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Voykit pocket guide · Italy
Milan
Milano
Give Milan 2 nights: Duomo and Last Supper on day one, Navigli or Brera on day two. Add a third only for Lake Como or a football match.
Milan is Italy's business and fashion capital, not a museum city: the Duomo, the Galleria, La Scala and Leonardo's Last Supper sit inside a compact centre you can walk in a day. Most travellers give it 2 nights as a rail stop between Rome, Venice and the Lakes, or 3 with a day trip to Lake Como. It is grey, expensive and short on obvious sights, but strong on food, shopping, opera and nightlife.
- Country
- Italy
- Local name
- Milano
- Best months
- Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (hot, humid, many businesses closed for ferie in August)
- Stay
- 2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Currency is the euro (EUR, €). Cards and contactless are widely accepted in cities; small cafés, markets and rural places may prefer cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget €60–95 excl. bed · Mid €110–180 excl. bed · High €200+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- TIM, Vodafone, WindTre and Iliad sell prepaid SIMs in shops and at airports; a passport and an Italian tax code (codice fiscale, issued in-store) are needed.
- Emergency
- All emergencies 112 · Police 113 · Ambulance 118
- Plugs
- Types C, F, L · 230 V · 50 Hz · Italian type L plugs have three pins in a row; most sockets also take two-pin Europlugs (C), and bivalent sockets take Schuko (F).
- Tipping
- Bar: Leave €0.10–0.20 of change on the counter if you like.; Restaurant: Coperto or service may already be on the bill; leave €1–2 a person or round up for good service.; Taxi: Round up to the next euro.; Hotel porter or housekeeping: €1–2 per bag or per night.; Tour guide: €5–10 per person for a half day.
- Water
- Tap water is safe unless signed otherwise; Rome's nasoni fountains run all day. Restaurants serve bottled water (naturale or frizzante) unless you ask for tap (acqua del rubinetto).
- Toilets
- Few public toilets; use bars (buy a coffee), museums and stations, where some charge €1.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Espresso at the bar | €1.20–1.80 |
| Aperitivo with a drink (Navigli or Brera) | €8–15 |
| Pizza or a plate of pasta | €10–18 |
| Duomo rooftop terraces (stairs / lift) | €14 / €20 (check) |
| Last Supper timed entry | €15 plus booking fee (check) |
| Metro or tram single ride | €2.20 |
| 5 km taxi3.1 mi taxi | €15–22 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- MXP · Milano Malpensa
- About 40 km northwest; Malpensa Express train or shuttle bus to the centre.About 25 mi northwest; Malpensa Express train or shuttle bus to the centre.
- LIN · Milano Linate
- About 7 km east; Metro Line 4 runs to the centre at normal city fare.About 4.3 mi east; Metro Line 4 runs to the centre at normal city fare.
- BGY · Orio al Serio (Bergamo)
- About 45 km northeast; budget airlines, shuttle buses to Milano Centrale.About 28 mi northeast; budget airlines, shuttle buses to Milano Centrale.
Typical fares
- Malpensa → Milano Centrale, Malpensa Express
- about €13, 50 min (check)
- Linate → centre, Metro M4
- €2.20, about 15 min
- Taxi Linate → centre
- €12–20, more in traffic (check)
Get around
The metro (lines M1–M5) plus trams and buses cover the city; a single city ticket is about €2.20 and a day pass about €7.60 (2026 estimate). The centre is walkable: Duomo to Castello Sforzesco is about 15 minutes on foot. Linate is on Metro M4; Malpensa and Orio use train or shuttle bus.
See and do
Known for
- Duomo and its rooftop terraces
- Leonardo's The Last Supper
- La Scala opera house
- Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
- Fashion and design shopping
- Navigli canals and aperitivo
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Como (Como) | Trenord regional train from Milano Centrale or Porta Garibaldi, about 40–60 min | About 1 h |
| Bergamo | Trenord regional train from Milano Centrale or Porta Garibaldi, about 50 min | About 1 h |
| Monza | Trenord regional train from Milano Centrale or Porta Garibaldi, about 15–20 min | About 30 min |
| Turin | High-speed train from Milano Centrale or Porta Garibaldi, about 1 h | About 1.5 h |
Sleep
- Centro Storico
- Duomo, Galleria and La Scala on foot; highest prices, most noise.
- Brera and Porta Nuova
- Chic streets, galleries and bars; 10–15 min walk to the Duomo.
- Navigli (South)
- Canal-side bars and aperitivo; 20–25 min walk or a short tram to the centre.
- Milano Centrale area
- Best for early trains and airport buses; cheaper, busier and less pretty at night.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello / Good day | Buongiornobwon-JOR-no |
| Please | Per favoreper fa-VO-reh |
| Thank you | GrazieGRAH-tsyeh |
| How much is it? | Quanto costa?KWAN-to KOS-ta |
| The bill, please | Il conto, per favoreeel KON-to per fa-VO-reh |
| Where is the toilet? | Dov'è il bagno?do-VEH eel BA-nyo |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Say buongiorno (until mid-afternoon) or buonasera on entering shops and bars; avoid: Walking in and pointing without a greeting
- Cheek kisses: Two kisses, right cheek first, among friends; follow their lead; avoid: Kissing strangers or in business settings
- Dress: Smart-casual in cities; covered shoulders and knees in churches; avoid: Beachwear, bare chests and flip-flops away from the beach
- Queues: At delis and pharmacies take a number (numerino); avoid: Assuming the crowd at a bar counter is chaos — pay at the till first where asked
- Restaurants: Wait to be seated and ask for the bill; avoid: Splitting a bill item by item with a large group
- Conversation: Food, football and family are safe openers; avoid: Mafia jokes and north–south stereotypes
- Dinner at a home: Bring pastries, wine or flowers (not chrysanthemums, which are for funerals); avoid: Refusing seconds too firmly
Scams and watch-outs
- The Last Supper is viewable only by timed, pre-booked ticket, in small groups: book weeks ahead or you will not get in.
- Most museums and many shops close on Mondays.
- Pickpockets work the Duomo square, the metro and Milano Centrale; keep bags zipped in front.
- In August many restaurants and shops shut for ferie; check before you plan around a specific place.
- Anyone offering you a 'free' bracelet or petition near the Duomo is setting up a distraction: walk on.
Milan is generally safe by day; the real risks are pickpockets around the Duomo and Centrale, and drink spiking or overpriced bar tabs at night. Keep bags in front, watch your drink, and ask the total before ordering in tourist-strip bars.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Milan yet. Suggested stay: 2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Duomo and its rooftop terraces
- Leonardo's The Last Supper
- La Scala opera house
- Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
- Fashion and design shopping
- Navigli canals and aperitivo
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Comune di Milano: www.comune.milano.it/
- Milan tourism portal: www.turismo.milano.it/wps/portal/tur/en
- Wikivoyage: Milan, revision 5331933 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5331933
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
MilanMilano
A questo indirizzo, per favore
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
The US has a consulate-general in Milan; the UK, Canada and Australia have consulates or embassies in Rome (check addresses).
Tipping is not expected; a coperto (cover charge) often appears on the bill. Round up or leave €1–2 a person for good service.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/milan). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.