Milan Tours: Book Tickets Now

Milan sits within reach of some of northern Italy’s best scenery, which makes a day trip an easy way to stretch your visit. Lakes, Alpine views and a UNESCO-listed coastline are all a few hours away at most. A guided tour means you don’t have to juggle trains, ferries and timetables yourself.

Most day trips from Milan run from morning to evening, so they suit travellers who like to fit a lot into one day.

Lake Maggiore, Lake Garda and Lake Como each have their own feel. Maggiore is known for its elegant lakeside towns and the Borromean Islands. Garda is Italy’s largest lake and pairs well with a trip to Verona.

Como is home to Bellagio, a village that sits where the lake splits into two arms, and it combines neatly with Lugano, just across the Swiss border, for a day that includes time on the water.

Two other trips are worth a look once you’ve covered the lakes. The Cinque Terre are five colourful villages strung along the Ligurian coast, and the whole area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s a long day from Milan, but the cliffside views make up for it.

Verona is easier on the clock, with a Roman arena, an old town of cobbled piazzas and the famous balcony linked to Juliet, and it fits well with a stop at Lake Garda.

You don’t have to leave the city to find a good tour. Guided visits take you through the Duomo, the Last Supper and La Scala with someone who can explain what you’re looking at, which helps at timed-entry places like the Last Supper. A boat tour along the Navigli canals shows a different side of Milan.

The canals were built centuries ago to move goods, including marble for the Duomo, and today the Darsena basin and the Naviglio Grande are lined with bars and restaurants.