Navigli & Tortona in Milan

The name Navigli refers to the waterways that once helped Milan prosper. What remains is a compact district with a strong social pulse: the canal banks fill as the sun goes down, bars spill onto the pavements and nearby clubs take over later. The area rewards a daytime visit too, especially for its design, food and independent shopping.

Getting around Navigli and Tortona

Porta Genova on the M2 green line is the most convenient metro stop for the canals. Sant'Agostino, also on the M2, is a useful arrival point for Parco Solari and Viale Papiniano. From either station, much of the district is easiest to cover on foot.

Tram 3 connects the shops of Corso di Porta Ticinese with Piazza XXIV Maggio and the Alzaia Naviglio Pavese. Tram 9 runs east to west along Viale Col di Lana and Via Vigevano. Dedicated cycling paths circle the Darsena, although pedestrians often make them slow going.

Walk Ticinese, Navigli and Tortona

This 3km route takes about 2 hours and follows Milan's alternative side from Ticinese to the canals, then west toward Tortona. It begins among vintage and streetwear stores, passes ancient religious and harbour landmarks, and finishes at a former factory now devoted to culture and creative work.

1. 01Start on Via Giacomo Mora, where Cavalli e Nastri operates two opposite shops, one for men and one for women. The racks are carefully edited and can include YSL, Hermès and other sought-after labels. Bivio offers a broader spread of brands and prices, which improves the odds of finding a second-hand bargain.
2. 02Follow Corso di Porta Ticinese to the imposing Colonne di San Lorenzo. Sixteen Corinthian columns survive from Milan's Roman period. They were recovered from a ruined Roman structure and reset here to form the portico of the church. Today the space belongs equally to the city's history and its everyday life, from lunchtime workers to couples meeting beneath the stone.
3. 03Continue to Basilica di Sant'Eustorgio, one of Milan's oldest churches. Built in the 4th century to receive the sacred bones of the Three Kings, it lost them when they were taken in the 12th century. Some relics remain, as does the enormous marble sarcophagus that carried them from Constantinople.
4. 04Cross Piazza XXIV Maggio to reach the Darsena, the city's former main harbour. The old dock is now a pedestrian square with a food market. At Macelleria Popolare, Giuseppe Zen's meat-led street food includes mondeghili, the Milanese meatballs.
5. 05If your visit falls on the last Sunday of the month, walk the Mercatone dell'Antiquariato along the Naviglio Grande. More than 400 carefully selected dealers lay out everything from nonna's teacups to space-age '70s lamps, making the market an excellent place to browse for a few hours.
6. 06Move on to Armani/Silos, a concrete museum devoted to the designer's work. Its subdued colours, relaxed tailoring and flowing dresses show why Giorgio Armani's style became internationally recognised.
7. 07Finish at Base, a cultural venue, coworking space and bistro in the former Ansaldo complex. Its programme can range from small arts festivals and experimental film screenings to DJ sessions and club nights in the courtyard.

Design, fashion and canal culture

Design Week and Fuorisalone

Fuorisalone began as an extra event around the furniture fair Salone del Mobile and has grown into a free festival lasting a week. The official Fuorisalone programme brings makers, buyers, curators and curious visitors to Milan in search of new ideas and professional connections. It welcomes people beyond the design industry, although the most popular exhibitions can produce queues of an hour or more.

Regular highlights have included a polished Hermès interiors collection and an unexpected installation by Dimorestudio. Alcova is particularly known for placing emerging designers in memorable settings, from a vast abandoned factory one year to historic 19th-century villas another. The website publishes the complete programme for each edition.

Armani/Silos

Giorgio Armani's museum occupies a boldly modern concrete structure made from a former Nestlé grain silo. Armani/Silos follows almost 50 years of the designer's career through around 200 outfits and roughly the same number of accessories from his ready-to-wear collections. Admission is adult/child €12/6.

The display moves from Armani's Eastern influences to the deconstructed suits that became famous on Richard Gere and Michael Jordan in the '90s, then to luminous beaded gowns worn by Hollywood stars. A digital archive opens out onto the full body of work, and an elegant cafe provides a place to recover after the galleries. Temporary exhibitions about fashion and design appear regularly, with past subjects including photographers Guy Bourdin and Peter Lindbergh.

Aperitivo on the canals

An aperitivo by the Navigli is one of Milan's essential rituals. The tradition is popular with visitors, but the combination of a pre-dinner drink, glowing water and canal-side people-watching still feels distinctive. Not every bar offers the same quality, so be wary of unusually cheap drinks and staff calling out to passing visitors.

