Isola, Biblioteca degli Alberi, Gae Aulenti: a half-day walk in north Milan
Lunch worth the trip, a park people actually use, two towers and a square that feels like a different city. It is done on foot, in an afternoon — and from Porta Venezia and Spiga you can walk there.
The last Sunday of August in Milan is a bridge: on one side the drowsy ease of summer, on the other the rush of September. And September here is one of the most beautiful and most feverish months of the year — it opens at full throttle with the engines at Monza, then Women’s Fashion Week lights up the third week.
We spent ours up north, in Isola: a neighbourhood that normally hums, and that day was unreally calm. It is a walk we do often, in every season, and in half a day it lines up a serious lunch, the Bosco Verticale, a real park and a square that feels like a different city. August only adds one thing — you get it all to yourself.
Lunch: Casa Nori
One of our regulars, and some of the best sushi in the city. Handrolls are the house speciality, but start with the aubergine dumplings, then go for uni toro and lemon truffle hamachi. Faultless fish, clean preparations, no showing off.
The room is relaxed and lunch runs to an hour, an hour and a half — nobody is on their best behaviour here. Children are entirely at home, and small and medium dogs are genuinely welcome: a wider table, and a bowl of water brought over without anyone having to ask. Book ahead, it is small. And come on foot or by taxi — parking around here is a battle.
Via Antonio Pollaiuolo 5, Isola.
The walk
From Casa Nori you head down towards the Bosco Verticale, step into the Biblioteca degli Alberi and cross it slowly, with the Pirellone and Palazzo Lombardia — the old and the new seat of the regional government — standing behind you the whole way. The park is not decorative: people genuinely spend time in it, and in August it is more or less yours. You come out into Piazza Gae Aulenti, beneath the Unicredit Tower.
Isola is still a neighbourhood of low houses and painted walls, and the best stretch of the route is exactly where a mural and a glass tower end up in the same frame.
How it ends
Under the tower, Gae Aulenti is the most useful corner of Milan to know about when the rest of the city is shut: the shops here stay open on Sundays and through August, while half the centre has its shutters down. Feltrinelli if you want a bookshop to get lost in, the rest for whatever you actually need. Then gelato at Grom — or Venchi, if you lean towards chocolate — and the day closes well.
Milan in August is hot and half empty. It is also when you see it best.
From our houses
The walk starts in the north of the city, and from most of our houses getting there takes no planning at all.
| From | How |
|---|---|
| HÕMA Porta Venezia | 20 minutes on foot across the Giardini Montanelli and Porta Nuova, 5 by taxi |
| HÕMA Spiga | 30 minutes on foot through Brera and Corso Como — the prettiest stretch of the route |
| HÕMA Cinque Giornate and HÕMA 22 Marzo | 12–15 minutes by taxi — too far to walk from here |
| HÕMA Certosa District | 30 minutes by public transport, 15 by taxi with clear traffic |
For eating elsewhere in the city, our restaurant selection by neighbourhood is here.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the walk take?
Lunch at Casa Nori runs to an hour or an hour and a half. The walk to Piazza Gae Aulenti is about twenty minutes, or double that if you cross the park at a stroll. With a stop in the Biblioteca degli Alberi and gelato at the end, the whole thing is three to four hours — the right shape for an afternoon.
Can you do it with children?
Yes. The route is flat and fully paved, so it works with a pushchair, and the Biblioteca degli Alberi has areas designed for children roughly halfway along. Casa Nori is a relaxed room too, where children at the table are no trouble at all.
Can you bring a dog?
Yes, and Casa Nori is a pleasant surprise on this front: small and medium dogs are genuinely welcome, with a wider table and a bowl of water brought over without anyone having to ask. The Biblioteca degli Alberi is popular with dog owners as well — as in every Milanese park, keep them on a lead and use common sense.
Do you need to book anything?
Only lunch. Casa Nori is small and fills up at weekends, so book a few days ahead. Nothing else on the walk requires a reservation.
Should you drive there?
No. Parking in Isola is difficult and not worth the time it costs you. Come on foot, by taxi or by public transport — the walk itself is on foot from beginning to end anyway.
What is the best time of year?
Spring and early autumn are the most comfortable. August offers something different: the city is half empty, and a neighbourhood that normally hums can be crossed in a quiet you will not find at any other point in the year.
Is anything open on a Sunday?
Yes, and that is part of why this corner is worth knowing. Piazza Gae Aulenti and the shopping level beneath the Unicredit Tower stay open on Sundays and through the middle weeks of August, when much of the historic centre is closed.
If you are staying at HÕMA Porta Venezia or HÕMA Spiga, you can walk there without taking anything at all. From our other houses it is a little over ten minutes by taxi. Either way, ask the front desk to book lunch for you.
