In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The hotel closest to Milano Centrale is the Excelsior Hotel Gallia, about 180 m away in a straight line. Ostello Bello Grande is about 210 m away, the Starhotels Anderson about 220 m across Piazza Luigi di Savoia, the Hotel Bernina and Hotel Flora about 300 m, and DUO Milan Porta Nuova about 460 m. The next hotels, the Hyatt Centric, the Principe di Savoia, Sanpi Milano and ME Milan Il Duca, are at 0.7 to 1 km. The Duomo is about 2.6 km away: metro line M3 runs direct. The Malpensa Express (€15) reaches the station in about 51 minutes from Terminal 1. Hotels owe a tourist tax of €3 to €12 per person per night. Prices change with the dates, so check yours on Hotels.com. Or book a tour: the Duomo and terraces ticketad is from €27 and the Last Supper guided tourad from €79 (GetYourGuide).
What the station is like to sleep near
Milano Centrale is the station for Trenitalia, Italo, Trenord and the Malpensa Express, and for metro lines M2 and M3. The Malpensa Express runs every 30 minutes to Terminal 1 and costs €15: see Milan airports to the city. Linate has a bus from the station and is on M4, and Bergamo’s airport has a bus and no train. The high-speed trains to Florence, Venice and Rome leave from here, taking about 1 hour 54 minutes, 2 hours 29 minutes and 3 hours 10 minutes. The Turin Frecciarossa does not: it leaves from Milano Porta Garibaldi. Day trips from Milan has the trains to the lakes.
The front of Milano Centrale from the forecourt on Piazza Duca d’Aosta. Photo: Leonhard Lenz, Wikimedia Commons, CC0.
The Mercato Centrale food hall inside the station is open every day from 6:30 to 23:00. You take food from the stalls, sit where you like and order drinks at the table, with no booking. Where to eat in Milan lists it.
The UK Foreign Office asks for care on public transport, in crowded areas and in city centres, including main train and metro stations. Australia’s Smartraveller names central train stations for pickpockets, and the Government of Canada names stations, hotel lobbies and outdoor restaurant seating. None of them ranks districts as safe or unsafe. Keep bags and phones close on the concourse, on the metro and on trams. Visitors on Reddit’s r/ItalyTravel are split on the area: one calls it a bit sketchy but far from dangerous, and several others stayed beside the station and were happy.
Hotels pay a tourist tax per person per night, paid at the hotel: €3 in a 1-star hotel or a hostel, €4 in a 2-star, €7 in a 3-star, €10 in a 4-star and €12 in a 5-star, with under-18s exempt. What to book before you go to Milan has the table.
Distances are straight lines from the hotels to the station, so a walk is longer, and a hotel’s own walking time is given where it prints one.
The hotels
The links go to the hotel on Hotels.com. Star grades are from the Lombardy region’s register of hotels in the Comune di Milano, whose top category is 5-star luxury: a hotel with no grade here is not in the register, and the hostels have none. Michelin’s Keys are the guide’s own ratings for hotels. Where to stay in Milan compares the other areas.
Up to 500 m
Excelsior Hotel Gallia
About 180 m · Piazza Duca d’Aosta 9 · 5-star luxury · Hotels.comad
An Art Deco landmark opened in 1932 on the west side of Piazza Duca d’Aosta, beside Milano Centrale, joined by a glass-and-steel tower by the architect Marco Piva. The spa has a Himalayan salt room, and the restaurant Terrazza Gallia is Michelin Selected.
Ostello Bello Grande
About 210 m · Via Roberto Lepetit 33 · hostel · Hotels.comad
A hostel near Milano Centrale with a guests’ kitchen and terrace and a bar open 24 hours, according to the hostel.
Starhotels Anderson
About 220 m · Piazza Luigi di Savoia 20 · 106 rooms · 4-star · Hotels.comad
Faces Milano Centrale across Piazza Luigi di Savoia, with the restaurant and bar Black.