For a more dependable stop, choose the vintage-filled Mag Cafè, known for cocktails built with unusual herbs and syrups. Its tiny neighbouring bar, Backdoor 43, offers a more intimate setting. Farther along the water, Rita has been a local favourite for more than 20 years, thanks to serious cocktails and attentive service.

Mercatone dell'Antiquariato

The monthly antiques market is a reason in itself to walk the canals. On the last Sunday of every month, the Mercatone dell'Antiquariato runs along the Naviglio Grande from Viale Gorizia to Via Valenza, with additional stalls extending down Via Corsico and Via Paoli. More than 400 vendors offer a wonderfully unpredictable mix: life-size leopard statues, mid-century chairs, '70s futuristic lamps, cameo brooches, second-hand jeans and military clothing. Opening hours are 9am-7pm.

MUDEC and the cultures of the world

The Museo delle Culture, usually called MUDEC, occupies the former Ansaldo factory. British architect David Chipperfield reworked the industrial complex into a sequence of translucent glass and concrete rooms. Its purpose is dialogue between people and world cultures, rather than a single linear story of Milan.

The free permanent display traces Milan's international connections from the 16th century to today through more than 500 objects. Globalisation, Italian imperial ambitions and multiculturalism appear among its themes. An ornate sedan reflects the city's 18th-century fascination with the Orient, while Christopher Veggetti Kanku's Oggi per domani (Today for Tomorrow) considers Italy's changing social fabric. Temporary exhibitions have included Jean-Michel Basquiat viewed through race and identity, and Frida Kahlo's aesthetic alongside Indigenous Mesoamerican artefacts. For a major splurge, book upstairs at Enrico Bartolini, the city's only three-star Michelin restaurant.

Listings: eating, drinking and shopping

Use the price marks as a quick guide: € is budget, €€ is midrange and €€€ is top end. The schedules below preserve the published patterns for these places, but confirm them before making a special journey.

Eating

Street food

• ✦Macelleria Popolare € - Inside Mercato Comunale, this 'Popular Butcher' serves substantial street food such as mondeghili, the Milanese meatballs, and lampredotto, made with cow stomach. Hours: 11am-11pm Tue-Thu, to midnight Fri-Sun.
• ✦(R)esistenza Casearia € - Giuseppe Zen's cheese bar, also inside Mercato Comunale, puts together tasting plates of Lombardy's finest raw-milk cheeses. Hours: 11am-11pm Tue-Thu, to midnight Fri-Sun.
• ✦LatteNeve € - Carlo Lanzoni makes excellent ice cream from organic ingredients, including the signature Grigio Milano (Grey Milan). There are plenty of vegan choices. Hours: 12.30-11.30pm Mon-Thu & Sun, to midnight Fri-Sat.

Pastries, cake and coffee

• ✦Gattullo € - Since 'Peppino' Gattullo opened this pastry shop in 1961, it has become a much-loved local institution. Morning queues are worthwhile for the oven-fresh sfoglia al mirtillo, or blueberry pastry. Hours: 7am-9pm Tue-Sun.
• ✦Pasticceria Cucchi € - This family-run pastry shop dates from 1936 and remains in Cucchi hands. Its petits fours, small sandwiches and prime people-watching make it a piece of Milanese history. Hours: 7.30am-9.30pm.
• ✦Hygge €€ - A warm Milanese interpretation of Danish cosiness, with plants, Nordic details and a menu that includes smørrebrød. Hours: 9am-3.30pm Mon-Fri, 10am-4pm Sat-Sun.

Trattorias

• ✦Osteria del Binari €€€ - An elegant bistro with old-fashioned charm, generous handmade pasta, Milanese classics and a garden wrapped in vines. Hours: 7am-3.30pm & 7.30pm-1am.
• ✦L'Osteria Grand Hotel €€ - One of the city's few genuinely traditional Italian taverns, serving robust Lombard cooking beneath a summer-wisteria pergola. Hours: 12.30-2.30pm Sat-Sun, 7.30pm-midnight Tue-Sun.
• ✦Trattoria della Gloria €€ - A young team has refreshed the neighbourhood trattoria with pared-back Italian food and careful technique. Hours: 12.30-3pm Sat-Sun, 7.30pm-midnight Wed-Sun.

Neo-bistros

• ✦Nebbia €€€ - A young, well-trained team pairs fashionable interiors with modern cooking, turning this contemporary bistro into a neighbourhood favourite. Hours: 12.30-3pm & 6pm-1am Wed-Sun.
• ✦Bentoteca €€€ - A former sous chef of Massimo Bottura reworks Japanese dishes with Italian ingredients. The grilled bone marrow is a standout. Hours: 12.30-3pm Fri-Sun, 7-11pm Wed-Sun.

