TORTONA

Tortona District is a busy area of Milan attended by folks and tourists all year. Moreover, every April, Tortona District becomes the center of the Design Week, with the creative glitterati of the design world attending vernissage events and furniture pop-ups, while every fall and winter, the District becomes the center of the Fashion Week with stylish crowds and inspired designers: Moncler, Herno and Ermenegildo Zegna all have showrooms or offices in Tortona District, and there is Armani/Silos, a museum dedicated to the history of the label. It is the center of creativity and culture, the streets are surrounded by restaurants, boutiques and museums. Museo delle Culture di Milano (MUDEC), designed by architect David Chipperfield, has become a destination gallery with blockbuster exhibitions from the likes of Jean-Michel Basquiat and Frida Kahlo; cult arthouse cinema, Cinema Mexico, screens classic films from all eras as well as new indie releases.

Porta Genova

ISOLA

Isola District, literally translated the ‘Island’, is now considered one of the coolest places to live. The area is surrounded by shiny skyscrapers and apartment blocks (including Stefano Boeri’s ‘vertical forest’) alongside classic 19th century residences, great restaurants and bars.

Porta Garibaldi

Zara

CHINATOWN

Milan’s Chinatown is located in Via Paolo Sarpi, the main street of the neighbourhood. It is not as decorative as its equivalent in New York, but it is an animated and unique area of Milan. Just north of the central Parco Sempione and walking distance from Brera District, Chinatown is surrounded by restaurants, bars, pubs and shops where you can find deals and bargains.

Moscova

PORTA ROMANA

Porta Romana is home to the city’s leading contemporary art destination, Fondazione Prada, and the infamous nightclub, Plastic. The streets are surrounded by immaculately kept avenues of distinguished apartment buildings that house some of Milan’s wealthiest residents and a vibrant neightbourhood with bars, restaurants and shops frequented by cool yuppies.

Porta Romana

PORTA VENEZIA

Porta Venezia is a vibrant neighbourhood frequented by cool yuppies surrounded by fashionable bars and cafés, restaurants, galleries and shops. In fact, here you can step on the commercial shopping strip Corso Buenos Aires, one of the most important and famous shopping streets in Milan. In contrast with Via Montenapoleone, which specializes in haute couture and luxury fashion, Corso Buenos Aires is the most popular destination in Milan for high street shopping. The best time to shop at Corso Buenos Aires is after Christmas and during summer when attractive 'sale' tags spring up all along the street.

Porta Venezia

CENTRE

The “Duomo” Cathedral is literally at the center of Milan. Streets radiate from the cathedral or circle it. The cathedral occupies a site that has been the most central location in the city since its founding. The Duomo Cathedral dominates the crowded square, always full of shoppers, tourists, street artists and eclectic people. It is possible to visit it inside and on top up to the “Madonnina” and snooping in the “Museo del Duomo” (Cathedral Museum). The square is surrounded by bars, cafés and boutiques. Between the Cathedral and the Scala Opera House stands the famed Gallery Vittorio Emanuele II, a magnificent shopping arcade in Milan, covered with a glass and iron roof. The interior of the impressive five story structure is decorated with patriotic mosaics and statues. Since it is one of Milan's most popular attractions, the Galleria is constantly crowded with locals and tourists, the latter often snapping pictures or gazing at the spectacular architecture. Others window-shop at the upscale stores or take a break at one of the Galleria's cafés and restaurants. The most famous is the Savini, a prestigious restaurant. Walking down the arcade of Vittorio Emanuele Street to the Church of “San Babila“ you meet the famous fashion street “via Monte Napoleone”. True shopaholics and fashion aficionados headed for Italy have no doubt heard that they need to make a stop at the Quadrilatero della Moda (Fashion District) in Milan. Indeed, Milan's Fashion District provides some of the best shopping opportunities in Europe, especially for those with discriminating tastes who seek the best that money can buy. Shopping there is a great opportunity to hobnob with the affluent locals. Most first-time visitors are simply awed and overwhelmed by the large concentration of haute couture labels. There's more than just fashion in this centrally located neighbourhood. Graceful mansions from the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries line the streets, so architecture buffs will find something to admire as well. Since the nineteenth century this area has been known as the Quadrilatero d'Oro (golden quadrilateral), a name that stems from all the palatial buildings that were erected here by wealthy citizens. Several of these mansions are home to museums, such as the Museo Bagatti Valsecchi, which is housed in a luxuriously decorated mansion in the Via Gesù. The area defined as the Fashion District includes such famous streets as Via Montenapoleone, Via Della Spiga and Via Manzoni. Most of these streets are pedestrianized, making this area perfect for an afternoon stroll. Each of the streets has its own list of design houses. The Sforzesco Castle is one of Milan's most important landmarks. It long served as a symbol of power for local and foreign rulers. At the start of the early twentieth century the castle was saved from demolition and now houses a number of civic museums. Near the castle just outside the historic center of Milan stands Sempione Park, a forty-seven hectare (116 acres) large park There are a number of noteworthy buildings and monuments in the park such as a large triumphal arch and a more than one hundred-meter-tall tower. Santa Maria delle Grazie church is one of Milan's most beautiful churches thanks in part to its architectural history, which resulted in an intriguing combination of Gothic and Renaissance design. But the church's fame is mostly a result of Leonardo da Vinci's 'Last Supper', which can be admired in the adjoining refectory.