Isola, Biblioteca degli Alberi, Gae Aulenti: a half-day walk in north Milan
Lunch worth the trip, a park people actually use, two towers and a square that feels like a different city. It is done on foot, in an afternoon — and from Porta Venezia and Spiga you can walk there.
The last Sunday of August in Milan is a bridge: on one side the drowsy ease of summer, on the other the rush of September. And September here is one of the most beautiful and most feverish months of the year — it opens at full throttle with the engines at Monza, then Women’s Fashion Week lights up the third week.
We spent ours up north, in Isola: a neighbourhood that normally hums, and that day was unreally calm. It is a walk we do often, in every season, and in half a day it lines up a serious lunch, the Bosco Verticale, a real park and a square that feels like a different city. August only adds one thing — you get it all to yourself.
Lunch: Casa Nori
One of our regulars, and some of the best sushi in the city. Handrolls are the house speciality, but start with the aubergine dumplings, then go for uni toro and lemon truffle hamachi. Faultless fish, clean preparations, no showing off.
The room is relaxed and lunch runs to an hour, an hour and a half — nobody is on their best behaviour here. Children are entirely at home, and small and medium dogs are genuinely welcome: a wider table, and a bowl of water brought over without anyone having to ask. Book ahead, it is small. And come on foot or by taxi — parking around here is a battle.
Via Antonio Pollaiuolo 5, Isola.
The walk
From Casa Nori you head down towards the Bosco Verticale, step into the Biblioteca degli Alberi and cross it slowly, with the Pirellone and Palazzo Lombardia — the old and the new seat of the regional government — standing behind you the whole way. The park is not decorative: people genuinely spend time in it, and in August it is more or less yours. You come out into Piazza Gae Aulenti, beneath the Unicredit Tower.
Isola is still a neighbourhood of low houses and painted walls, and the best stretch of the route is exactly where a mural and a glass tower end up in the same frame.
How it ends
Under the tower, Gae Aulenti is the most useful corner of Milan to know about when the rest of the city is shut: the shops here stay open on Sundays and through August, while half the centre has its shutters down. Feltrinelli if you want a bookshop to get lost in, the rest for whatever you actually need. Then gelato at Grom — or Venchi, if you lean towards chocolate — and the day closes well.
Milan in August is hot and half empty. It is also when you see it best.
From our houses
The walk starts in the north of the city, and from most of our houses getting there takes no planning at all.
| From | How |
|---|---|
| HÕMA Porta Venezia | 20 minutes on foot across the Giardini Montanelli and Porta Nuova, 5 by taxi |
| HÕMA Spiga | 30 minutes on foot through Brera and Corso Como — the prettiest stretch of the route |
| HÕMA Cinque Giornate and HÕMA 22 Marzo | 12–15 minutes by taxi — too far to walk from here |
| HÕMA Certosa District | 30 minutes by public transport, 15 by taxi with clear traffic |
For eating elsewhere in the city, our restaurant selection by neighbourhood is here.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the walk take?
Lunch at Casa Nori runs to an hour or an hour and a half. The walk to Piazza Gae Aulenti is about twenty minutes, or double that if you cross the park at a stroll. With a stop in the Biblioteca degli Alberi and gelato at the end, the whole thing is three to four hours — the right shape for an afternoon.
Can you do it with children?
Yes. The route is flat and fully paved, so it works with a pushchair, and the Biblioteca degli Alberi has areas designed for children roughly halfway along. Casa Nori is a relaxed room too, where children at the table are no trouble at all.
Can you bring a dog?
Yes, and Casa Nori is a pleasant surprise on this front: small and medium dogs are genuinely welcome, with a wider table and a bowl of water brought over without anyone having to ask. The Biblioteca degli Alberi is popular with dog owners as well — as in every Milanese park, keep them on a lead and use common sense.
Do you need to book anything?
Only lunch. Casa Nori is small and fills up at weekends, so book a few days ahead. Nothing else on the walk requires a reservation.
Should you drive there?
No. Parking in Isola is difficult and not worth the time it costs you. Come on foot, by taxi or by public transport — the walk itself is on foot from beginning to end anyway.
What is the best time of year?
Spring and early autumn are the most comfortable. August offers something different: the city is half empty, and a neighbourhood that normally hums can be crossed in a quiet you will not find at any other point in the year.
Is anything open on a Sunday?
Yes, and that is part of why this corner is worth knowing. Piazza Gae Aulenti and the shopping level beneath the Unicredit Tower stay open on Sundays and through the middle weeks of August, when much of the historic centre is closed.
If you are staying at HÕMA Porta Venezia or HÕMA Spiga, you can walk there without taking anything at all. From our other houses it is a little over ten minutes by taxi. Either way, ask the front desk to book lunch for you.