Western Milan is the part of the city that encompasses its only UNESCO World Heritage Site, which includes a famous painting. Other sights are a cemetery with - as the name reveals - monumental tombs, and the old fair centre where you might end up if you are visiting Milan on a business trip.

Get in[edit]

45°28′26″N 9°9′38″E

Map of Milan/West

Western Milan includes the key hub for the Trenord railway network, the 45.468229.176411 Milano Cadorna station.

The metropolitana is a convenient way to get to most points of interest in this area. Quite a few stops on the red line (Line 1) of the Metro are in Western Milan. Line 2 brings you to Cadorna, not far from Sempione Park and Santa Maria delle Grazie.

See[edit]

Museums[edit]

• 45.462899.170651 Leonardo da Vinci Museum of Science and Technology (Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia), S.Vittore Street (reachable by bus or subway, Sant'Ambrogio  M2  Station). Tu-F 09:30-17:00, Sa & holidays 09:30-18:30. As the name tells, it is a museum to learn more about science and technology. Hosted in a former monastery, San Vittore al Corpo. €10, concessions €7.50, disabled and children under 3 free. Guided tours €8 or €10 with reservation.  
• 45.47249.1742 Triennale (Triennale di Milano), Alemagna St (bus 61; Cadorna-Triennale  M2  Station; or by walking through Parco Sempione from Castello Sforzesco), ☏ +39 02 72434244. Tu-Su 10:30-20:30. Museum of Design and Architecture, always has 4-6 exhibits on the subject of design, photography or modern art, at least 1-2 of which are always free entry. Adult €10; student, under 26 or senior €8.50; child up to 16 free. (updated Nov 2019)

Churches and other buildings[edit]

• 45.4658339.1711113 Saint Mary of the Graces (Santa Maria delle Grazie) (trams 20-24-29-30; Cadorna  M1  M2  Station, or Conciliazione  M1  Station), ☏ +39 02 92800360. Houses the famous Last Supper ('Cenacolo Vinciano') by Leonardo da Vinci. It is best to reserve tickets a few weeks or months before the visit. Canceled reservations are sold from 08:15 every morning (if there are any, best to show up in person). The church and the painting are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. If you arrive without tickets, you can buy a pass to five DaVinci museums for €38 that will get you in to see the Last Supper. €10 (+ €2 advance booking fee) booking information. (updated Sep 2019)
• 45.477919.144924 Palazzo del Sole 24 ore, Via Monte Rosa 91. An office building hosting the business magazine Sole 24 Ore and an example of modern Italian architecture. 
• 45.4859589.1725445 Deposito Tranviario Messina, Via Messina 39. The tram deposit is an example of early 20th-century Italian industrial architecture with an impressive iron gridded ceiling.  
• 45.4913149.1683696 Villa Simonetta, Via Stilicone 36. A 15th-century Renaissance villa with a massive loggia. The villa has functioned as a candle factory, opera house and hospital, now hosting a music school.  

Monuments[edit]

• 45.4858319.1790567 Cimitero Monumentale. Milan's old cemetery in Neoclassical style. It is filled with lavish sculptures, impressive mausoleums and monuments. Well worth a visit!  

• 45.4756979.1724088 Arco della Pace (Porta Sempione) (northwestern corner of Parco Sempione). The triumphal arch of peace stands at the place at one of Milan's seven city gates. First the gate was known as Porta Giovia and was closer to the city center. Porta Sempione means "Gate towards Simplon", and once the road leading over the Simplon Pass to Paris went through this gate. The current gate was built in the early 19th century and at that time it was referred to as Arco della Pace.  

Parks[edit]

• 45.4733339.1752789 Sempione Park (Parco Sempione). A big space of green land right behind the Sforzesco castle, and one of the most famous and popular in the city. Designed in like a neoclassical landscape garden, there are loads of features - such as a lake, the aforementioned arch of peace, a Roman-style sports' amphitheatre, a tower (which today hosts the Just Cavalli Hollywood), and several interesting features. It's a lovely leafy place to enjoy a walk at any time of the year. Reachable via Cairoli, Lanza, Cadorna or Moscova metro stations depending on what side of the park one refers to.  

Streets, squares and areas[edit]

• 45.46579.1719710 Corso Magenta. An elegant and aristocratic street in the north-western part of Milan. It contains sophisticated cafes and shops, and also some fine, mainly Baroque, palaces, notably the Palazzo Litta, one of the best examples of 18th century Milanese architecture, and also a place in which Napoleon I spent some time. Metro stations Conciliazione, Cadorna, Cairoli and Cordusio are the closest to the avenue. The famous Santa Maria delle Grazie church and convent, where Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper can be found, is very close to the Corso. 
• 45.481339.1752311 Chinatown (Sarpi). Not as big or famous as the ones in London or New York, Milan does also have a Chinatown, dating from the 1920s. Main street is the Via Paolo Sarpi, which is mainly a pedestrian street. Wide varieties of Chinese food is available. See Eat section for specific recommendations.  

CityLife Area[edit]

This area will consist of residential and commercial buildings and skyscrapers and more than half of the area is devoted to parks. Part of this project will also be a Museum of Contemporary Art. A new metro stop (Tre Torri) on an extension of line  M5  will connect this area to the city center.

• 45.47599.157112 Hadid Residences. Designed by Zaha Hadid and completed but not yet in use. 
• 45.47639.152913 Libeskind Residences. Designed by Daniel Libeskind and constructions are completed. 
• 45.4776089.15728914 Allianz Tower (Torre Isozaki) (The Straight One - Il Dritto). It is not accessible, but since it is 207 m high with 50 floors you can see it from far away. Designed by Arata Isozaki.  

