72 Hours in Milan

Issue #28

Welcome to the New Roman Times’ new 72 Hours series! Why 72 hours? Because the New York Times publishes a “36 Hours” series, but in my opinion, 36 hours isn’t nearly enough time to spend in Italy’s greatest cities and most compelling regions. From time to time, I’ll spotlight popular destinations like Milan, Florence, Venice, and the Amalfi Coast for paid subscribers. Have a place you’d like a 72 hours guide to? Email me or leave a comment here!

Milan Design Week kicks off next Tuesday and while I’m not going, I do have a bit of a soft spot for this rather underrated city. I neglected to go when I lived in Rome from 2009-2011 because the city was maligned as gray and industrial, without the grand monuments of Rome and Florence. When I finally visited Milan for the first time in 2017, I found that my expectations didn’t line up with reality at all. In contrast to the rather drab picture in my head, I found a dynamic city full of visual inspiration and a cosmopolitan outlook. 

People say that the 2015 Milan Expo was a turning point for the city, injecting a huge investment of money and creative energy into it. Perhaps if I had visited Milan before the Expo, I wouldn’t have liked it as much as I did in 2017 and still do now. Who knows? All I can tell you is that since that first trip, I have returned a handful of times, most recently in January of this year, and every time I visit I find more things to love. 

I have yet to see and do everything (I never manage to plan far enough in advance to get tickets to see Da Vinci’s Last Supper), but I put together a little guide to 72 hours in Milan featuring some of my personal highlights. 

DAY ONE

Get your bearings in the centro storico, visiting key sights like the Duomo and Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, before hopping over to the hip Navigli, which comes alive in the evening.

The new Portrait Milano is the talk of the town

12 p.m. - Arrive at Milano Centrale and check in at Portrait Milano

It takes three hours to get to Milan from Rome on the Frecciarossa high speed train and arriving at Milano Centrale always feels like you’re making a grand entrance. It was actually modeled on Union Station in Washington D.C. and features a melange of several architectural styles, including Liberty and Art Deco.

During my most recent trip, I was lucky enough to stay at the new Portrait Milano, a member of the Leading Hotels of the World run by the Ferragamo fashion dynasty. Opened last year in a historic seminary around the corner from fashionable Via della Spiga, it’s definitely the talk of the town. I loved the glamorous residential-inspired design, which features polished wood and rattan, plus luxurious marble bathrooms. 

1 p.m. - Lunch at 10_11

Everyone in Milan seemed to be buzzing about Portrait's talented young chef Alberto Quadrio and his elevated take on pasta in bianco, so grab a table at the hotel’s casual bistro 10_11 and try it for yourself. Marco and I did just that during our trip and loved it. Far from your average pasta with butter and cheese, it’s actually cooked in a broth made with parmigiano reggiano rinds and topped with crunchy bits of parmigiano. It’s brought to your table in a big silver tureen, tossed with the sauce, and finished tableside.