid July and August if you dislike heat, and plan indoor days in November, the wettest month. Fair weeks in February and April fill the hotels, so book early or pick other dates.
What can you do in Milan in November?
Plan around the rain: November averages about 112 mm, with highs near 12°C. Use the days for the Pinacoteca di Brera, the Ambrosiana, the La Scala museum and the Castello museums, and keep the Duomo terraces for a dry morning. Mondays catch people out, since The Last Supper, Brera and the Castello museums are all shut.
How do you get from Malpensa airport to Milan city center?
Take the Malpensa Express train to Milano Centrale, which runs about every 30 minutes, or an airport bus to the same station on Via Sammartini. The train takes roughly 45 to 60 minutes. From Linate, metro M4 reaches San Babila in 12 minutes.
What should you wear to visit the Duomo?
Cover your shoulders and knees: sleeveless and low-cut tops, shorts, miniskirts and hats are not allowed inside the cathedral. Large bags and luggage are not allowed in, you cannot eat or drink inside except water, and flat, comfortable shoes suit the narrow, steep stairs to the terraces.
Is Milan walkable?
The center is, with the Duomo, the Galleria, La Scala, Brera and the Castello Sforzesco all within about 15 minutes of each other on foot. For The Last Supper, Fondazione Prada, Porta Nuova and the Navigli, use the metro or a tram.