Hidden Gems Near Milan Bus Stops - Secret Guide

The bus drops you at the blockbuster sights. But if you walk just 200 meters in the wrong direction, you find the secrets. Here are the hidden gems near the main stops.

Near Stop: Duomo

San Bernardino alle Ossa (5 min walk). Everyone visits the Duomo. Few visit this small side church.

• The Secret: The Ossuary. The walls are lined with human skulls and bones, arranged in decorative patterns, crosses, and frames. It dates from when the local cemetery ran out of space in the 1200s. It’s morbid, baroque, and unforgettable.

Near Stop: Palestro / Porta Venezia

The Flamingos of Villa Invernizzi. Walk to Via Cappuccini. You will see a private garden gate. Look through the bars.

• The Secret: A flock of pink flamingos living in a pond. In the middle of the city. They have been there for decades. (Note: You can't enter, just view from the street). The Ear of the House (Via Serbelloni). Look for the bronze sculpture of an ear next to a front door. It was an intercom system from the 1920s!

Near Stop: Cadorna / Last Supper

San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore. From the outside, it looks like a boring grey wall on Corso Magenta.

• The Secret: Step inside. Every inch of the wall is covered in breathtaking 16th-century frescoes. It is called "The Sistine Chapel of Milan." And unlike the Last Supper, it is often free (or cheap) and requires no booking.

Near Stop: Castello

The Whispering Columns (Piazza Mercanti). Just off the Duomo/Castle route. In the medieval arches of the Palazzo della Ragione, if you whisper into one column, a person standing diagonally across the arch can hear you clearly. A medieval spy phone!