Upmarket dining

• ✦Langosteria €€€ - Local opinion puts this polished restaurant among Milan's best seafood addresses. Order raw red prawns from Sicily, fish carpaccio or crab linguine. Hours: 6pm-midnight.
• ✦Enrico Bartolini €€€ - Plates arrive like small artworks, with concentrated flavours from the eponymous chef at Milan's only three-star Michelin restaurant. Hours: 12.30-2pm & 7.30-10pm Tue-Sat.

Drinking

Wine bars

• ✦e/n enoteca naturale - More than 4000 labels support Milan's enthusiasm for natural wine here, alongside satisfying small plates and an outdoor area with views toward the basilica. Hours: 6-11.30pm.
• ✦Bicchierino - Five creatives started this spare, stylish wine bar, now a favourite with stylists and photographers. Expect natural wines and plates made for sharing. Hours: 6pm-midnight Tue-Sat.

Cocktails

• ✦Mag Cafè - Curious herbs and house syrups shape the inventive cocktails, which arrive in vintage glassware among eclectic decoration. Hours: 8am-2am Mon-Fri, 9am-2am Sat & Sun.
• ✦Rita - This sleek American-style bar has kept local drinkers happy for the last 20 years with original cocktails and clever variations on classics. Hours: 5.30pm-2am Mon-Sat.
• ✦Ugo - Its cosy retro interior suits a modern Gatsby in search of a rum- or whisky-based drink. Hours: 6pm-2am Tue-Sun.

Clubs and cultural venues

• ✦Base - The former Ansaldo complex hosts workshops, concerts and open-air parties, especially during summer, alongside its cultural and coworking programme. Hours vary.
• ✦Arca - Students come for free Sunday-afternoon club sessions at this bunker-like venue, which also works as a bar, bistro and gallery. Hours vary.
• ✦Apollo Milano - Milan's fashion crowd comes to this industrial loft for electronic and trip-hop nights beneath a glittering disco ball. Hours vary.
• ✦Superlove - A small, central option for pop, house and electro when you want a night out without travelling far. Hours: midnight-5am Fri & Sat.

Shopping

Fashion

• ✦Frip - A husband-and-wife DJ and stylist team selects avant-garde clothing from labels such as Acne, Our Legacy and Eytys for this understated shop. Hours: 11am-2.30pm & 3.30-8pm Mon-Fri, 11am-2pm & 3-8pm Sat, 3-8pm Sun.
• ✦Biffi - Retailer Rosy Biffi recognised the promise of Giorgio Armani and Gianni Versace before either designer became a household name. Browse her selection of major fashion labels. Hours: 10am-7pm Mon-Sat.
• ✦Mauro Leone - Handmade-in-Italy shoes cost less than €100 here, from kiwi-green suede moccasins to ballerina pumps in Ferrari red. Hours: 1-7.30pm Mon & Sun, 10.30am-2.30pm & 3.30-7.30pm Tue-Sat.

Concept stores

• ✦Tenoha - Direct from Tokyo, Milan's only Japanese concept store combines a sleek cafe with homewares and design, coworking and a gallery. Hours: 10.30am-8.30pm Mon-Fri, to 9.30pm Sat, to 8.30pm Sun.
• ✦NonostanteMarras - An ivy-covered courtyard hides Antonio Marras's concept store, where darkly romantic clothes meet whimsical interior design. Hours: 10am-1pm & 2-7pm Mon-Wed, to 5pm Sat.

Vintage and unusual

• ✦Cavalli e Nastri Uomo - Across from the women's branch, the men's shop is a treasure chest of tailored suits, patterned Armani knitwear and beautiful Hermès ties. Hours: 10.30am-1.30pm & 2.30-7.30pm Mon-Sat, noon-7.30pm Sun.
• ✦Bivio - This buy-sell-trade shop deals in high-quality preowned women's fashion at a fraction of its original retail price. The men's branch is a few doors away. Hours: 11am-7.30pm.
• ✦Il Meneghello - Osvaldo Menegazzi began making and selling handmade Tarot cards in the '70s, and his niece continues the family practice. The decks range from playful cat designs to reproductions of 18th-century classics. Hours: 11am-7pm Tue-Sat.

Map index

The neighbourhood map identifies places with letter-and-number squares. The index below keeps those references with the sights, eating places, bars and shops in this chapter.