In addition to Milan’s most famous parks, every neighborhood in the city offers green spaces for relaxation, recreation, and outdoor activities. Urban green areas cover over 10% of the city’s total surface, and many parks are equipped with fitness areas and wellness trails, making them ideal for walking, running, or cycling.
Here’s a selection of parks worth discovering — their features, locations, and available services:
Located between Milan, Sesto San Giovanni, and Cinisello Balsamo, Parco Nord is a true urban oasis, rich in natural, artistic, and architectural value. It stretches across more than 632 hectares, partially redeveloping the area formerly occupied by the Breda industrial plants.
Every year, millions of visitors enjoy the park’s open spaces and its many facilities for relaxation, sports, games, and even urban farming. Amenities include basketball, football, and baseball fields, a running track, and a velodrome.
Points of interest include:
Villa Manzoni in Brusuglio di Cormano, a historic residence once owned by Alessandro Manzoni (now private and not open to visitors);
Villa Torretta, a fully frescoed 16th-century noble villa, now home to a hotel and conference center.
The park also hosts the newly planted “Ciliegiami” orchard in the agricultural area of Cascina Balossa, between Novate Milanese and Cormano. Once fully developed, the orchard will include over 6,000 fruit trees, promoting urban agriculture.
Often referred to as Milan’s “High Line”, this park is one of the city’s most remarkable new-generation green spaces. Spanning 60,000 square meters, it was designed by landscape architects Charles Jencks and Andreas Kipar, as a continuation of Monte Stella Park.
Unlike other green spaces, Parco del Portello was designed to minimize noise from nearby Viale Alcide De Gasperi and Viale Renato Serra. Its flowing curves shape the entire layout, creating a calming and scenic environment. A spiral path leads up a hilltop viewpoint offering a panoramic look over the city skyline.
Monte Stella, located in the QT8 neighborhood, is one of Milan’s symbolic landmarks. This 45-meter-high artificial hill was built after WWII using debris from bombed buildings and formed part of the urban renewal project designed for the 8th Triennale (1947).
Today, it’s a favorite spot for runners and fitness enthusiasts, thanks to its hilly paths and challenging circuits.
At the summit, the Garden of the Righteous was inaugurated in 2003, honoring those who opposed genocide and crimes against humanity. Trees have been planted in memory of individuals such as Moshe Bejski, Andrei Sakharov, Svetlana Broz, and Pietro Kuciukian.
Situated between Figino, Quarto Cagnino, and Quinto Romano, this 120-hectare public park offers a mix of forests, meadows, streams, wetlands, and more than 200 urban garden plots cared for by local residents. The park also includes a small lake, a water garden, an apiary, and an orchard — making it a great example of community-centered green space.
With over 1 million square meters of green space, Parco delle Cave is Milan’s third-largest park, after Parco Nord and Parco Forlanini. It’s an outstanding example of how nature and human activity can coexist within the urban environment.
The park features four artificial lakes, a pond, and traditional irrigated meadows (known as marcite), covering 24 hectares of water bodies. These create a rich ecosystem that supports local biodiversity and environmental education programs.
Thanks to its size and diverse natural environments, Parco delle Cave stands out as a unique ecological asset in Milan’s park system — promoting sustainability, quality of urban life, and the protection of natural resources.
