South Milan is a district of the city of Milan. South Milan is a
mainly residential area of Milan, near which the Prada Foundation is
located. This part of the city looks like an ancient village, full
of services and shops, and is characterized by being the greenest
area with the cleanest air in the city of Milan. If you like
greenery, here are the largest parks in Milan including the Mirasole
Oasis and the Vettabbia Park.
In the south of Milan are the
canals (Navigli) which in the past were used for navigation from the
Lombard countryside, where there are numerous trendy clubs and
restaurants, while other water reserves are located further east
around Porta Ticinese.
How to orient yourself
Neighborhoods
Ticino
Quadronno
Roman Gate
Navigli
Mouthfuls
How to get here
The M2 and M3 underground lines connect the area to the centre, but
if you are visiting the area around Porta Ticinese and want to walk as
little as possible, you can take the tram.
There is a railway
station near the Navigli; Porta Genova station. It is currently used
only for local trains from Mortara, a town in the Pavese area about 55
km away.
Historical monuments
1. Porta Romana (Roman Gate)
The gate at the southeast edge of the
historic center, long known as the “gate to Rome,” has a simpler design
than the more elaborate Ticino gate. Milan already possessed a Porta
Romana as part of its Roman-era walls; that original entrance stood
farther inward, near present-day Piazza Missori, and marked the start of
the road that led toward ancient Rome. Over the centuries the gate was
rebuilt and shifted outward with each new defensive circuit. The
structure visible today, a monumental triumphal arch completed in 1596,
belongs to the Spanish walls and was erected to honor the arrival of
Margaret of Austria. The name later passed to the surrounding district
and to the nearby Metro station.
2. Rotonda della Besana
This
late-Baroque / early-Neoclassical complex, built between 1695 and 1732,
began life as a covered cemetery (the “Foppone”) for the Ospedale
Maggiore. A long lobed brick portico encloses a garden, with the former
church of San Michele ai Nuovi Sepolcri at its center. After the
cemetery was closed in the late eighteenth century the buildings served
various secondary uses before becoming municipal property. Today the
Rotonda functions as a public garden and cultural venue; since 2014 it
has also housed the MUBA children’s museum, while the deconsecrated
church and porticoes continue to host temporary exhibitions.
3. Porta
Ticinese (Ticino Gate)
The area around the present neoclassical gate
(designed by Luigi Cagnola and completed in the early nineteenth
century) preserves one of Milan’s most atmospheric historic
neighborhoods. Much of the streetscape escaped serious damage during the
Second World War bombings, retaining a dense, traditional character. In
the evening the Milanese still enjoy strolling past the nearby Colonne
di San Lorenzo—sixteen Roman Corinthian columns, originally from a
second- or third-century public building, that were re-erected in front
of the Basilica of San Lorenzo in late antiquity or the early Middle
Ages.
4. Medieval Porta Ticinese (Porta Cicca)
Roughly 600 meters
farther north along Corso di Porta Ticinese stands the surviving
medieval gate, popularly called Porta Cicca. Erected in the twelfth
century as part of the walls rebuilt after Barbarossa’s destruction of
the city, it is one of only a handful of medieval Milanese gates still
standing. In 1861 the architect Camillo Boito restored and slightly
altered the structure, opening two side arches beside the original
single passageway and adding Guelph merlons. The gate remains a tangible
fragment of the city’s medieval defensive ring and sits close to the
Colonne di San Lorenzo and the basilica.
Churches
5. Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio
Piazza Santa
Maria delle Grazie 1-2 (near the northern bank of the Naviglio Grande).
This church, located in the western part of Milan near the Naviglio
Grande, shares its name with the more famous UNESCO World Heritage site
but is a distinct building. The present structure, designed by architect
Cesare Nava, was built between 1901 and 1909 in a neo-Romanesque style
with neo-Gothic elements and consecrated in 1909. It is the third church
on the site. An earlier chapel from 1556, built to house a miraculous
image of the Madonna, was later replaced by a larger Baroque church that
suffered a major fire in 1719. The growing local community led to the
demolition of the Baroque building and construction of the current
larger church. The unfinished brick façade faces the canal. Inside, the
Latin-cross plan features three naves, a protruding transept, and an
octagonal tiburium. Some granite columns come from the quadriporticus of
San Paolo fuori le Mura in Rome. Modern stained-glass windows were added
between 1988 and 1996.
