Milan is Italy’s capital of fashion, finance and design, home to the Duomo, Leonardo’s Last Supper and La Scala. It is a business city first, so hotel rates rise sharply during trade fairs and Fashion Week and often drop at weekends and in August, when many locals leave town.
Finding cheap rooms in Milan is easier when you know where to look. We compare live hotel rates across the top booking sites and point you to the neighborhoods where hotels are cheap but the location is still great.
Rooms come in more shapes than hotels — in Milan you can also compare apartments with kitchens, vacation rentals for families, B&Bs and budget hostels in one search.
The cathedral, the Galleria and La Scala on your doorstep — central and usually the most expensive area.
An arty quarter of cobbled streets, galleries and restaurants, a short walk from the Duomo.
The canal district, lively in the evening with bars and trattorias, and often better value than the centre.
Around the main station — plenty of budget and chain hotels, handy for trains and airport buses.
A modern district of new towers and a trendy neighbourhood, with good metro links.
A 19th-century hotel near La Scala, where the composer Giuseppe Verdi lived and died.
Check rates at Grand Hotel et de MilanZoom and pan the map to compare hotel prices by neighborhood; rates come live from the booking sites.
Spring and autumn are pleasant, but check the trade-fair calendar — big fairs such as the furniture fair in April and Fashion Weeks push rates very high. August and weekends are often cheaper.
The area around Stazione Centrale has the most budget hotels, and Navigli and the outer metro stops are often cheaper than the Duomo area.
During major trade fairs and Fashion Weeks, when business visitors fill the city; avoid those dates for the best deals.
Yes. Regular trains run from Milan to Como and Varenna, so some visitors stay in Milan and visit the lake as a day trip.