So you’ve made it this far, you’ve decided you’re going to Milan to watch football. That’s great, you’ve made a fantastic choice. Not only are there two Serie A teams based there, the stadium they share is the most iconic in World football. There’s plenty of other options too, if you want to squeeze as much out of the trip as you can. Flights are cheap from London to Milan and there’s plenty of them available. So here’s the ultimate football fans guide to hanging out in Milan.
Getting Around
Couldn’t be easier in Milan. Depending on your airport there’s a few ways into town. From Malpensa just get on the train that goes from each terminal. They terminate at Centrale, but go through Porta Garibaldi too which is another of the main stations. Tickets are available at the kiosks in the terminal and the station, the machines change languages to make it easier. The train takes around 45 minutes and costs roughly €15.
If you’ve come in to Bergamo then you’re best bet is to take one of the coaches to Milan Centrale. For €10 you get 45-60 minutes sat on an air conditioned coach straight into the centre of Milan. You can also take a bus to Bergamo station, then an hour long train to Milan if you prefer but the coaches are easy enough. You can either pre-purchase tickets in the terminal or buy from the guys at each bus stop.
Taxis are available at both airports but cost around €150 each way to Milan, so I wouldn’t waste my time with them. There is a third airport, Linate, which is a bit like London City. Congratulations if you’ve landed here, you’re rich and flew BA. It’s on the main Metro network in Milan so very easy to the city centre from there.
Speaking of the Metro, Milan has a really easy to use Metro system. It has 5 lines that all cross over with each other and connect to the vast Tram network too. You can buy an adult three day ticket for around €15 so getting around is so easy and so cheap. Just be a bit careful if visiting before the end of October, there’s major work being done to the tram lines so they’re running slightly odd routes at the moment.
The Metro is clean, well lit and efficient, used by everybody in Milan, it’s a safe and cheap way to get around the city.
Eating and Drinking
So the first thing to highlight is that Milan is really not a “party city” like places such as Prague, Budapest etc. but you can still have a pretty decent night out here. I would head to Isola where there’s a much younger vibe and the bars will be lively and loud. In the summer you can drink just about anywhere that has outside seating and have a nice chilled evening.
Speaking of chilled, in the evening before your meal, get to Navigli. The canal area is served by the M2 at Porta Genova station, and the canals are lined with bars and locals enjoying an aperativo before their dinner. Later at night this becomes a busy and very “cool” area.
Nightlife-wise, head down to Piazza Duomo after dinner. There’s some good clubs and bars in the vicinity of the Duomo, but be expected to pay a little more. More to the point, in the Piazza there will be crowds of people hanging out after a few beers, enjoying the night time views of the Duomo listening to street musicians, very nice vibes.
For food, you can’t really go wrong, this is Italy after all. However, one place we ALWAYS stop by in Milan is Piz! on Via Torino. The pizza place is a short walk from the Duomo and you should get a free glass of Prosecco while you wait as well as a limoncello to finish. The pizza menu consists of two pizzas and one “surprise” pizza. They won’t tell you what it is before it’s served, but you can tell them what you don’t want it to contain!
It’s ridiculously cheap for its quality and location, a plain margherita pizza will set you back around €9 – and it’s massive. Bring your football stickers, downstairs the walls are covered with them.
The best advice on eating in Milan is to look a bit further than the end of your nose. If you like Italian food you can’t go wrong in Italy! Avoid eating in any of the major squares and Piazzas, if they have pictures of the food outside the restaurant it’s a red flag. If they have someone stood outside trying to get you in, it’s a red flag. Turn down the side streets, find the little family run place, it’ll be incredible.
It might seem an odd recommendation but if you like Indian there’s a great place near the San Siro which is smashing after a few beers at the football. Take the number 16 tram from the stadium to Via Dolci Via Ricciarelli and you’ll see it in front of you, Namaste Indian Restaurant. It says on Google it’s open until 10:30pm but I think that’s last entry because I’ve been in there after a 9pm kick off before! I know, you should be eating Italian food in Italy but it’s really convenient post match, open late and to be honest, is fantastic food.
Breakfasts are easy enough, again, look for any small family run cafe (there’s millions) and set yourself up with a Cappuccino and a pastry of some sort to experience an Italian breakfast like a true local. I don’t think I’ve ever paid more than €10 for this breakfast in Milan.
Football
So if you’re going to Milan to watch football, you’re probably going to the San Siro to see either Inter or AC. But there’s a million other options that are so convenient. Before we go into that, here’s some advice on doing a San Siro tour. Firstly, definitely do it, it’s well worth it. But secondly, be aware that you can’t do it the day of or the day before a match. The day after I think it’s open, but you won’t be able to get in there on match day or the day before.
So to the other teams, you want a full on Calcio weekender? Can’t go wrong in Milan. Starting in the city of Milan itself, as well as Inter and AC, you have several Serie C teams. Alcione Milan, Inter U23 and Giana Erminio all call Milan home. Well, Giana actually play in Gorgonzola (yes the cheese place), but it’s on the Milan metro at the very end of M2 line.
