Milan may not be the first Italian city that comes to mind when you think of budget travelling. But there are definitely plenty of free historic sites in Milan. This often comes as a surprise to many since it’s one of the most expensive cities in Italy. Milan is an industrial city, so many of its visitors are business people who are willing to pay large sums of money to enjoy the city. However, we spent 4 days in Milan and found that our budget went a lot further than we were expecting.
Apart from being the business centre of Italy, Milan is home to a number of incredible historic attractions. It amazes me that Milan is often overlooked by tourists because there’s so much to see and do here. There really is something for everyone in Milan, from its food scene to the Duomo and the incredible artistic masterpiece, The Last Supper. Here are my top free historic sites in Milan that you’ll definitely want to add to your itinerary.
Free historic sites in Milan
1. Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
One of the main tourist attractions in Milan is the stunning Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. It sits to the left of Piazza del Duomo, and is open 24/7 to visitors. It was named after the first king of the Kingdom of Italy, and was built in the 19th century. It’s also Italy’s oldest shopping mall that’s still active.
This is a fantastic free historic site to visit in Milan. However it’s constantly overcrowded and it’s very difficult to get a photo without people in it. We woke up at 4am so that we were there for sunrise and there were still people here taking photos.
2. Piazza del Duomo
The most famous of all of the sights in Milan is the Duomo. Although the Duomo requires a ticket to get inside, you can still marvel at its impressive architecture from Piazza del Duomo. The piazza was originally created in the 14th century and was gradually expanded upon. Its current form dates back to the 19th century.
Surrounding the piazza is a number of attractions in the city such as Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, The Royal Palace of Milan, La Rinacentre, and Palazzo Carminati. If you haven’t budgeted to go climbing the Duomo in Milan, you can still head to Piazza del Duomo.
3. Piazza Mercanti
There are a number of historic piazzas to explore in Milan, but one of my favourites is Piazza Mercanti, which is only a short walk from the Duomo. The piazza is considerably less busy than Piazza del Duomo, but during the middle ages it was the heart of Milan. It still preserves many of its medieval buildings, and some are even considered to be the most famous in the world.
Palazzo della Ragione, for example, dates back to the 13th century and was once where the courts of justice were based, with the city’s market located underneath it. Many tourists don’t know about this piazza, so in my opinion it’s one of Milan’s hidden gems.
4. San Bernardino alle Ossa
One of the best free things to do in Milan is to visit San Bernardino alle Ossa. It’s also one of the more unique free historic sites in Milan that not many people know exists. Upon first entry, the church seems relatively normal. If you follow the corridor to the right of the entrance, you’ll come across a smaller room with its walls and ceilings filled with human skulls and bones.
The story is that in the 13th century the nearby cemetery ran out of room to bury the dead. They then decided to move all of the bones to another building nearby. The church itself was actually a later addition to the hall where the bones were stored.
5. Imperial Palace of Maximian
A very underrated historic attraction to visit in Milan is the Imperial Palace of Maximian. If you’ve visited Milan before, you may have walked past it and not even noticed that it’s there since it now stands as a ruin. As you can probably guess, it’s one of the many free historic sites in Milan. The palace itself dates back to the 4th century, when Milan was the capital of the western Roman empire, and played an important role in the further development of the city.
6. Basilica di Sant’Ambrogio
Basilica di Sant’Ambrogio is by far one of my favourite free historic sites in Milan to visit. It’s the perfect alternative if you aren’t planning on going inside of the Duomo. It was built in the 4th century by St Ambrose, and is one of the oldest churches in Milan. St Ambrose originally built this church outside of the city limits, but as the city grew in size over the centuries, it became a core part of Milan.
It takes 20 minutes to walk to this church from the Duomo. It’s located fairly close to the Santa Maria delle Grazie, which is where The Last Supper is located.
7. Basilica di San Lorenzo
Another fantastic church to visit in Milan is Basilica di San Lorenzo. It was originally built in Roman times, but has been rebuilt several times over the centuries. It’s also one of the oldest churches in the whole of Italy. Sitting in front of the church is a row of 16 ancient Roman columns known as Colonne di San Lorenzo. They date back to when Milan was the capital city in the 4th century.
The church is also near the city’s ring of canals and is surrounded by restaurants and bars which are constantly buzzing with people. It’s completely free to enter Basilica di San Lorenzo, which is a bonus.
8. Porta Ticinese
Not too far from Basilica di San Lorenzo is Porta Ticinese – one of the few remaining city gates. The original gate dates back to the 16th century and formed part of the Spanish walls, but it was later demolished and rebuilt in the 19th century. Today it proudly sits in the Navigli District, which is famous for its canal – similar to Nyhavn in Copenhagen.
If you time your photo correctly, you can usually capture one of the vintage trams circling the gate. Since you can’t physically go inside or climb to the top of the gate itself, it makes my list of free historic sites in Milan to visit.
9. Castello Sforzesco
Castello Sforzesco is a breathtaking free historic site in Milan to explore. I was actually shocked that you didn’t need to pay to walk around its inner courtyard. The inside rooms of the castle are used for exhibitions, which do have an entry fee though.
This castle was once home to the prominent Sforza family, and was originally constructed in the 14th century. But by the 15th century, Francesco Sforza began reconstructing the castle to turn it into his princely palace. Parts of the defence were actually designed by da Vinci. Behind the castle you can find Parco Sempione, which is beautiful to walk around.
Milan may be considered by many to be an expensive European city to visit, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t visit Milan on a budget. There are plenty more free things to do in Milan than I’ve outlined, but these historic attractions are well worth adding to your Milan itinerary. If you’re visiting Milan for a couple of days, I would also recommend going on a food tour – that way you can learn about the city and try out some of its best food at the same time.
Italy has a lot of incredible locations to visit, and if you want to get outside of the main cities for a bit, I would suggest heading down to the Cilento Coast, located only a short drive from Naples. Don’t forget to follow me on my travels via Instagram too for more helpful travel tips and unique historic destinations to visit!
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