6. Church of Santa Maria al Paradiso
Corso
di Porta Vigentina 2-18.
Constructed at the end of the 16th century
for the Third Order of St. Francis (Terziari Francescani), the church
was designed by Martino Bassi, with the first stone laid in 1590 under
Archbishop Gaspare Visconti. Much of the original interior, including
decorations and paintings, has been preserved. The single-nave interior
of Ionic order includes eight interconnecting side chapels. A fresco of
the Assumption on the barrel vault (originally by Andrea Pellegrini,
later repainted by Ferdinando Porta in 1737) remains a highlight. The
neo-Baroque façade was added in 1896–1897 by Ernesto Pirovano. The
church houses a notable 1827 organ by Antonio Brunelli and a round stone
traditionally linked to St. Barnabas and the early Christianization of
Milan (associated with the local “Tredesin de Marz” tradition).
7.
Church of Santa Maria presso San Celso
Corso Italia 39.
This
late-15th-century church and shrine, also known as Santa Maria dei
Miracoli presso San Celso, was begun in 1493 by Gian Giacomo Dolcebuono
and Giovanni Battagio to house a miraculous icon of the Madonna.
Initially planned with a central layout, it was soon expanded. The
octagonal dome, externally covered by a drum with a loggia and arcades
featuring twelve terracotta statues by Agostino De Fondulis, was
designed in Lombard style by Giovanni Antonio Amadeo (1494–1498). By
1506 a nave and aisles were added, along with a polygonal ambulatory
inspired by the Duomo. The imposing Mannerist façade, designed by
Galeazzo Alessi and completed by Martino Bassi, is richly decorated with
statues and reliefs by Stoldo Lorenzi and Annibale Fontana. The interior
contains important works by Milanese Renaissance and Baroque artists,
including Gaudenzio Ferrari (Baptism of Jesus, with Giovan Battista
della Cerva), Moretto (Fall of St. Paul), Paris Bordone, the Procaccini
brothers, Cerano, and others. A revered marble statue of the Assumption
by Annibale Fontana (1586) stands in the left transept.
8. Basilica
of Sant’Eustorgio
Piazza Sant’Eustorgio 3.
One of Milan’s oldest
churches, with early-Christian origins traditionally linked to Bishop
Eustorgius I and the relics of the Magi (later taken by Frederick
Barbarossa). The present façade is a neo-Romanesque restoration carried
out by engineer Giovanni Brocca between May 1864 and August 1865. It has
the characteristic gabled (a capanna) form with protruding arches
beneath the upper cornice. The interior is divided into three naves
covered by cross vaults. Of particular importance is the Portinari
Chapel (1462–1468), commissioned by the Florentine banker Pigello
Portinari. This Renaissance masterpiece, frescoed by Vincenzo Foppa with
scenes from the life of St. Peter Martyr and the Virgin, also houses the
monumental Ark of St. Peter of Verona by Giovanni di Balduccio
(1335–1339). The basilica was the main Milanese seat of the Dominican
Order from the 13th century and remains closely associated with the Magi
tradition and the annual Epiphany procession.
9. Basilica of San
Calimero
Via San Calimero 4.
The basilica today appears as a
neo-Romanesque building. Its terracotta façade was completely rebuilt,
and the interior was decorated in a medieval style with
Pre-Raphaelite-inspired paintings, the result of a radical 1882
intervention by architect Angelo Colla that sought to restore an
idealized Romanesque appearance. The crypt preserves the altar-tomb of
Bishop San Calimero (an early bishop of Milan, traditionally martyred
nearby); his bones were moved there in 1609 at the behest of Cardinal
Federigo Borromeo. The crypt, rebuilt in the 16th century, has vaults
frescoed by the Fiammenghini brothers and is supported by eight serizzo
columns. The site has very ancient origins: it stood in a cemetery area
outside the early city walls, possibly over a pagan temple of Apollo,
and was already the subject of works under Bishop Lorenzo I around
490–512. Traces of the Romanesque phase (southern flank and apse)
survive, while earlier Baroque interventions by Francesco Maria Richini
were largely removed in the 19th-century rebuilding.