Duomo

San Babila

Montenapoleone

BRERA

Located in the historic center, but with no hint of the chaos of Duomo, Brera exemplifies everyone’s romantic vision of life in a European city. The buildings are elegant, classy, and almost on every corner of every paved street there is an old world Pasticceria, luxury retailer or fine restaurant. In addition to the public museums Pinacoteca di Brera and Museo del Risorgimento, there are also many sleek commercial gallery and design spaces. Brera residents are some of the wealthiest and most stylish people in Milan, from old-school suited men and to young street-style couples pushing designer prams, you’ll see out at brunch looking impeccable. Head to Via Montenapoleone for all of the top designer stores, the small streets adjacent to Via Brera for bohemian cafés and Orto Botanico Brera for relaxing. Close to the Brera district and just a short walk from the Milan Porta Garibaldi station, there is Corso Como, one of the most important streets in Milan for the city's nightlife. It is home to restaurants, pizzerias, pubs and lounge bars, a hotspot at night in the Lombardy capital, especially during the fashion week, when it is packed with names from showbiz. Corso Como is also the address for some of the most famous national and international discos, like Hollywood Milano, Loolapaloosa, and Toqueville. During the Fuorisalone, the famous event held to coincide with the international furniture exhibition, Corso Como hosts various events and initiatives that are always very popular. Probably the best known and most popular location here with Milanese citizens is 10 Corso Como, a corner of Milan where art, fashion, music, design and cooking meet up. The inner courtyard leads to a shop selling unusual limited-edition articles: clothes, bags, accessories, footwear, books, records and objects. On the first floor, the famous Galleria Carla Sozzani holds temporary exhibitions and is the ideal place for shopping, chilling out and discovering new metropolitan and international trends. There is also a restaurant and a café with tables outside for relaxing and meeting people in a setting with unusual appeal.

