How to get to the Duomo di Milano

The tram is slower than the metro and much better company. You get Milan at street level on the way in.

Lines 2, 3, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 19 all stop at or beside Piazza del Duomo.

Tickets are the same as the metro and cover both. Buy them at metro stations, tobacconists, newsstands or through the ATM app, and validate on board.

Buses reach the Duomo area from neighbourhoods the tram and metro miss.

Lines 54, 60, 73 and 94 all stop within a short walk of the cathedral.

Coming in from Milan Linate Airport, the 73 runs into the centre and stops at San Babila, about five minutes on foot from the square.

Driving to the cathedral is more trouble than it’s worth.

Piazza del Duomo sits inside Area C, Milan’s charged limited-traffic zone. It’s active Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., public holidays excluded, and entry needs a paid daily ticket. Cameras at the gates read your plate as you cross.

Paid underground garages ring the centre and most are a short walk from the square, though they fill up and they’re not cheap.

Taxis and ride-hailing can drop you at the edge of the piazza, which is the sensible option with luggage or a group.

BikeMi, Milan’s public bike-sharing scheme, has docking stations in the streets around Piazza del Duomo, and shared e-scooters are easy to find across the centre.

Milan is flat, which helps. The streets immediately around the square are pedestrian, so expect to walk the last stretch with the bike rather than ride it.

If you’re staying anywhere near the centre, walk.

The streets around the cathedral are almost entirely pedestrian, and the approach through the Galleria or down via Torino is half the pleasure of arriving.

From Brera, Porta Venezia or the Navigli, reckon on 15 to 30 minutes depending on where you start and how often you stop.