Hotel Bernina
About 310 m · Via Napo Torriani 27 · 3-star · Hotels.comad
Opposite Milano Centrale and a few metres from the metro entrance, according to the hotel, with Porta Nuova and the Indro Montanelli public gardens a few minutes’ walk away.
Hotel Flora
About 320 m · Via Napo Torriani 23 · 3-star · Hotels.comad
The hotel’s Italian page puts it 200 metres from the station and says it has welcomed guests for more than half a century.
DUO Milan Porta Nuova
About 460 m · Via Gerolamo Cardano 1 · 239 rooms · 4-star · Hotels.comad
Rooms with terrazzo floors and co-working corners in the lobby. Michelin notes two major train stations nearby.
500 m to 1.2 km
Hyatt Centric Milan Centrale
About 690 m · Via Giovanni Battista Pirelli 20 · 141 rooms · 4-star · Hotels.comad
Michelin lists a lobby café, the restaurant Rivington Cucina New York, a spa with a Turkish bath and a rooftop garden bar, the Organics SkyGarden.
Hotel Principe di Savoia
About 900 m · Piazza della Repubblica 17 · 301 rooms · 5-star luxury · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
A long-established grand hotel with antique furniture and an indoor pool, according to Michelin. The restaurant Acanto stays open late.
Sanpi Milano
About 910 m · Via Lazzaro Palazzi 18 · 4-star · Hotels.comad
In a restored 19th-century palazzo with a garden, a few hundred metres from Milano Centrale and between Porta Venezia and Corso Buenos Aires, according to the hotel’s Italian page.
ME Milan Il Duca
About 950 m · Piazza della Repubblica 13 · 5-star luxury · Hotels.comad
On Piazza della Repubblica. The hotel advertises a rooftop terrace with 360-degree views of the city.
NH Collection Milano Porta Nuova
About 1.11 km · Via Melchiorre Gioia 6 · 4-star · Hotels.comad
Formerly NH Milano Grand Hotel Verdi. The hotel puts Porta Garibaldi station 600 m away, the bars of Corso Como 5 minutes’ walk and the centre 15 minutes’ walk, with Gioia metro a short walk.
Hotels further out
The hotels beyond 1.2 km are described by their own area in where to stay in Milan. For a base on foot from the cathedral, see hotels near the Duomo.
Next
3 days in Milan fits the sights round the closed days, and the best time to visit Milan has the weather by month. Milan public transport covers the metro, and what to book before you go to Milan lists the tickets that need a slot.
Common questions
Which hotel is closest to Milano Centrale?
Of the hotels in this guide, the Excelsior Hotel Gallia, about 180 m from the station in a straight line, on Piazza Duca d'Aosta. Ostello Bello Grande is about 210 m away and the Starhotels Anderson about 220 m, facing the station across Piazza Luigi di Savoia.
How do I get from Milano Centrale to the Duomo?
Metro line M3 (yellow) runs direct from Centrale to Duomo. The cathedral is about 2.6 km from the station in a straight line, and Centrale is also on M2 (green).
How do I get from Milano Centrale to Malpensa airport?
The Malpensa Express costs €15 one way and takes about 51 minutes from Centrale to Terminal 1, with a train every 30 minutes. A taxi from Malpensa has a fixed fare of €114 to any address in the city.
Is the area round Milano Centrale safe at night?
The UK Foreign Office asks for care on public transport and at main train and metro stations, and Australia's Smartraveller names central train stations for pickpockets. Neither ranks districts as safe or unsafe.
Is there food inside Milano Centrale?
Yes. The Mercato Centrale food hall inside the station is open every day from 6:30 to 23:00. You take food from the stalls, sit where you like and order drinks at the table, with no booking.
Is there a tourist tax at Milan hotels?
Yes, per person per night, paid at the hotel: €3 in a 1-star hotel and a hostel, €4 in a 2-star, €7 in a 3-star, €10 in a 4-star and €12 in a 5-star. Under-18s are exempt.
