Archive for 'Milan'

Milan is one of the great fashion capitals of the world, this is a well-established fact. For many, Italy and Milan are both synonymous with style and glamour and, as such, a visit to either is bound to involve some bout of shopping.

If you have found a luxury villa in Lombardy and are planning a trip to Milan, there is one destination, in particular, that you need to keep in mind: the Quadrilatero d’Oro district. It has long been considered one of the world’s most important centres of fashion and is home to Milan’s most exclusive stores.

The Quadrilatero d’Oro (or ‘The Golden Rectangle’) is the name given to a tangle of streets located just north of the Duomo. It is often classed as one of the chicest and most expensive streets in the world.

In our final installment in this series, we bring you two more of the most interesting, unique and bizarre architectural feats in Italy, a land well-known for its artistic prestige and innovations. While these buildings may be no less beautiful or important than others throughout the country, they may be less recognisable. If you're an architecture lover or if you merely like checking out strange attractions on your holidays, be sure to read the whole list!

If you're interested at all in contemporary architecture or design or you're just fond of seeing the most unique and unusual things that a city has to offer while on holidays, then Milan has the perfect thing for you. The Bosco Verticale, or Vertical Forest, is a highly unique building in Milan which was opened in 2014. It is composed of a pair of high-rise buildings which are made up of 27 storeys with cantilevered balconies planted with 900 trees and more than 2,000 shrubs and bushes.

The Christmas markets of Italy are not quite the famous attractions that draw people from all over the world that one finds all over the northern countries of Europe. Yet, despite this, they are lovely events that are fun for couples, groups of friends, families and solo travellers alike.

You will still find all the twinkly lights, hot drinks, delicious delicacies – both local and nordic – crafts, gifts and fun events that your heart desires at Italian Christmas markets, all with a distinct local flavour.

You can also find these markets all over the country now. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to find a town without a Christmas market at this stage. We have rounded up some of the best examples for you so read on to learn about some amazing Italian Christmas markets! Just find a vacation rental in Italy and visit them for yourself.

There are many ghost towns around Italy, all of which have been abandoned for one reason or another – natural disaster, a bad location, poor foundations or planning, or migration – but one of the most fascinating of all has to be failed Las Vegas of Italy, Consonno in Lombardy.

Although the town had ancient origins, its decline came after it was completely bought up and rebuilt in the 60s. This was a time of economic prosperity in Italy and in the spirit of fast cars, rock 'n' roll and glamorous lifestyles, entrepreneur Mario Bagno took it upon himself to transform the town.

He bought every piece of land in the area and forced locals to relocate before knocking everything down bar the church and a few houses.

Walking around Milan – maybe going for a spot of shopping, trying local food and wine or visiting museums and tourist attractions – you might be surprised by a certain sculpture that you could easily just stumble across. In the bustling centre of the city, the Piazza Affari, or Business Square, facing the stock-exchange, there is a giant middle finger – and it is pointed right at the building that serves as the financial headquarters of the country and its occupants.

The sculpture was donated to the city by Italy's most famous contemporary artist, Maurizio Cattelan, on the one condition that it would be placed in this particular location and, surprisingly, the Mayor agreed.

If you have a bit of a cheeky side and love art, this is one more reason to find a vacation rental in Milan and visit the city.