Discover Local Milano: What to Do Around Mercure Milano Solari

At Mercure, we believe you shouldn't need a guidebook to feel like you belong somewhere. That's the idea behind Discover Local: since 1973, every Mercure hotel has been built around its neighbourhood, not just dropped into it — from the décor on the walls to the flavours on the menu. Step into any Mercure and our teams are on hand with the kind of tips you won't find in a guidebook: the market stall locals queue for, the bar where nobody speaks English, the walk that skips the crowds. They live here. They know. Discover Local isn't a generic city guide — it's a short, honest list of the restaurants, markets and neighbourhoods our own hotel teams actually recommend to guests, updated as the city changes around us. Below, you'll find our picks for Milano, an interactive map to help you find your way, and answers to the questions travellers ask us most. So — where will Discover Local take you?

Milano in 5 picks

Navigli aperitivo

The canal banks are where Milan does its evening ritual: order a drink at a spot like Rita, Mag Café, or Ugo, and a generous buffet spread often comes included, effectively turning your aperitivo into dinner. Go around 7pm to get a table before the banks fill in with the after-work crowd.

Duomo rooftop terraces

The cathedral's rooftop walkway among the spires costs around €15-20 depending on whether you take the stairs or the lift, and it's worth timing for late afternoon when the marble catches the light. Book a slot online in advance to skip the worst of the queue.

Brera district

Cobblestone lanes, the Pinacoteca di Brera art gallery, and cafés that spill onto the street make this the neighborhood for wandering without much of a plan. It's a genuine contrast to the Duomo's scale, low buildings, quieter corners, small independent galleries tucked between apartment doorways.

Tortona district

Via Tortona and Via Savona run through what used to be an industrial zone and is now home to design studios, converted warehouses, and fashion showrooms. During Milan Design Week the whole area turns into an open exhibition, but even outside that week it's worth a walk for the outdoor art and repurposed factory architecture.

Mercato di Porta Genova (Saturday antique market on the Navigli)

On the last Sunday of every month, an antiques market takes over the canal banks; on regular Saturdays, a vintage and second-hand clothing market (Mercato di Senigallia-style) sets up nearby. Cash helps for the smaller stalls, and haggling on antiques is normal, if polite.

Where to eat
Aperitivo culture here is genuinely a Milanese institution, not a marketing line: order a Negroni or spritz at a Navigli bar and the buffet that comes with it, cold cuts, pasta salads, focaccia, mini pizzas, is meant to carry you through to a late dinner or replace it outright. For a sit-down meal, look toward Brera or the streets just off Corso Como for kitchens doing risotto alla milanese properly, with saffron and a proper bone marrow base. Panzerotti and a Campari spritz on a canal-side bench is a perfectly legitimate Milan dinner if you're short on time.
Design, denim, and industrial Milan
The Tortona district's shift from factories to design studios happened gradually enough that the neighborhood still has genuine grit alongside the polish, exposed brick, old loading docks now used as gallery entrances, ateliers with no signage beyond a buzzer. It's worth walking Via Savona end to end at least once, especially if you have any interest in furniture design or fashion, since several major houses keep showrooms tucked into former warehouses here.
Right outside your hotel
Mercure Milano Solari sits on Via Pietro Orseolo, a few steps from Via Tortona and Via Savona, and about a 5-minute walk from Sant'Agostino metro station on the green M2 line. The Navigli canals are roughly a 10-minute walk from the hotel entrance, making it a genuinely central base for both the design district by day and the canal-side aperitivo scene by evening.
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FAQ

Yes, about a 10-minute walk. It's also just steps from Via Tortona and Via Savona in the design district, and a 5-minute walk from Sant'Agostino metro on the M2 line.

Most bars start serving around 6-7pm and keep the buffet going until 9 or 10pm. Arriving right at opening gets you first pick of the spread before it's picked over.

No. Design Week (April) turns it into a full exhibition, but the permanent showrooms, converted warehouses, and outdoor art along Via Savona are worth a walk any time of year.

Where to sleep

See Mercure hotels in Milano, all within reach of these picks.

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Where to sleep

See Mercure hotels in Milano, all within reach of these picks

View hotels