Milan

Milan is a landlocked city on the Po plain, and nobody comes here for a beach. In summer locals swim at the Idroscalo, a large artificial basin near Linate airport with grassy banks and lidos, or at the city's open-air public pools.

The real escape is the lakes. Lake Como and Lake Maggiore are about an hour by train, with pebbly lidos and swimming platforms where the water reaches around 23°C in August. The Ligurian coast is roughly two hours away, too far for a casual afternoon. Treat swimming as an occasional summer outing rather than part of daily life.

Milanese cooking is rich and northern: saffron risotto, ossobuco, the breaded veal cotoletta, cassoeula in winter and panettone at Christmas. Butter matters more than olive oil here. Because the city draws people from all over Italy, it is also one of the best places in the country to eat other regional cuisines, from Neapolitan pizza to Sicilian pastry, alongside a serious tier of fine dining.

The defining ritual is aperitivo: early evening drinks, often a Negroni sbagliato or a spritz, served with generous snacks, strongest around the Navigli canals, Brera and Isola. Historic pasticcerie and stand-up espresso bars set the daytime rhythm. Street food and open markets play a smaller role than in southern Italy, and the cheaper end can feel ordinary near the Duomo.

Milan's great sights are few but of high rank. The Duomo, a Gothic cathedral of white marble begun in the 14th century, is the centre of the city, and its rooftop terraces put you among the spires. Leonardo's Last Supper fills a refectory wall at Santa Maria delle Grazie and needs booking well ahead. The Pinacoteca di Brera holds a major collection of Italian painting, and the Castello Sforzesco houses Michelangelo's last sculpture, the Rondanini Pietà.

Beyond these are the glass-roofed Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the early Christian basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, the Ambrosiana with Leonardo's drawings and the Poldi Pezzoli house museum. Much of the city is modern and businesslike, so the heritage comes in clusters rather than an unbroken old town.

Evenings in Milan start with aperitivo and drift on from there. The Navigli canals are the liveliest strip, lined with bars that spill onto the towpaths on summer nights. Brera is smarter and quieter, Isola and the streets around Porta Venezia are more relaxed and mixed, and Porta Venezia is also the heart of the city's gay scene.

Clubs range from dressy venues around Corso Como, where door policies and appearance count, to warehouse nights on the city's edges. The scene is stylish and well dressed rather than wild, and it thins out in August when much of the city leaves for the coast.

The city sits on the flat, often hazy Po plain, with green space limited to Parco Sempione, the Giardini Pubblici and the long canal towpaths, which make easy cycling routes out into the rice fields.

The landscape changes quickly to the north. Within about an hour lie Lake Como and Lake Maggiore, framed by steep wooded slopes, with lakeside paths, ferries, sailing and windsurfing. The Prealps above them, such as the Grigne ridges near Lecco, give serious hiking and via ferrata, and ski resorts in the Valtellina and Aosta valleys are reachable in winter, though they are a full day out. It suits walkers and cyclists who are happy to take a train to the start.

Milan is a hub on Italy's fastest rail lines, and that makes it an outstanding base for days out. Bergamo's walled upper town and Lake Como's villages, such as Bellagio and Varenna, are about an hour away. Verona, with its Roman arena, and Turin, with its royal palaces and Egyptian Museum, are around an hour by high-speed train, and Bologna is not much further.

Closer in, the Certosa di Pavia is one of Italy's finest monasteries, and Vigevano has a Renaissance square of rare harmony. Mantua's Gonzaga palaces, Cremona's violin-making heritage and Parma's food culture add more. On Lake Maggiore, boats reach the Borromean Islands with their palace gardens, and Lugano across the Swiss border is about an hour and a quarter by train.

Milan is manageable with children but not built around them. The National Museum of Science and Technology, with its submarine, trains and hands-on labs, is the best rainy-day choice, and the small civic aquarium sits by Parco Sempione, where there are playgrounds and space to run. Trams and the metro make getting about straightforward, and the centre is flat.

Theme parks are the main draw for older children: Leolandia is under an hour away, and Gardaland on Lake Garda is about an hour and a half. Summer heat and humidity can be heavy, and the city's big sights, from the Last Supper to fashion streets, mostly appeal to adults.

The historic centre is compact and flat, and most of the main sights, from the Duomo to Brera and the Castello, are a short walk apart. The metro's five colour-coded lines are simple to follow and you can tap a contactless card at the gates. A dense tram network, including the old orange cars still running through the centre, fills the gaps and makes a pleasant way to see the streets.

No car is needed in the city, and driving in the centre is restricted. Trains from Centrale, Garibaldi and Cadorna reach the lakes and the surrounding towns directly. The main drawbacks are summer heat underground and long transfers from Malpensa airport.

Milan is one of the world's capitals of fashion, and shopping here is a reason to come. The Quadrilatero della Moda, around Via Montenapoleone and Via della Spiga, holds the flagships of the great Italian houses, many of which were founded in the city. The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II has some of the oldest shops in Milan under its glass roof, and La Rinascente, the department store beside the Duomo, has been a reference for Italian style for over a century.

For more everyday shopping there is the long Corso Buenos Aires, and Brera and Porta Ticinese have independent boutiques and vintage shops. Design is a second specialism, with furniture and lighting showrooms across the city. Weekend antique markets along the Navigli add a different flavour.

Milan is Italy's most expensive city, and hotels set the tone. Rooms cost a lot by Southern European standards, and during the big trade fairs and fashion weeks they become very hard to find at reasonable rates. Restaurants in the centre and in Brera are expensive, and drinks in stylish bars are priced accordingly.

Some things soften it. Public transport is fairly priced, aperitivo with snacks can stand in for a light supper, and lunchtime set menus aimed at office workers are good value. Staying near a metro stop outside the centre makes a noticeable difference.

Teatro alla Scala is the main reason, one of the most famous opera houses in the world, with a season of opera, ballet and concerts that opens each December on the feast of Sant'Ambrogio. Tickets for big nights are hard to get, but gallery seats and less famous performances put it within reach of a determined visitor.

Around it are the Piccolo Teatro, Italy's first public theatre and still a leading stage, a fine symphony orchestra at the Auditorium, and the Teatro degli Arcimboldi for musicals and touring shows. Jazz clubs and smaller live music rooms round out the calendar, and the San Siro stadium hosts major summer concerts. Summer is quieter for opera and classical music.

Milan is a busy, work-focused city and not a place most people come to slow down. It does have a well-known thermal spa complex in the southern part of the centre, with outdoor pools and saunas, and a handful of good hotel spas. In summer, the restored 1930s open-air pools of the Bagni Misteriosi, beside a historic theatre, make a pleasant place to spend an afternoon.

For real rest, most visitors leave the city for the lakes, where quiet villas, lakeside walks and a slower pace are an hour away. Northern Lombardy also has older spa traditions, but these lie well beyond an easy outing.