Parco Sempione

Parco Sempione is Milan's Central Park — a 38.6-hectare English landscape garden stretching from the Castello Sforzesco to the Arco della Pace that provides the green lungs for a city that is otherwise notoriously short on open space. The park was designed by Emilio Alemagna in 1888 on the grounds of the former castle parade ground, and its mix of winding paths, open lawns, a small lake, and mature trees creates a pastoral landscape that feels surprisingly rural for the centre of Italy's most commercial city.

The Arco della Pace (Arch of Peace) at the park's northwest end is Milan's triumphal arch — a neoclassical gate designed by Luigi Cagnola and completed in 1838, originally intended to celebrate Napoleon's victories but rededicated to peace after his defeat. The arch frames the view back through the park to the Castello Sforzesco's tower, creating one of Milan's most photogenic perspectives. The Triennale di Milano design museum, housed in the Palazzo dell'Arte at the park's edge, hosts exhibitions on Italian design, architecture, and decorative arts.

The park is at its best in early evening during spring and summer, when Milanese office workers descend for the post-work aperitivo at the park's bars and the lawns fill with picnickers, joggers, and the ubiquitous couples on benches. The Torre Branca — a 108-metre steel observation tower designed by Gio Ponti in 1933 — offers panoramic views from its summit, though it operates on a limited schedule. On clear days, the Alps are visible to the north, a reminder that Milan sits in a plain that was carved by glaciers.