Yes. I was there a few times on business and our firm had agreements with Four Seasons so that was where we stayed. Then I took the family and chose the same hotel (it is in a former monastery with a big courtyard, very lovely). (8 years ago IIRC). The only other hotel I have stayed at in Milan was the Grand Hotel (5 years ago). I do not recall where we ate, sorry.

What are your plans while there? have you been to Northern Italy before?

@mtnrdredux

Thanks. I will check out these two hotels. This is my first trip to Italy. DH and I are not vacation planners. We typically start to figure things out while in flight. This trip is no different. Our flight is scheduled to take off in about 10 minutes. I don't have any definite plans but I will before we land 😊.

Have fun! You must go to the Lake District.

Perfect. I will add the Lake District to my list of places to research.

Don't forget to spin on the bull. :D

Allison, I will spin as fast as I can. I need all the luck I can get!

Can you believe I never heard of that? I guess my business colleagues decided against mentioning it.

Hope you are having fun ILF.

We stayed at the Hilton last summer, mainly because we were using points, but also because it is a block from the central train station. We were only there for 2 nights before moving on to Turin then Alba to tour the Piedmont region.

Back to Milan… we spent one day in Como. It is a quick, easy train trip from Milan. We had lunch at the Platea Ristorante in Como. The food was great and the view of Lake Como was fabulous. Then we took the funicular for a spectacular view.

The afternoon that we got there, we were booked for a tour that included The Last Supper. We did not particularly want to do the entire tour, but it was the easiest way to get tickets to see The Last Supper.

Maybe you will see this when you land. I really admire your style of travel, but I don’t know that I could be that spontaneous.

@allison0704

I found the bull, spun on his balls three times as fast as I could, and now off to buy a lottery ticket! I'm so excited I cannot contain myself 😁. Good luck is filling my body as I type this! That is a hugely popular spot.

@bbstx, The Last Supper is on my list. That museum will not open until Tuesday. I'm hoping that we will stay here that long. We will visit Naples during this trip also, and maybe Paris. My style of travel would drive most people nuts!

The Hilton near the centrale station is very convenient (we had a work event there) although take proper cautions against pickpockets while in the station area. It is good if you play to take trains for day trips and is relatively close and very well connected. You can say in the central district (centro storico) if your goal is primarily MIlano (Duomo, etc). The Four Seasons is in the golden rectangle, near the famed Montenapoleone fashion street, in a very high end area with all the luxury boutiques. An alternative is Naviglia, which is famed for the nightlight (bars, clubs, restaurants). We've had some lively evenings there.

Hopefully you have reserved your museum tickets already, or can get a last minute opening. They are generally available now only in advance, like many other attractions in Europe that have felt the weight of tourism.

Get the concierge at your hotel to help you with Last Supper tickets. It will probably involve taking a city tour.

While in Naples, skip on down to Sorrento by way of Pompeii. I’d avoid Positano which is just south of Sorrento. I’ve heard that the crowds are horrific.

Or consider going to Venice and/or Florence instead of Naples. Naples is twice as far from Milan as Venice.

Do you have the Rome2Rio app? It is great for figuring out distances, travel time, and how to get there.

Love the picture! Sending you fabulous traveling vibes!

@Gooster

Thanks for the info. We already picked a hotel in Milan but might need some suggestions for Napels. We have not reserved any tickets for The Last Supper. My DH said that when he Googled he saw the museum was not open until Tuesday. I'm not sure we will stay until then as rain is in the forecast for today, Monday. That might put a damper on tourist activities in Milan and cause us to fly to Naples today instead.

@bbstx

I will check out Sorrento as well as see what our options are for traveling to Venice or Florence.

No, I don't have the Rome2Rio app. I will download it today. Sounds useful. Thanks for the suggestions and the awesome travel vibes!

When I travel I use an App called Visit a City. I find it to be very helpful. When I visited Italy I went from Pensione to Pensione. So I am no help with hotels.

Personally, rain or not, I'd put the Lake District, Venice, Florence and Rome over Naples.

I like Lake Maggiore best, but the closest lake to Milan, Lake Como, is only an hour away.

In ~2hr you can be in Venice or Florence from Milan by train.

Milan has its charms but it is largely a business city, and a gateway city because of its large int'l airport. Naples also would normally pretty far down on the list with all of the magical spots in Italy. Don't get me wrong, there are things to enjoy everywhere, but comparatively speaking I think you are missing a lot of the country's highlights.

If you go to the lakes, visit Lake Orta. It's a little gem near Lake Como, and is absolutely magical.

I second njmomma’s suggestion of Visit A City. I use it often. I also use Rick Steves Audio Europe. It is free and gives you guided tours of many many places, such as the Duomo and the Baptistry in Florence.

The Last Supper isn’t in a museum as such. It is a fresco on the wall of the refectory of Santa Maria della Grazie. Only 25 people are allowed in the room at a time and then only for 15 minutes. Tickets for the May-June-July quarter went on sale in March. I suspect the tour companies snap them up and that is why you have to take a tour in order to gain admission to The Last Supper.

I was recently in Germany for 10 days we drove the southern part. I used Visit a City to set up my sightseeing day, it was great and so was Germany!

You were on the airplane on the way to Milan and did not yet have a hotel reservation???

You are much more adventurous than I! I could never, but I admire those that can.

I've never been so I have no advice, but I hope you're having a fabulous time!

We travel kind of like you do though we generally have a route and accommodations reserved ahead of time. No detailed pre-planning of sites to see or places to eat. We prefer smaller out of the way destinations rather than bigger cities though we’ve taken day trips to Vienna and Venice. We stayed in Salo on Lago di Garda and loved it.

We ended up flying to Naples and touring Sorrento and found a hotel there. Sorrento has a very cute downtown area where we had an excellent dinner. Tomorrow we are either going to the Amalfi Coast or Positano. I have not yet downloaded the two apps mentioned but will do so to ight.

@jsk

We are not vacation planners. After we land in a city we typically find the nicest area of town and have lunch. While eating we search from that center until we find a hotel that sparks our interests. Planning for months would drive me absolutely insane. We travel a ton and while at home I typically keep my bags half packed in case we stumble upon a travel opportunity and need to leave at a moments notice.

Now I'm off to research Salo on Lago di Garda. Maybe that will be doable during this trip as well!

I do not like having every moment of my vacations planned either. I would never do a tour group because I just don't like that kind of thing. But I do need to have my hotel(s) reserved. I'm very picky and would be too worried everything would be booked and I'd end up having to stay somewhere not good.

But, again, it's admirable that you don't worry about these things!

While you are in Sorrento, look at taking the hydrofoil over to Capri. We didn’t. I regret it.

Positano has been in the news recently because of the overcrowding by tourists. You can get to Amalfi from Sorrento without going down the coast road which runs through Positano but I don’t know that you would want to. However, if you do go to Amalfi, go on to Ravello. It is a cute little mountain top town overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea.

If you are looking for a driver, in Sorrento contact Charm Limos and ask for Claudio.

ETA: not news but a fair overview of Positano https://anindigoday.com/why-positano-in-italy-isnt-worth-the-hype/