11 Apr
How to spend Easter in Milan
There are many things you can do on Easter in Milan. The Monday after Easter is Easter Monday, more commonly called Pasquetta in Italy, a day of celebration to be spent with relatives and friends.
Easter Monday is par excellence the start of outdoor activities, trips out of town, picnics in the park and barbecues with friends. All traditional Easter activities.
If you spend Easter 2022 in Milan, you can choose between various alternatives. You could take the opportunity to discover hidden corners of Milan by following these tips Milan: 10 unusual things to do or visit one of the Milan Museums which are also open on holidays. A few steps from the city then there is no shortage of attractions and parks where you can organize a picnic or a barbecue.
Here are some ideas to decide how to spend Easter in Milan.
Easter Holidays in Italy, some tips
Day trip from Milan
The large Monza Park is one of the largest green areas near Milan and one of the most important European historical parks. Wanted by Emperor Napoleon, it was set up in 1805 to create a model agricultural estate and a hunting reserve.
Today it extends 720 hectares of the Park hosting villas, farmhouses, modern and ancient architecture, mills, cycle paths, an equestrian centre, and the famous National Formula 1 racetrack.
The ideal place to relax on the lawns, stroll or ride a bike. You can also visit the magnificent Royal Villa of Monza with its splendid Royal Gardens. The Villa, normally closed on Mondays, will be open on an extraordinary basis on Easter Monday and April 25th Mondays, from 10.30 to 18.30. While the Royal Gardens are open every day, from 7.00 to 18.30. Monza Park, on the other hand, closes to pedestrians at 9.30pm. Info: reggiadimonza.it
Farmhouse in Milan
The cascina is a typical agricultural structure of the Lombard Po Valley. Around Milan, there are several farmhouses and agritourism where you can relax and eat well in the midst of nature.
The I Silos farm is surrounded by greenery and tranquillity, an excellent opportunity to also visit the Ticino Park. It is a typical Lombard farmhouse where you will find goat and bull breeding, dairy and canned production, a boarding house for horses and a restaurant. For Easter and Easter Monday it offers a special menu. And after lunch, you can enjoy the wide spaces for walking or riding with the farm’s horses.
THE SILOS. Cascina Cantarana, Besate (MI). 02 90504200.
Easter Monday at the museum
If you prefer to stay in Milan and take the opportunity to visit some exhibitions, the Leonardo da Vinci Museum of Science and Technology is the perfect solution for you. It is the largest technical-scientific museum in Italy and one of the most important in Europe. It has the largest permanent exhibition dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci with models of machines made from his drawings. It is also possible to appreciate steam trains, planes and ships, the Toti submarine, the Vega space rocket and a real fragment of the Moon.
It is open every weekend and on holidays. On the occasion of the Easter and April holidays, the Museum will be open with extended hours from 9.30 to 18.30 on the days of:
Thursday 14, Friday 15, Saturday 16, Sunday 17, Monday 18 April
Saturday 23, Sunday 24, Monday 25 April,
Saturday 30 April and Sunday 1 May.
museoscienza.org/it/visitare/orari
Easter Monday Barbecue
Those who do not have a garden or an outdoor area should not give up the Pasquetta barbecue. In Milan, there are many outdoor places where you can organize a barbecue with all the trimmings, including parks, farmhouses and places equipped with everything you need to enjoy a relaxing, spring day in good company.
Among the best places to organize a day outdoors immersed in greenery and nature in Milan on Easter Monday we point out:
- Bosco in città, with areas equipped for barbecue lovers
- Parco delle Cave, where you can organize a picnic, it is not possible to grill
- Parco della Martesana and Cascina Martesana, where you will find everything you need to have a barbecue with friends
- Cascina Gaggioli, where you can use the grills of the farmhouse and buy meat and vegetables directly from the agritourism.
Navigli by bike
Photo by Laurine Peyrard on Unsplash
You can also take advantage of the beautiful days to ride a bike and discover hidden corners and landscapes just outside Milan. One of the most evocative routes is the one that starts from the Navigli and then goes out to the farmhouses of the Milanese countryside. A couple of hours and a lot of curiosity are all you need to enjoy the ride.
You can choose between several options. For city and shorter itineraries, you can choose to take the cycle path on the Naviglio Martesana. It starts from Cassina de ‘Pomm at the corner of via Melchiorre Gioia. You can go as far as the Martesana park or travel all of its 30 km through various villages, to get to Trezzo sull’Adda.
From the Naviglio Grande, you can quickly reach a picturesque street where time has stopped: it is the Vicolo dei lavandai (launderers alley) where there is a large washhouse used until the mid-1950s.
If you want to reach the outer Milanese suburbs, you can start from the Naviglio Grande or the Naviglio Pavese which will give you the opportunity to admire a wide range of rural and agrestic beauties. Just head south to find yourself immersed in cornfields, water mills and agricultural companies with strictly “zero kilometres” production. The perfect solution if you are also looking for good food.
The routes are generally flat, easily practicable, absolutely safe and also suitable for those who are not trained.