Attractions
- Monument
Arco della Pace
A monumental triumphal arch commissioned by Napoleon in 1807 but not completed until 1838, when Austria's Habsburg rulers rededicated it as a monument to peace.
- Basilica
Basilica of San Lorenzo Maggiore
One of Milan's oldest churches, fronted by 16 Roman columns salvaged from a 2nd-century building and now a favourite gathering spot for evening drinks.
- Basilica
Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio
A Romanesque basilica founded in 379 AD by Saint Ambrose, Milan's patron saint, with a 9th-century golden altar and the remains of three saints displayed in the crypt.
- Modern Architecture
Bosco Verticale
A pair of residential towers in the Porta Nuova district hosting around 800 trees and thousands of shrubs, a pioneering example of biodiverse high-rise architecture.
- Historic Shopping Arcade
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
A soaring iron-and-glass 19th-century shopping arcade linking Piazza del Duomo to Piazza della Scala, known to Milanese as the city's living room.
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Learn more → - Historic Theatre
La Scala Theatre Museum
The world's most prestigious opera house, opened in 1778 on the site of a demolished church, with a museum of instruments, costumes and composer memorabilia.
- Cathedral
Milan Cathedral
Milan's vast Gothic cathedral, begun in 1386 and topped with 135 spires and the gilded Madonnina, with rooftop terraces open to visitors above the historic centre.
- Cemetery & Sculpture
Monumental Cemetery
An 1866 "open-air museum" cemetery designed by Carlo Maciachini, filled with elaborate tombs by leading sculptors and the Famedio hall honouring Milan's notable dead.
- Modern Art Museum
Museo del Novecento
A museum of 20th-century Italian art opened in 2010 inside the rationalist Arengario building beside the Duomo, anchored by Futurist works including Boccioni's sculptures.
- Science Museum
National Museum of Science and Technology "Leonardo da Vinci"
Italy's largest science museum, opened in 1953 in a former monastery, with full-scale models built from Leonardo's own drawings and a real Cold War submarine.
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Learn more → - Historic District
Navigli
Milan's historic canal district, once a working waterway that floated in the Duomo's marble, now lined with bars and restaurants and home to a monthly antiques market.
- Historic Palace & Exhibitions
Palazzo Reale
Milan's former ducal and royal palace, remodelled in neoclassical form in the late 18th century and now a major venue for temporary art exhibitions beside the Duomo.
- Park
Parco Sempione
Milan's grandest park, laid out in 1893 in English garden style behind Sforza Castle, home to Torre Branca, the Arena Civica and the Triennale design museum.
- Art Gallery & Library
Pinacoteca Ambrosiana
A gallery founded in 1609 alongside one of Europe's first public libraries, holding Caravaggio's Basket of Fruit, a Raphael cartoon and Leonardo's Codex Atlanticus.
- Art Gallery
Pinacoteca di Brera
One of Italy's great painting collections, opened by Napoleon in 1809 inside a 17th-century palazzo, with masterpieces by Raphael, Mantegna, Caravaggio and Piero della Francesca.
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Learn more → - Church & Frescoes
San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore
Milan's "Sistine Chapel", a 16th-century convent church entirely covered in frescoes by Bernardino Luini and his workshop, its nave split by a screen for cloistered nuns.
- Church
Santa Maria presso San Satiro
A small Renaissance church famous for Bramante's illusionistic false choir, an apse only 97cm deep painted and carved to look like a full barrel-vaulted chancel.
- Castle & Museums
Sforza Castle
A vast 15th-century fortress built by the Sforza dukes over an earlier Visconti castle, now home to several civic museums, Leonardo frescoes and Michelangelo's last sculpture.
- Fresco & UNESCO Site
The Last Supper (Cenacolo Vinciano)
Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper, painted 1495-1498 on the refectory wall of Santa Maria delle Grazie, viewable only in timed 15-minute slots booked well in advance.
- Observation Tower
Torre Branca
A 108.6-metre steel observation tower built by architect Gio Ponti in 1933 for a design exhibition, offering panoramic views over Milan's rooftops to the Alps.
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