10. Church of
Santa Maria della Pace
Via San Barnaba 42.
Externally the church
is in Lombard Gothic style, restored during the works of around 1900. It
serves as the seat of the Northern Italy Lieutenancy of the Equestrian
Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. The gabled brick façade faces
a courtyard rather than the street. The left side is marked by a
succession of projecting side chapels, and a small porch precedes the
side entrance near the façade. The interior has a single nave of five
bays in a sober Renaissance style superimposed on the original Gothic
structure, which remains visible in the fabric. The cross vaults are
decorated with 15th-century frescoes of radiant suns bearing the
inscriptions “PAX” and “IHS.” Valuable frescoes by Gaudenzio Ferrari
(and also by Bernardino Luini) once adorned the church; detached
sections are now exhibited in the Pinacoteca di Brera. The rectangular
apse contains frescoes by Tanzio da Varallo (1630–1633). Construction
began in 1476 under Guiniforte Solari, with support from Bianca Maria
Visconti and Galeazzo Maria Sforza, and was completed in 1497.
11.
Church of San Pietro in Gessate
Via Chiossetto 20 (or Piazza San
Pietro in Gessate).
Dating to the 15th century (construction roughly
1460–1476), this church is a fine example of Lombard architecture of the
period. The design is attributed to Guiniforte Solari or his son Pietro
Antonio. It is divided into three naves with square-plan bays covered by
ogival cross vaults and flanked by two rows of polygonal-ended chapels.
Granite Corinthian columns replace the traditional Gothic compound
piers, reflecting early Renaissance influence. The church was badly
damaged by bombing in 1943 and subsequently restored. It preserves
important Lombard Renaissance frescoes, notably in the Grifi Chapel
(Stories of St. Ambrose by Bernardino Butinone and Bernardo Zenale) and
works by Giovanni Donato Montorfano. The current façade appearance
results largely from a 1910–1912 restoration by Diego Brioschi that
recovered its Lombard Renaissance character while retaining the
early-18th-century central portal.
12. Church of San Barnaba
Via
della Commenda 3 (south Milan).
The façade of San Barnaba is a pure
example of Mannerist architecture. The church was built to a design by
the Perugian architect Galeazzo Alessi beginning around 1561 (work
continued into the later 1560s) as the mother church of the Clerics
Regular of St. Paul, known as the Barnabites. The interior has a single
nave with three chapels on each side; the walls are richly decorated
with gilt stucco. A raised presbytery leads to a square choir and
semicircular apse. Notable artworks include the Stigmata of St. Francis
by Giovan Paolo Lomazzo, a Pietà by Aurelio Luini, and two large
canvases of the Histories of Sts. Paul and Barnabas by Simone Peterzano
(1572–1573), his first major Milanese commissions. Vault frescoes were
added by Camillo Procaccini in 1625. The first Mass in the rebuilt
church was celebrated by Cardinal Charles Borromeo in 1568 on an altar
he himself had donated.
Parks and gardens
13 Guastalla Gardens (Parco della Guastalla), Entrances: via
Francesco Sforza, via San Barnaba, via Guastalla (Reachable from via
Crocetta, metro stations: Porta Romana, Missori or even San Babila. Not
far from the Duomo). Mon-Sun 7am-7pm (March 8pm, April and October 9pm,
May-September 10pm). Among the oldest (founded in the 16th century), but
rather small, gardens in Milan, and are very close to the university
district. However, the parks were only opened to the public in the 20th
century. You can take a nice walk there, and it also has a classical
temple-like structure as well as a sort of pond with a Baroque-style
railing surrounding it.
14 Pope John Paul II Park (Park of the
Basilicas). Mon-Sun 6.30am-10pm (April-June 11pm, July-September
11.30pm). The old name derives from the fact that it connects two
basilicas: San Lorenzo and Sant'Eustorgio. It was once a place for drug
use and anti-social behavior but thankfully it has been cleaned up and
redesigned over the last decade and is now more pleasant.
