Tips for Visiting the Beautiful and Impressive Milan Duomo Italy
The Milan Duomo, the Cathedral, is THE site in this northern Italian city.
And I think it’s well worth visiting.
Now, I’m not necessarily a fan of Milan.
It doesn’t have the ambience of Florence or Rome or Venice.
But Milan may be worth a couple of days if only to experience the grand Cathedral.
You know me, I’m a fan of visiting religious buildings while traveling in Europe.
Okay.
Let’s put this site on the map then dive into some tips for visiting the Milan Duomo.
Where is Milan with its grand Cathedral?
Milan is in northern Italy.
Specifically it’s in the Lombardy — Lombardia — region.
And Milan is the capital of this region.
The Milan Duomo is pretty central in the historic center of the city — although maybe a little in the southeastern part of the circle.
And it has a big piazza in front of it.
You can’t miss it!
Buy your ticket in advance
I highly recommend buying your ticket in advance to visit the Milan Duomo.
It’s super easy to do online.
And you can choose how much of the Duomo you want to visit.
You can just visit the Cathedral.
You can only visit the terraces (the rooftops).
Or you can do some kind of combination of these.
This is a very large site so there is a lot to see.
Choose what you are interested in and what you have time for.
Take a guided tour
I chose to take a guided tour of the terraces and the Duomo itself.
I took the Fast Track Tour which is 2 hours.
You spend an hour on the terraces and then an hour inside the Cathedral.
The group was limited to 20 and yes, it was in English.
We had headsets so we could hear the guide.
It was worth the €35!
I learned quite a bit about this impressive Duomo.
And there were things the guide pointed out that I’m quite sure I wouldn’t have noticed on my own.
Again, booking a guided tour is easy via the Milan Duomo website.
Be ready to climb some steps
If you do go up to the terraces — which I highly recommend — you will need to climb and descend some stairs.
While you get to take a lift (elevator) up, there are more steps to get you even higher.
And then there are steps all the way down.
You don’t take the lift back down — just an FYI.
So if you are not okay with stairs, then do not go to the terraces (rooftops).
But if you are good with stairs, then I highly recommend touring this part of the Milan Duomo.
Be prepared for crowds
As I said, the Milan Duomo is THE most popular site (along with DaVinci’s Last Supper painting) in Milan.
So it will be a busy site.
And if you visit in the high tourist season (think May to September), then it will be exceptionally crowded.
I visited in mid-October and it was quite busy.
I’m sure it is busier in summer, but it was still busy enough especially on the terraces where there is less room to move.
It’s just a good idea to be prepared.
Why the Milan Duomo is worth experiencing
This Cathedral is a WOW piece of architecture.
Construction probably began in 1386.
It was decided that this new church would be built in the area of the ancient basilicas of Santa Maria Maggiore and Santa Tecla.
You can actually see the remains of these along with the Baptistery of San Giovanni alle Fonti in the Archaeological area (which I highly recommend seeing).
And the Milan Duomo was not finished until 1965 when the final details of the façade were complete.
So it took almost 6 centuries to build and decorate.
That’s a long time!
The Milan Duomo is actually the largest church in Italy — the larger St. Peter’s Basilica is in the State of Vatican City, which is a sovereign state and thus, separate from Italy.
It happens to also be the third largest church in the world.
So, this Cathedral is incredible for its size, but it’s also worthy of time because it’s just so gorgeous.
Restoration on the structure continues on a regular basis which you can see when you look at the marble.
And you’ll see cranes inside the building as well.
Often this means you may not be able to access certain areas of the Cathedral due to safety issues.
But, trust me, you’ll see plenty of the Milan Duomo.
My thoughts on the Milan Duomo
As I said at the beginning, Milan — Milano — is not really a city that is a favorite of mine.
I will admit that on this second visit for me (I was here very briefly overnight in 2008), I connected with it a bit more.
I do think if you have a reason to be here, such as if you fly into or out of the airport or if you train through here, you may want to spend a night or 2.
And the main reason is so you can tour the Milan Duomo.
I was so impressed by this Cathedral.
It’s truly magnificent and awing — completely worthy of the time and money.
Have you been to the Milan Duomo?
Leave me a comment!
I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Logistics for visiting the Milan Duomo
Visit the website for all information on tickets and tours.
Do note the following:
- Dress appropriately — no hats, shorts, short skirts, tank tops or bare midriffs
- No large luggage although you can take in smaller backpacks
- No food or drink other than water in plastic water bottles
- No flash photography or video
- Be sure your phone is turned to silent mode
If you do tour the Cathedral on your own, please allow enough time.
As I mentioned, it’s a massive building and will take time, especially if you include the terraces.
This is not a site to spend 30 minutes in!
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