Eat, drink and be merry
Whether you’re enjoying an aperitivo — a pre-dinner institution in Milan — or nibbling your way around the city, you won’t come home hungry.
Start with an empty stomach at the 5,000 square metre Eataly, dedicated to the best of Italy including locally sourced products, before stocking up on wine and cheese at historic deli Peck. Or try vegetable dumplings and gelato at Milan’s small Chinatown with its markets and street food joints.
Pasticceria Cucchi in Porta Genova is famous for its panettone, while Pasticceria Marchesi has been serving tempting pastries for almost 200 years
Then it’s time for aperitivo: who invented it is up for dispute, but the idea of serving a drink to stimulate the appetite has well and truly caught on. These days, you’ll get at least a snack alongside, sometimes a more elaborate buffet. There’s choice galore but the buzzing Navigli district also lets you eat and drink on the banks of a couple of Milan’s original canals.
Milan Food week is also celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, running from May 2-8
Enjoy the music
Famous for the historic Teatro alla Scala, there’s nowhere quite like La Scala to enjoy an opera. Founded in the 18th century, you can also visit La Scala’s museum — including a glimpse of the interior — if you don’t get to a full performance, while there are special half-price options and child-friendly adaptations too.
Or if classical music doesn’t take your fancy, the Milano Summer Festival has some rather more contemporary names on the bill. Starting earlier than usual this year in May, Metallica kicks off the bill, although previous years have also featured Arcade Fire, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the Kings of Leon.
Discover the art
Milan’s most famous work is Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper — and while you might have seen the reproductions a hundred times, there’s nothing like looking at the original. Painted in the late 15th century onto the wall of the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, you need to book ahead for the 15-minute slots.
Or head across the city to Isola, once a separate neighbourhood to Milan. Quickly gentrifying, it’s still a grittier contrast to the stylish centre, and home to some of Milan’s best street art. Visit on a Sunday when the shops are shut to see even more pieces on their shutters.
Soak up some history
No trip to Milan is complete without a visit to at least one of its three most iconic landmarks. The red brick Castello Sforzesco was once home to the Sforza family, who ruled Milan during the Renaissance. Meanwhile the striking Gothic Duomo is the largest church in Italy and the fourth largest in the world, a marble-faced structure which took six centuries to complete.
And fans of the beautiful game should have the San Siro stadium on their list. Home to AC and Inter Milan, tours visit the changing rooms, stands and the tunnel of Champions onto the pitch, as well as the stadium museum.
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