15 Vittorio
Formentano Park (Largo Marinai d'Italia). A park with many different
trees in southeast Milan, at the site of a former market. The park also
houses an Art Nouveau building, called Palazzina Liberty, where theater
performances and concerts are held.
Museums
16 Diocesan Museum, corso di Porta Ticinese, 95. Located in the
Cloisters of Sant'Eustorgio, part of the ancient Dominican convent, the
museum houses works owned by the Diocese of Milan.
17 Ansaldo atelier
laboratories - Teatro alla Scala, via Bergognone, 34. Museum divided
into three pavilions in which it is possible to see the workers at work
with the sets of the various shows and the warehouse which preserves the
thousands of costumes that were used during the performances At La
Scala. Exceptionally it is also possible to visit the tailor's shop.
18 Museum of Sant'Eustorgio, piazza Sant'Eustorgio, 3.
19 MUDEC
(Museum of Cultures), via Tortona 56, info@mudec.it.
Other
20 Palazzo Sormani, corso di Porta Vittoria, 6. Today the building
houses the central municipal library
21 Luigi Bocconi University -
New Headquarters, via Corrado Guglielmo Röntgen, 19. Designed by the
Irish company Grafton Architects, and, more precisely, by Shelley
McNamara and Yvonne Farrell, it is an excellent example of contemporary
architecture in Milan.
Prada Foundation.
Navigli Once the
center of the city's commercial life (the industrial canals), these cute
"Milanese par excellence" spots are now home to many late night clubs,
and today, there's a nice mix of antique shops, funky bars and trendy
boutiques.
The Navigli are made up of:
22 Naviglio Grande. On the
last Sunday of each month there is an antiques market along the Naviglio
Grande. On either side of the canal are restaurants and shops, including
bookstores.
23 Naviglio Pavese.
24 Vicolo dei Lavandai, vicolo
Privato Lavandai, 2-6. Up until the first half of the 20th century, in
this alley near the Naviglio Grande, which supplies water to the El
Fossett stream, laundresses cleaned their clothes equipped with buckets,
soap-brushes and bleach while kneeling on the wooden brellin.
25
Palazzina Liberty, Largo Marinai d'Italia. Designed in 1908 by the
architect Alberto Migliorini, it was originally part of the Verziere,
the ancient fruit and vegetable market which existed from 1911 to 1965.
It is the only structure still remaining today of the ancient complex.
It is characterized by large windows, a classic art nouveau facade and
internal decorative motifs of ceramic tiles. Since 1994 the Milano
Classica Chamber Orchestra has held its concert season there; it is also
home to the Casa della Poesia.
Milan Auditorium, Largo Gustav Mahler. The home of the Verdi
orchestra with a program of classical and modern music.
1. Teatro
Carcano
Corso di Porta Romana, 63
One of Milan’s historic
theatres, inaugurated in 1803 on the site of a former convent.
Originally built as an opera house (modelled on La Scala), it hosted
important premieres and performances throughout the 19th century,
including works by Donizetti and Bellini, and a legendary concert by
Paganini. After periods of decline, reconstruction, and use as a cinema,
it now focuses primarily on prose theatre, dance, and contemporary
performances. Conveniently located near the Crocetta metro station (M3)
and Sforza/Policlinico (M4).
2. Rita
Via Angelo Fumagalli, 1
Tel. +39 02 8372865
An established cocktail bar in the Navigli area
(opened in 2002) that remains a benchmark for quality mixing in Milan.
It follows a strict philosophy of using only fresh fruit and natural
ingredients — no artificial syrups or pre-made mixes. Ideal for
well-crafted cocktails or a light meal, with a classic American-bar
atmosphere that has earned it recognition among Europe’s top bars. Open
Monday–Saturday evenings (typically from around 17:30/18:00 until late);
closed Sundays.
3. Cicco Simonetta (Circolo Arci Cicco Simonetta)
Via Cicco Simonetta, 16A bohemian-style Arci cultural club and pub with
a relaxed, informal atmosphere. It hosts comedy shows, musical
performances, and other live events. Mondays often feature special beer
promotions (historically around €3). A local spot popular for casual
evenings of drinks, entertainment, and a more alternative vibe near the
Porta Ticinese/Navigli district.