Moscova

Montenapoleone

Turati

NAVIGLI

The Navigli District– literally, “the canals” has a unique atmosphere, very different from what you will find in the rest of Milan, today the district is indelibly associated with night-life – the “movida”. Navigli is the name of the triangle bounded by the 2 Milan’s rivers (Naviglio Grande and the Naviglio Pavese) which are headed by the Porta Ticinese dock and covering a large part of the southwestern quadrant of the city. Walking on the towpath of the “Naviglio Grande” you will encounter a bustling and a bit bohemian neighbourhood: the courtyards that inter-connect in a maze of little alleyways and streets are home to art galleries, antique dealers and bookshops, crowded with trendy restaurants, boutiques and ethnic markets full of fresh and organic produce, and at night the bars and clubs open for aperitivos, music and dancing. It is also the chosen scene for many events, initiatives, exhibitions and festivals, such as the annual NavigaMI boat show, and the annual Fuori Salone, the famous event held to coincide with the international furniture exhibition. Along the canals you can find the boats that allow to visit the “Navigli” canals. Along the canals in fact there are real treasures such as vintage residences, mills, castles, abbeys and hydraulic engineering. The towpaths of the canals can be travelled by bicycle for a total of about 150 kilometers and there are also several navigation routes. The “Darsena” area of Milan and the “Naviglio Grande“, is very characteristic even for a walk that allows you to enjoy at least a little ‘atmosphere of this particular corner from Milan. In addition to the many bars, restaurants and craft brewers do not miss the opportunity to look around a bit ‘in the courtyards that open along the towpath that hide unexpected treasures. One of these is where the headquarters of the “Centro dell’Incisione Alzaia Naviglio Grande“: this centre hosts a small exhibition for his 40 years of life. At the “Darsena” dock you will find a small covered market, while not far away, along the towpath of the “Naviglio Grande“, there is the beautiful “Mercato Metropolitano” (Metropolitan Market). Located in the former warehouses of the railway “Porta Genova” the Metropolitan Market is a project that promotes sustainable purchasing and the short chain model. It is designed as a real farmer’s market, with manufacturers and street food, vegetable gardens in deposit box and a small supermarket. There is also an area dedicated to children where they are organized art workshops in different languages and open-air cinema. The Porta Genova Metropolitan Market is open from morning until late at night. But let’s start from the beginning: Milan was a city of water. Perhaps no one would say today, looking at its traffic congested streets and buildings that rise vertically up as if to touch the sky. But until a few years ago, the capital of Lombardy was a river city and still today the canals of Milan are the most obvious evidence. Even the “Duomo” (the Cathedral of Milan) was built thanks to the ships. There are five canals (in Italian “navigli”): “Bereguardo“, “Grande“, “Martesana“, “Paderno” e “Pavese” and their history is very old. The canals of Milan were in fact built in the twelfth century and thanks to these waterways was possible to connect Milan to Lake Maggiore, Lake Como, the city of Pavia and the Po river. The “Water Ways”, that’s how were called the canals in Milan, liquid roads that allowed the transport of goods, food and even entire armies, allowing Milan to grow and develop more and more, through trade with the cities and neighboring countries. The construction of canals, or rather, to their navigation, also worked Leonardo da Vinci, that that ‘400 was commissioned by Ludovico il Moro to design a system to allow you to reach by river Lake Como, starting from Milan. The canals of Milan were implemented and used by up to ‘800 when, made obsolete by cars, were gradually abandoned and, in many cases, underground. Then, after a period in which the canals of Milan poured into a state of neglect, almost forgotten by people, these ancient waterways were rediscovered and began to groped to give them a new life. Today the Navigli and Darsena district is full of educational and historical-cultural routes. But this is also a sort of new soul of Milan, trendy and nice.

Porta Genova

Missori

CITTA' STUDI

Milan is contemporary, stylish, beautiful, and a little crazy. It’s nearly the perfect European city. It is one of those cities that brings in thousands of students, thanks to both the city’s appeal and the quality of its universities. Città Studi has a lot of academic history. In the 1930s, a complex of university buildings was built, and today the neighbourhood is named after them, City of Studies, which also refers to some faculties of the University of Milan in the same area. Città Studi is home to some of the main universities in Milan, so it’s natural that all your neighbors will be students. Leonardo square is the oldest of the university's campuses still in use. The first buildings on Piazza Leonardo da Vinci were inaugurated in 1927. Over the years, the complex has been expanded and the campus extends over several streets: Leonardo, Bonardi, Clericetti, Mancinelli, Gran Sasso and Colombo. The Leonardo Campus is the main campus of the university, which hosts the Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural and Food Sciences, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, and Exercise and Sports Sciences, Engineering and Architecture faculties, along with the central administration offices, the rectorate, and most of the research departments.

Lambrate

Piola

LAMBRATE

Also known for the production of artisan beer, Lambrate District is surrounded by historical buildings that nowadays turned into student rooms, and the streets are filled with numerous bars, pizzerias (try the Mundialpizza in piazza Piola and The World Pizzeria near Lambrate!), bakeries, gelato shops (try Aloha and Siciliana in Via Teodosio), and other establishments that are essential for any university student. The Birrificio di Lambrate, the oldest micro-brewery in the city, is a great spot for a beer after class. During the Fuori Salone, the famous event held to coincide with the international furniture exhibition, Lambrate District hosts various events and initiatives that are always very popular.

Lambrate

Piola

CENTRAL STATION

Central Station District, is Milan’s futuristic neighbourhood. The Unicredit Tower, Monumento Trombe, and the Bosco Verticale building referred to as the Vertical forest, are a few examples of the new age buildings that decorate the skyline in this area. In turn, they clash with the epic 20th-century architecture of the city’s main train station. Aside from being a very touristic area, it’s also Milan’s economic district, which turns Central Station District into a very busy neighbourhood. If you love living in the center of the city, this is your go-to district. It’s also convenient to live here to be on time for the train whenever you’re off to visit other Italian cities! Even if you study in Statale, from Centrale, 3 stops on the green line leaves you 10 minutes away from Città Studi and the Politecnico.

Centrale

Centrale