Help Needed A few days in Milan with family...

[GisnMark]

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this, but I'm looking for a few ideas for our upcoming trip to Milan in mid - March.
I did a quick search here, but after 2 or 3 pages, the general theme seemed to be folk were either flying in and out of Milan
airports or flying in and using it as a jumping point to get away from the city asap!

There will be 6 of us all together - hopefully not attached at the hip!
Monday to Friday - We arrive about midday, but the others don't arrive until about 4.30 pm.
Tuesday is the reason we are there - my Mum's birthday and we have bought her and her friend tickets for La Scala that evening.
4 of us will go and do something nearby and meet them afterwards. (Looking for reasonably priced dinner ideas near La Scala!)
We are split 3 and 3 where 3 don't have much of a budget at all and 3 are ok, but not going for anything outrageously expensive!
2 of us have tickets to see the Last Supper on Wednesday morning at 9am.
Other than that, all is open and unknown!
There are plans in the offing to go to the Naviglio district on Thursday. Any recommendations there? I can't find any of the pleasure boats, so I presume they aren't running in the winter!
So, basically we are looking for personal recommendations for restaurants, bars, must see sights and all on a low to med budget!

 

[Linda Ross]

I will post a few more when I have time but for now I recommend this restaurant in the Navigli.

We ate there last October and it was great! It's not super close to La Scala but you can hop on tram 3 and be there in 10 minutes.

We booked through Fork/ tripadvisor and got 20% off food and beverages. My Ossobuco Milanese was excellent.

Osteria della Darsena

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaur...ews-Osteria_della_Darsena-Milan_Lombardy.html

 

[Linda Ross]

Check out Da Noi 2 - also in Navigli district. They get mixed reviews and I can't speak for their pizza but they have a seafood spaghetti dish called Cartoccio - it's covered and baked in a thin layer of pasta dough. It is excellent. Prices great. Looks like they are hooked up with Fork/ tripadvisor as well so book through them and get a discount.

https://www.thefork.it/ristorante/da-noi-2/204673

 

[Linda Ross]

Luini is a 2 minute walk from La Scala - they have delicious and cheap panzerotti - snack food but filling. I use to eat this in the late 80's on my way to work in Milan - sooooo good.

Milan is known for Aperitivo. Many restaurants include complimentary food with the purchase of a drink. It typically starts at 6 pm or so. I really like Deseo - Corso Sempione and Mag Cafe in the Navigli for Aperitivo. Just be careful - some places close to Mag Cafe on Ripa Ticinese offer pretty bad food.

Good luck. I love Milano. Hope you do too. Enjoy the birthday celebration! What a wonderful gift - tickets to La Scala : )

 

[Sara]

Have you considered to visit the roof of the Dom? You can either go up through the stairs or with the lift. It's an incredible experience.

 

[Christine]

Just returned from 4 days in Milan (part of extensive trip).

I concur with Luini, quite a line when we were there but it moved quickly. We did go to the top of the Duomo, but it's become quite the ticketing process. There is a separate office now for tickets to go to the top via stairs or lift plus tickets to go into the cathedral itself. We visited on a Monday after seeing enormous lines on the previous Saturday.

We saw the Last Supper, La Scala, the Galleria (glad to see the McDonald's is no longer there - or if still there, I just didn't see it - old photo attached) - if you go to the Galleria, gotta grind your right heel on the nether regions of the bull located in the center of the building, and turn three times.

Oh, there's a very interesting Starbucks roastery there - not a coffee drinker but we oohed and aahed at the place. Very long line and they were admitting people in small groups. If you use the washroom, there's an electric eye in the long sink that activates the water so you can wash your hands. Again, this was on a weekend.

We have relatives who live on Corso Sempione so stay close to their flat (they have incredible views from the 11th floor of their building). They took us to Pizzeria Campuano's for a good meal: http://www.capuanos.it/

Again, we have visited often enough that we can get around on our own. Walked through Montenapoleone but the windows in all of the high end shops seem to be the same in every city...maybe more in Milan?

Our hotel was close to the Peace Arch so walking was a breeze.

Movie director Wes Anderson has a bar/cafe in Milan now - Bar Luce - if you are into that kind of thing.

 

[Christine]

Forgot to mention - we took the train to Lugano and had a great time there for most of a day. On past trips, we've taken the Metro to Como and taken a ferry to Cernobbio or to Bellagio - walked around.

The only drawback to our Lugano trip was that we traveled there on a Sunday. Most of the town was closed down but there was a lovely park that we walked to - also found a chocolate shop in the train station where we did some major damage. It was a beautiful day with lots of sunshine (and swans at the park).

 

[Alpinista]

There is a wonderful museum of medieval works in the Sforza Castle.

https://www.milanocastello.it/

 

[susan]

I spent a couple of days in Milan back in 2011 and loved it!

I would also recommend climbing to the top of the Duomo and visiting the Sforza Castle.

Accidentally while lost, I stumbled upon this amazing church, called the Chiesa di San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore, located on the corner of Corso Magenta and Via Luini. There are incredible frescoes covering all of the walls.

Have a wonderful time there & happy birthday to your mum!