Help with Milan Itinerary

The town of Como on Lake Como is 37-40 minutes away from Milano Centrale by train. Varenna is only a bit longer (1 hour 10 minutes plus or minus) and worth the extra 20-30 minutes, in my mind. Como is a fairly big and bustling city; Varenna is a small charming village with nice views across the lake to mountains.

We booked the Duomo ahead, so we could take the elevator to the roof (note: you still need to walk down the stairs). You’re probably too late for booking The Last Supper tickets. We did a bus tour from Milan that took us to lake Como and into Switzerland. Thru City Wonders. “Como Lake with Bellagio and Lugano day trip from Milan”. And our favorite gelato of everywhere we went in Italy was at Ciacco, a small shop a few blocks from the Duomo.

For shopping, the Rick Steves Italy book gives an excellent map and suggested walking tour of the area near the Duomo and LaScala known as the Quadrilateral. Other areas for fashion shopping include Corso de Porta Tichinese, Corso Buenos Aires, Via Dante pedestrian street from Sforza Castle to the Duomo, Via Torino, and of course Galeria Vittorio Emmanuele II. The Rinascente department store next to the Duomo used to be open till 10 pm; check to see if that is still true. My notes on Quadrilateral area just slightly northeast from the Duomo and LaScala say go to either the Montenapoleone tram stop or Metro stop, and that on Monte Napoleone, Via Manzoni, and nearby streets you will find many clothing stores. Along nearby Via Santo Spirito you can see some great-looking houses etc. If you headed slightly northwest from the Duomo into the Brera neighborhood, you would find some good eye candy too.

We spent 3 nights (two days) in Milan at the end of our trip in 2015. I was kicking myself, why plan two days in Milan? (We had just spent three nights in Bellagio on Lake Como.) But on our first night in Milan, we met some locals who mentioned "Piano City."

Turned out that we were there the weekend in May that the Indro Montanelli Gardens (where the "modern" art museum was located) was a central location for numerous piano concerts and recitals - jazz and classical - throughout the city. These were in parks, museums, residences and even streetcars. Yes, there were public streetcars with pianos added! Well, we settled for the 3 stages in the large Montanelli Gardens and we had a lovely time at Piano City, as well as our planned visits to the Duomo, Galleria, the Rinascente Department store (mentioned by nancycantravel; the chocolates were just exquisite to see) and viewing Leonardo's Last Supper.

On other trips, we have found on-line queries to see what is showing in museums, who is playing music in clubs, or what festivals or markets or other events are going on can be very worthwhile - whether a day or two in advance, or three or four months in advance. So, be open to what you won't see in a guide book.

I won't speak to restaurants or cafes from 9 years ago, other than to mention that the then-current RS guide mentioned Happy Hour at a place not too far from the Parco Sempione where lots of great little cicchetti plates were freely available.

Our favorite thing in Milan, besides the roof of the Duomo and the Brera art gallery, is the monumental cemetery --- it is spectacular (and free). These images will give you some idea: https://www.google.com/search?q=tombe+cimitero+monumentale+di+milano&tbm=isch&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi6rKuR1uCDAxV6yMkDHWiQD9sQrNwCKAB6BQgBEIgB&biw=1280&bih=599

Hi!

We enjoyed the morning we spent at Sforzesco Castle. https://www.milanocastello.it/en. We did not have enough time to go to the museum, but we spent a solid 90 minutes just walking around the inside, reading the plaques, etc. It was really, really cool to see how the city was built out from the castle and the Duomo and their relationship to each other and the original city walls. For me it helped "history come alive" to be able to actually see on the ground how defenses, the Church, farms, and villages all came together to eventually become cities.

Carrie