Guide
Milan with kids
Milan is not a city designed around children, but it has more for them than it looks: 678 public playgrounds, big parks and museums built for the purpose.
Parks and playgrounds
Every neighbourhood has its playground: the site maps 678 of them, one by one. Start from the playgrounds page and narrow to your district, for example District 3 towards Città Studi and Lambrate or District 6 towards the Navigli and Barona.
The big parks with play equipment and lawn to run on: Parco Sempione behind the Castello, the Giardini Indro Montanelli at Porta Venezia (with the Planetarium and the Natural History Museum inside), the CityLife park and Parco Nord towards Niguarda. The parks page collects them along with dog areas and drinking fountains.
Museums for kids
- Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci, near Sant'Ambrogio: the biggest, with the Enrico Toti submarine you can go inside and the i.lab workshops.
- Acquario Civico, on the corner of Parco Sempione: small, cheap, one of the oldest in Europe.
- MUBA, the children's museum at the Rotonda della Besana: play-exhibitions by booking, aimed at ages 2 to 12.
- Natural History Museum at the Giardini Montanelli: dinosaurs and dioramas, a classic.
A morning at the market
The street market is a sensory outing at almost no cost: colours, voices, grapes to taste, the fish stall on ice. Many stalls let little ones try the fruit.
The eating from the market guide explains how to turn the outing into lunch too, with rotisserie chicken and a cone of fried fish.
Getting around with a pushchair
The metro covers most of the city but not every stop has a lift: M4 and M5 do, the older lines only in places. Heritage trams have a high step; the new trams and buses are low-floor. The centre inside the Bastioni is flat and easy on foot.
When the day goes wrong
In the rain the Museo della Scienza, the Acquario and MUBA all work, all indoors. The Milan in the rain guide lines up the rest, covered municipal markets included.
Frequently asked questions
Are there playgrounds in Milan?
Yes, a great many: around 678 public playgrounds, at least one per neighbourhood. This site maps them one by one and lets you browse by district.
What to do in Milan with young children?
Parks with a playground (Parco Sempione, Giardini Montanelli, CityLife), the Acquario Civico and MUBA at the Rotonda della Besana all suit small children. A morning at a street market is a cheap sensory outing.
What to do in Milan with kids when it rains?
The Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia, the Acquario Civico and MUBA are all indoors. The 21 covered municipal markets are also a dry option for a short walk.