The Milan travel guide

Milan is fashion, design and a single 19th-century shopping arcade that defines the centre. The Duomo is the third-largest cathedral in the world by interior volume and the most ornate Gothic exterior in Italy. The rooftop walkway (138 spires, panoramic city view) is a separate timed ticket. Across the Piazza del Duomo, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II covered arcade connects to La Scala, the city's opera house. Sforza Castle and Parco Sempione anchor the western edge of the centre with a 15-minute walk from the Duomo through the pedestrianised Via Dante.

Da Vinci's Last Supper at Santa Maria delle Grazie is one of Italy's hardest tickets. Only 35 visitors are admitted per 15-minute slot, and standalone tickets sell out 4 to 8 weeks ahead. Guided tour combos that pair the Last Supper with Sforza Castle, the Duomo or the Brera Pinacoteca often have availability when standalone slots don't. The Pinacoteca di Brera holds Raphael's Marriage of the Virgin, Mantegna's Dead Christ and Caravaggio's Supper at Emmaus. The Triennale Design Museum and the Museo del Novecento round out the modern picks.