Milan is located in Lombardy in Northern Italy. Milan is Italy’s third most visited city after Rome and Venice. It is also home to designers like Prada, Armani and Versace. Milan has an abundance of old and new art, an ancient and fascination cultural history and architectural treasures for you to enjoy. Milan is much more than the work-obsessed city it is often portrayed as.
TOP 8 PLACES TO SEE
1.PINACOTECA DI BRERA
The museum is world-class with an astonishing assortment of fine paintings thanks to Napoleon, who confiscated much of Italy’s best pieces of art during the 18th century and deposited them in Milan. The collection is housed in more than 40 rooms, upstairs from the Accademia di Bella Arti, an 1776 still-operating art school. Featured are works by Italian painters like Raphael, Tintoretto, Veronese and Caravaggio. Also well represented is European masters like Rembrandt, van Dyck and Goya.
2.II DUOMO CATHEDRAL
As one of the world’s largest and magnificent churches, it is an ultimate example of the Flamboyant Gothic style. Highlights is the 135 delicately carved stone pinnacles, the exterior decorated with 2,245 marble statues, 52 gigantic pillars, the stained-glass windows in the nave, the seven-branched bronze candelabrum by Nicholas of Verdun, the 16th-century tomb of Gian Giacomo Medici, and the jeweled gold reliquary of San Carlo Borromeo in the octagonal Borromeo Chapel leading off the crypt. Gold and silver work dating back to the 17th century and be seen in the south sacristy treasury. The view from the roof is an impressive experience – and elevator ascends all but the last 73 steps to the platform of the dome.
3.SFORZESCO CASTLE
It was built in the 14th century originally as a fortress and exemplifies the fierce rivalries between families in Renaissance Italy. Today the castle is home to the Museo d’Arte Antica in which Michelangelo’s final masterpiece in on display. In the formal ducal apartments an extensive display of Egyptian art is on display.
4.LEONARDO DA VINCI’S LAST SUPPER
The massive six-sided dome brick church was began about 1465 and is the finest example of Early Renaissance style. The adjoining refectory were badly damaged during World War II, during repair work old sgraffito paintings in the dome were brought to light. The altarpiece of the Madonna is at the end of the north aisle in the Baroque chapel of the Madonna delle Grazie. Da Vinci's most famous work, painted between 1495 and 1497 can be seen on the refectory wall of the former Dominican monastery.
5.OPERA AT TEATRO ALLA SCALA
The opera house is considered the most prestigious in the world with many great operatic composers and singer performing here. In the same building you will find the Museu Teatrale alla Scala which showcase a collection of costumes from landmark performances and historical and personal mementos of the greats who performed and whose works were performed at La Scala, including Verdi, Rossini, and the great conductor Arturo Toscanini.
6.ARCHAELOLGY MUSEUM
On the lower levels of the former monastery of Monastero Maggiore you can see some of Roman Milan. On exhibit is sculptures in stone and bronze from Greece, Etruscan and Roman along with ancient history of Milan. A good third-century sculpture of Maximilian, a bronze head, and a female statue with folded drapes are also on display.
7.CIVICA GALLERIA D’ARTE MODERNA – MODERN ART GALLERY
The palace was home for Napoleon when he was in Milan. It retains its original stucco work and decorative details inside, which adds to its interest as a showcase for Milan's extensive collection of modern art. Italian art from the 19th century Romanticism to post-impressionists are emphasize, with works by Renoir, Picasso, Matisse, Rouault, Modigliani, Dufy, and Vuillard.There is an extensive group of Neoclassical sculpture by Canova and his contemporaries.
8.LEONARDO DA VINCI NATIONAL MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Formerly the Olivetan monastery, the museum illustrates the history of science and technology from the work of early scientists into modern times. Many of his inventions and machinery are still working and can be seen in the Leonardo da Vinci Gallery. Apparatus used by Galileo, Newton, and Volta, and there are sections relating to optics, acoustics, telegraphy, transport, shipping, railroads, flying, metallurgy, motor vehicles, timekeeping, and timber are on display in the physics exhibits. More than 15,000 technical and scientific objects represent the history of Italian science, technology, and industry.
OTHER PLACES TO VISIT
- Quadrilatero d’Oro
- Navigli Lombardi
- Basilica di Sant’Ambrogio
- Pinacoteca di Brera
- Piazza Mercanti
- Sant’Eustorgio
- Museum of Natural History
- Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
- Poldi-Pezzoli Museum
- Museo Bagatti Valsecchi
- Basilica di San Lorenzo, Milano
- Santa Maria delle Grazie
- Royal Palace of Milan
- Cimitero Monumentale di Milano
- Biblioteca Ambrosiana
- Triennale
- Collonne di San Lorenzo
- Villa Necchi Campiglio
- Bagatti Valsecchi Museum
- Porta Ticinese
The public transport company in Milan (ATM) is very efficient. Four metro lines, tram, buses, trolley-buses, and the passante ferroviario (overground metropolitan train), connect the whole city. You can also take a taxi or rent a bike or bicycle.
The best times to visit Milan are April to May or late September to October. These spring and fall months straddle the city's manic peak season, and they also escape the summer's scalding temperatures.
