Central Station

Stazione Centrale (Milan Central Station) is the second Italian station for size and traffic. More than 600 trains per day – going to Europe and the rest of Italy – and 120.000.000 passengers every year: 100 times as much as Milan inhabitants, a huge number! Before going in, lift your gaze and look up there… Do you see those winged horses? And what about the big lion’s muzzle, which is the symbol of the Italian Railways? What a threatening face!
There are many entrances but we advise you to go in through the main and central one, so you can appreciate the majesty of the building… Look at the ceiling… So much light comes in from those windows above… It is so high… Inside it is huge too, everything is huge! The main stairs, the columns, the passages, the decorations, the clocks! There are clocks everywhere! It is impossible not to know what time it is! Have you seen how many paintings and decorations on the floor at the entrance? Now you can decide whether climb the marble staircase or take the escalators, but hurry up… Or you might miss your train… Here you can find everything, like in a small city… You can buy anything you want, form toys to shoes, to glasses and books. There is a newsagent’s, a tobacconist’s, a post office and a pharmacy too… There is a little church as well… You can eat or have drink, it is full of bars and much more! You will obviously find everything you expect to see in a station: ticket offices, baggage drop off, lost and found office, a police station, porters, the stationmaster, the guard…. And trains as well!!!
 
There are 21 platforms and every time a train has to leave, the engine driver has to get off the train and get back on from the opposite side… It can’t go backwards! All platforms are numbered and if you walk up to the last one, number 21, you can visit the Sala Reale (Royal Hall); this was the private waiting room of the king and queen! How wonderful! And what a gallery!!! Actually, there are 3 of them, and the central one is immense! It is the largest ever, here in Italy… It is 50 meters high – like a 16-floor building – and more than 100-step wide!
 
If you would like to take a stroll around the area… Have a look at Via Petrella… This street teems with minimarkets selling Indian and Bangladeshi food… They are very cheap and you can buy spices and rice at great prices… Take a look! If it is Saturday, the weather is good and you would like to have a look around before getting on the Tram, you can visit the market in Via Benedetto Marcello, in the morning or in the afternoon!