Overview
Scroll down

Ambience

The Little Black Book of Milan

We asked natives and lovers of this grand city, colleagues and acquaintances, for their favourite places.

Let them show you around their Milan.

In Porta Venezia, the Indro Montanelli public garden, created by the ruling Habsburgs in 1784, was the first Milanese park expressly intended for the recreation of the people.

At any moment you can find yourself immersed in completely different worlds, from the Biblioteca degli Alberi di Milano park, to the hectic hubbub of the business districts to the excited chatter of the crowds that flock to its fashionable shopping streets. The city is energized, restless, lively not only in its glamorous and best-known sites but also in many of its less well known suburbs.

One thing I’ve learned in all the years that I have been going to Milan, is the best way to unveil it is simply to walk. So much of what makes it such a fascinating place is hidden treasures like the Giardini della Guastalla, a fairytale garden, with a 17th century Baroque fish pond enveloped in nature. It’s beautiful to stop here and pause in contemplation, among the students from the nearby university or young families gently observing their children at play.

Anna Morelli
Founder & Editor in Chief
Cook_inc

01 Via Abramo Lincoln

20129 Milano

An explosion of colour

A village of brightly coloured fairytale houses, complete with shutters and thin passageways, dinky gardens and gnomes, feels otherworldly having been engulfed by metropolitan Milan. Being essentially closed to anything but the home owners and their (tiny) cars make this piccolo Portofino a tranquil little idyll to happen upon and catch your breath.

Notice the delicate floral decorations, feeling of community and riot of colour, it more than compensates for the modest size of the quaint abodes. Ultimately you are left with that feeling very few neighbourhoods achieve, ‘I would love to live here.’

Andrea Manzara
Videographer
Parallelozero

“For me this place embodies the best superpower of the city: the ability to be different from itself in every single corner and still a masterpiece as a whole.”

Andrea Marzara

02 Giardino delle Culture

Via Emilio Morosini, 8
20135 Milano

The power of art

What was once derelict has been brought to vibrant life, with street art on a truly grand scale.

This is a public space, for everyone. Giant pots house ornamental plants, children enjoy the play park, grown-ups enjoy designer benches from the German Expo 2015 Pavilion. All are dwarfed by the artwork of Millo, alias Francesco Camillo Giorgino. The murals on the adjacent buildings define the space and free the spirit.

Typical Milan, an embarrassment of riches await the observant.

Martina Panarello
Brand Communications Specialist
Gaggenau

It reminds me of a quote from one of my favourite books: “The remains of pruning are sufficient to compose something delicate, the half-dead plants of the neighbour are enough to start a forest.”

Martina Panarello

03 Giardini Indro Montanelli

Via Palestro, 14
20121 Milano

Wander through wonder

To uncover Milan, you need to get out of the taxi (always a relief) and start walking. Begin at the beautiful Indro Montanelli public park, bordering on the Porta Venezia area, and head south-east. The gardens give way to the architectural bounty of Corso Venezia: Grand Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo and Neoclassical aristocratic villas sit alongside upscale shops, all trying to impress. Stroll, slowly, and look up, every facade tells a story.

Continue towards Villa Necchi Campiglio (a must see as previously mentioned), making sure you don’t miss side streets like Via Cappuccini, peeking through the high iron fences for a vibrant surprise.

Micaela Calabresi
Visual Consultant
Parallelozero

“As a kid, going to see the flamingos after school was like an exotic adventure. A chance to escape from reality for a magical second.”

Micaela Calabresi

04 Giardini della Guastalla

Via Francesco Sforza
20122 Milano

The Garden of Eden

This is a very, very old, small, formal garden in the centre of Milan, a place for assignations, hushed tones and furtive glances. Beginning life in 1555 as an education school for ‘noble but fallen girls’, this ancient garden has grown over the centuries with trees that have been quietly maturing since the Renaissance. An ornate Baroque pond centrepiece, the “peschiera”, formal layout and air heavy with history, gives the space its grandeur.

A timeless place in a city that never stops, it is stoically unchangeable, beyond fads and fashion, a reminder to pause, compose oneself and carry on.

Anna Morelli

It’s an oasis of peace, a place to regenerate in the heart of the city. A break from the bustle.”

Anna Morelli

05 BAM - Biblioteca degli Alberi Milano

Via Gaetano de Castillia, 18-20
20124 Milano

The park that climbs buildings

Beneath the canopy of Il Bosco Verticale ‘the Vertical Forest’ with its 20,000+ trees, shrubs and plants, exists a thoroughly modern park, BAM, managed by Foundation Riccardo Catella. Less a tranquil, passive, plant-fest, more a severe geometric springboard for over 200 free cultural activities and educational events a year. Walking tours stride out in all directions, keeping a watchful eye on the latest architecture and graffiti art. Kids have their section, there’s a HIT boot camp and it even has its own yoga instructor. This is a park that has been put to use. Come prepared to work for your relaxation.

Erica Sagripanti
Brand Communications Manager
Gaggenau

“This is the modern, innovative Milan: a contemporary park under the Bosco Verticale.”

Erica Sagripanti

The Little Black Book continues