Do[edit]

• 45.473299.172891 Torre Branca (Branca tower), Viale Luigi Camoens, 2 (Camoens street, near Triennale, inside Sempione Park), ☏ +393356847122, [email protected]. We 10:30-12:30,16:00-18:30; Sa 10:30-13:00,15:00-18:30,20:30-00:00; Su 10:30-14:00,14:30-19:00. The tower is 108 m high built in 1933 and designed by architect Giò Ponti. From here you can get good views over Milan. €6. (updated Mar 2021)

Buy[edit]

45.466359.162691 Corso Vercelli (Pagano  M1 , Conciliazione  M1  subway stations) is the place in Western Milan to go to for fashion shopping.

Eat[edit]

Budget[edit]

• 45.4810769.1710891 Pizzeria Da Giuliano, Via Paolo Sarpi 60 (In westmost part of the street), ☏ +39 02 341 630. Nice and cozy pizzeria with great, quite thick and large pizza slices. You can choose your toppings and after a few minutes you'll get your slice. Wood burning oven and loads of Mozzarella. 
• 45.4813099.1759372 La Ravioleria Sarpi, Via Paolo Sarpi, 27, ☏ +39 331 887 0596. 10:00-15:00,16:00-21:30. Maybe the best place to have Chinese dumplings in Italy. Many selections available (pork, beef or vegetarian). They also sell a Chinese version of crêpes. Only takeaway. €3 for 4 dumplings, €5 for Chinese crêpes. (updated Jan 2018)
• 45.4808179.1705353 ^{[formerly dead link]} Ciripizza, Via Paolo Sarpi, 63, ☏ +39 02 3656 1221. M-Su 12:00-24:00. Another very yummy pizza restaurant with reasonable prices. Eat in or takeaway. English menu available. €8-12 per pizza. (updated Jan 2018)

Mid-range[edit]

In Western Milan you can find a dense concentration of mid range restaurants at 45.467519.152384 Via Ravizza. In a stretch of 200 m there are over 30 different restaurants (Italian, South American, Chinese, Fusion and others) as well as pizzerias and take away places. The locals call the street Via Rapizza for this reason.

45.467049.152755 Via Marghera, at the end of Corso Vercelli hosts several good pizzerias.

Splurge[edit]

• 45.473129.172956 Just Cavalli, Via Luigi Camoens (inside the Torre Branca, Parco Sempione) (Metro: Cadorna (Lanza is relatively close too)), ☏ +39 02 311817. 19:30-05:00. Found inside the Torre Branca in the big, leafy Sempione park, the Just Cavalli Hollywood was the brainchild of Roberto Cavalli, the fashion designer. It was renovated in 2009-10. For beginners, one can find cheese, tuna tartar, Parma ham, and caviar, and for the main course, you can eat dishes of spaghetti, risotto, small gnocchi with crab, different forms of seafood, veal, steak, and different forms of salads. It also contains some dance floors and three bars. 
• 45.466629.150937 Trattoria da Armando, Via Marghera, 34, ☏ +39 024813482. 

Drink[edit]

A good concentration of nightclubs and bars in this part of Milan is the pedestrian part of Corso Sempione near the 45.476499.171431 Peace Arch (Arco della Pace).

• 45.473529.177532 Bar Bianco, Viale Enrico Ibsen (inside the Sempione Park), ☏ +39 33 3632 3027. It's cash only at this bar, but with Gucci-clad clubbers and their well-suited companions, money seems easy to come by. The life of a party can always be detected in here. 
• 45.479439.179813 Frescobar, Via Bramante 9 (Chinatown area). 
• 45.482139.177264 Il Saloon, Via Niccolini 24 (Chinatown area). 
• 45.485839.168165 Honky Tonks, Via Fratelli Induno, 10 Fiera (near Sempione Avenue), ☏ +39 02 3452562. M-Sa 18:00-02:00. Not exactly a country cowboy bar as the name might imply, a more accurate description would include the smoky lounge feel and the jazz music being played. The drinks are well made and they also serve Tex-Mex style food. 
• 45.485829.160626 Roialto, Via Piero della Francesca 55, ☏ +39 02 3493 6616. Its bland façade conceals a real gem of a cocktail bar/restaurant. It is a very popular spot for after-work drinks, or perhaps a pre-club drink if you're going dancing somewhere like the Gattopardo. 

Sleep[edit]

Budget[edit]

• 45.46419.163341 Hotel Panizza, Via B. Panizza, 5, ☏ +39 02 4690604, fax: +39 02 43400460, [email protected]. 3-star hotel in central Milan Magenta district, offers 22 rooms at affordable rates. 

Mid-range[edit]

• 45.468679.154992 Hotel Wagner, Via Michelangelo Buonarroti, 13, ☏ +39 02 463151, fax: +39 02 48020948, [email protected]. 
• 45.48059.160093 Admiral Hotel, Via Domodossola, 16 (3 km northwest of Duomo, in front of Fiera Milano City exhibition centre.), ☏ +39 02 3492151, fax: +39 02 33106660. Singles from €130. Doubles from €180. 
• 45.482719.164424 Hotel Roma, Via Poliziano, 2 (corner of Via Roma), ☏ +39 02 4581805, fax: +39 02 4500473, [email protected]. 
• 45.484689.162425 Hotel Losanna, Via Piero della Francesca 39, ☏ +39 02 316272, fax: +39 02 3315146, [email protected]. 

Splurge[edit]

• 45.464889.158156 Hotel Capitol, Via Cimarosa, 6, ☏ +39 02 438591, fax: +39 02 43859700, [email protected]. A 66-room 4-star hotel near the Exhibition centre, the Financial district, the airport shuttle terminal, and the underground station. 

Connect[edit]