Shopping – All our local tips

If you’re planning a weekend trip to Milan, why not plan a little stroll on your Sunday afternoon? But make sure you plan your trip for the last Sunday of the month, except for July and August.

On these Sunday’s you can find the Naviglio Grande (the larger canal in Milan) Antique Markets opening up the area to second-hand vintage clothes, antiques, old books and local shops are open too.

A lot of the shops on the canal are local artists and if you wander into some of the courtyards you can see more art on display as well as see the traditional public style housing of the past.

On a nice day it really is pleasurable to stroll down the canal and see what interesting or strange things are on sale.

If you want to stop for lunch, many of the restaurants are open. I am often tempted by a takeaway chocolate and pear crepe or a coffee at Bar Stazione. You can then stare out the window and watch the world go by before joining the crowd.

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Antique markets – Naviglio Grande | Relaxing, Shopping, Festivals & events | Free
Alzaia Naviglio Grande | Ticinese/Genova
Last Sunday of every month 09:00 – 17:00

Feltrinelli is a major book publishing house based in Milano; founded in the ’50s, it scored a couple of big successes in the first few years being the first to publish Doctor Zhivago by Pasternak and The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, and has since grown to be a big player, and to take a place in the heart of every avid reader in Italy.

This is just one reason why Feltrinelli stores are the first place that comes to mind to many people when they want to buy a book: spacious stores, no rush, all the time in the world (and some seating) for you to browse through books and decide what you want.

The big store in piazza Duomo is very pleasant, despite being underground. It’s perfect if you are learning italian and want to pick up the latest success, but it also carries a decent selection of books in English; you’ll be able to find any guidebook on Milano and the rest of Italy.

The art section is very good too. If you are staying longer, make sure to ask for a membership card: you will get extra discounts at the bookstores as well as in museum, exhibitions and so on.

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Feltrinelli | Relaxing, Shopping
Piazza Duomo, 20121 | Centro | +390286996897
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 23:00, Sun 10:00 – 20:00

Probably one of the most well known and biggest markets in Milan, it’s perfect for those travellers who like to buy some fresh cheese, fruit and bread for a simple east.

It’s a great opportunity to see what fruit and vegetables are in season and Italy has a fantastic range of diverse produce in all seasons. At the moment, I would keep an eye out for the various types of artichoke!

As per what you would expect at a market there is the usual yelling and price competitiveness, much more lively than a visit to the local supermarket!There are a few stalls with a fantastic range of cheese and some good fresh seafood. Turn up late and you should be able to bargain on the price.

You can also find all sorts of cheap household options and cheap clothing, fantastic for an extra pair of clean socks!

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Mercato Papiniano | Shopping | Kilo fruit € 1.00
1 Viale Papiniano | Ticinese/Genova
Tue 08:00 – 13:00, Sat 08:00 – late afternoon

When I’m looking for some shoes which are a little different and I want to pay a good price for good quality, Mon Amour Les Chaussures is a shop for me. I don’t know if the reason why I like this place is because I’m Australian and they like to model themselves after London fashion, maybe! Anyway, they have a great range of colours and styles of shoes and they are made here in Italy.

I’ve bought a few pairs and never had complaints about the quality.  The clothes and accessories are also great and follow the latest trends without being too over the top.

In addition to the Corso Porta Ticinese location which focuses on shoes, clothes and accessories you can also find them near other shopping strips. (Via Cherubini 3 (C.so Vercelli) and Via Nino Bixio 1 (Viale Piave/Porta Venezia).

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Mon Amour Les Chaussures | Shopping | Shoes from € 50.00
Corso di porta Ticinese 103 | Ticinese/Genova | +390283241620
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 19:00

Are you a passionate photographer and are you looking for some very high quality second hand items at a reasonable price? New Old Camera is the place for you.

It’s a shop hidden in a courtyard in the very central via Dante that sells only second hand camera equipment. There you can find nearly everything, from the last high performance Canon or Nikon lens to an old but still great Leitz lens made before the second world war.

Both the owner (a very big Japanese, called Watanabe) and the others shop assistants are very kind and will gladly show you and make you try everything they have. They also have a very good knowledge of what they sell, so their advice is always very precious.

If you’re interested in Leica stuff, you’ll speak directly with Watanabe that is in love with this brand and will explain you everything you want to know on any camera or lens made from the 20s up to now.

Since it’s a second hand shop they don’t always have exactly what you want, but if you check their website regularly (always updated) you’ll find out that sooner or later they’ll have it!… At least this always happened to me!

In front of the camera shop they just opened a similar shop all about watches: NewOldTime (obviously!).

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New Old Camera | Shopping
Via Rovello 5 | Centro | +390236589216
Mon 14:00 – 19:00, Tue – Sun 10:30 – 19:00

I must confess that I don’t consider myself a “shop-a-holic”, I can tire easily, but I always enjoy a stroll down Corso Porta Ticinese at least for a bit of window shopping. The area is vibrant with lots of young people night and day and is just a hop step and jump from Via Torino (a little closer to the centre) where you can find the big name shops such as H&M and Zara or close to a good bar to enjoy Milan’s Aperitivo.

The shops are geared more to the younger market with a mix of youth oriented brands like Lee, Quiksilver and Energy. However, my weakness are the shoe shops and Italians know their shoes! The shoes are more unique than that you can find in the main shopping drag and often also well-priced. What better souvenir to take back home than a pair of good Italian shoes!

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Porta Ticinese shopping | Relaxing, Shopping
Corso Porta Ticinese | Ticinese/Genova
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00

Before I moved to Italy, one of the first things that came to mind was FOOD! Salami, cheese, pizza, pasta oh and all coupled nicely with some wine of course! And of course, Italy didn’t disappoint me.

When it comes to cheese and salami I would recommend a visit to a fabulous jam-packed delicatessen just off the Corso Buenos Aires shopping strip.

Being Australian, my knowledge of Italian cheese was limited to Parmesan (Parmigiano) and Mozzarella and sadly, the only mozzarella I really knew was the copied version we put on our pizzas.

Now I can safely say that I have managed to try a reasonable percentage of the many cheese and cured meats Italy has to offer, but there is always something new to discover. Grab a few servings when you’ve worked up a hunger after shopping or maybe grab a few things for a picnic and relax in the nearby Giardini Publici (Public Gardens) near Porta Venezia.

MM Metro Lima is the closest stop.

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Salami & Cheese | Shopping, Snacks
Via Tadino / Via Vitruvio | Centrale/Greco
Mon 08:00 – 13:00, Tue – Sat 08:00 – 13:00 & 15:30 -19:30