Slightly further afield in Serie C you have Lecco (1 hour train) with spectacular views over Lake Como and the mountains from the stadium. In Serie B you have Monza (20 minutes train) and Mantova (1 hour train) all local to Milan and then, of course, in Serie A you also have Como (45 minutes train) up the road. You also have Atalanta playing in Bergamo which is accessed by around 45 minutes from Milan. Interested in Jamie Vardy? Cremonese play in Cremona around an hour’s train from Milan.
You can also end up in Switzerland watching football, I’ve done it before, the train to Chiasso takes around 1 hour from Milan and from there you can either watch Chiasso or SC Balerna if you want to squeeze two countries into your trip.
If you want my recommendation, the trip to Switzerland is good, but be aware of train times, an evening kick off rather than night game is as late as you want to be there. I’ve been to Como and Lecco to watch matches. Both are on different shores of Lake Como and both spectacular. However, you’ll probably struggle for Como tickets and the price of food and drink there isn’t smashing. Lecco offers the same beautiful backdrop while being a more affordable alternative. The town is still really nice and you can have a sunset beer by the lake before walking up to the ground. They also have lively ultras so the atmosphere will be more what you’re looking for.
Other than that, Bergamo is beautiful too, but I’d recommend giving that and Atalanta their own trip rather than squeezing it into a Milan trip. I went to Gorgonzola to see Giani Erminia, the stadium is small and quaint, the town quiet but it’s worth a little trip out if you’re a fan of cheese.
Day Trips
We’ve sort of already covered it above with the football but if you’ve had your fill of Milan (and in truth you can see what you need to in two days) then head out of town for a day. Como and Lecco are again going to be two of the more popular choices, given the lake and the beauty of it. However, if you can find your way to Bellagio in between the two you’ll have uncovered a hidden gem. It’s not the easiest accessed place, which is how it remains so uniquely Italian, but it’s accessible the easiest by boat from Como or Varenna.
If walking up hills is more your thing, you need to hit Bergamo. The city is split into the upper city and lower city. And you’ll see why when you’re there. There is a funicular train that goes up to the upper city and that’s where the best food and drink and sights are. It’s a much more chilled and cheaper version of Milan and is a great place to spend the day with less people surrounding you. The train here is around 45 minutes from Milan and costs €6.
What to do in Milan
When you’re actually in Milan if you’re looking for a bit of culture or something to do other than football and drinking, then your next best bet is shopping. Milan is the fashion capital of the World and you’ll find every single designers flagship store here. Head to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Piazza Duomo to marvel at clothes you can’t afford. The Ferrari store is cool if you like large F1 cars hanging from a ceiling.
Around here as well you’ll find more reasonably priced designers behind the Duomo and down Via Torino is your normal high street brands. My daughter tells me that something called Kiko Milano is around half the price in Milan that it is in the UK so if you have girls, stop off and get a gift!
Other than shopping, history is everywhere in Italy and Milan is no different. Firstly, in the Duomo, a spectacular old cathedral the interior is absolutely magnificent. But as well as going inside, you can go on top of it. The Duomo rooftop gives great views of the Piazza below and most of Milan, take the lift though, it’s worth the extra few euros!
Brera is the neighbourhood to go to if you like things a little trendier than historic. Great food options here as well as nice buildings for a walk around. You can get here on the M2 to Moscova station. Isola as mentioned above is a cooler neighbourhood nearby, think East London. the Bosco Verticale buildings that split the neighbourhoods are worth a quick photo.
If religious artwork is your thing, The Last Supper fresco by Leonardo Da Vinci is at the Santa Maria Della Grazie church near Sant Agostino station. You want to see this, you need to book early. Tickets are released on a monthly basis and go immediately. So much so that after 8 trips to Milan, I’ve still never seen it. Tickets then get gradually re-released so just keep an eye on the website. There’s a number of other Da Vinci themed things to do here too, like his private vineyards.
If you take Via Dante from the Piazza Duomo and walk around ten minutes (plenty of watering holes to break this up) then you’ll end up by the largest Inter Store, but more importantly there’s a big castle and large open air park at the top there. Perfect for a romantic stroll and some Instagrammable pics if you’re combining the football with a trip for the other half!
See if you can spot the flamingos kept in a private garden in the “posh end” of Milan too. Head to Palastro on the Metro and walk to Via Cappuccini, they’re just sat there grazing in a garden there. Quite bizarre.
That’s really it, like I’ve mentioned before, Milan isn’t a party city, nor is it a particularly busy city for tourist attractions. Milan is there to self indulge. The food and drink is great, the shopping is wonderful and the football is the heartbeat. It’s a city I’ve been to many times and each time I come back much more refreshed than when I went, which isn’t true of a lot of city breaks.
Take some time for yourself, do a bit of shopping, a bit of sight seeing, then eat some great food and sip on a cold beer and watch the world go by. All before taking in a match at the San Siro.
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