Monza, an open-air exhibition

Between history, art and nature in two days

Route category: On Foot

For the two-day itinerary, we recommend exploring the city center with its historical and artistic monuments on the first day, and for the second day we propose a move to the Villa Reale area and Monza Park.

Monza, the third most populous city in the Lombardy region, is an artistic, historical and cultural jewel worth a visit.

Very important figure who contributed to its birth was Longobard Queen Teodolinda, who chose this territory to establish her people. She is also credited with the origin of the name "Monza": legend has it that the queen, exhausted after a long ride, dozed off on the banks of the Lambro River and dreamed of a white dove that suggested the exact place where to build a palace and a chapel in honor of St. John the Baptist (today's Monza Cathedral), the dove whispered "Modo" ("here") and she replied "Etiam" ("yes"). Hence Modoetia, the ancient name of the city of Monza.

Details of the tour

Properties

Typology: On Foot

MONZA AND ITS TREASURE

CORONA FERREA

CAPPELLA ZAVATTARI

PIAZZA DUOMO

DUOMO

ARENGARIO

To begin the tour of discovery of Monza, we suggest a visit to the Duomo di Monza which is about a 2-minute walk from the parking lot.

"A plot of events spanning more than 1,400 years, a complex and monumental structure, a very rich decorative and furnishing apparatus, a priceless Treasure and a dense web of international relations punctuated throughout its history, make Monza Cathedral one of the most important ecclesiastical institutions in Italy and Europe."

It is also worth a visit to admire the beautiful facade in shades of white and blue that has recently been restored.

In addition, in Monza Cathedral is preserved the famous Corona Ferrea in the chapel of Theodolinda, to the left of the high altar. It is the most important symbol, between faith and myth, of the Christian West that crowned the kings of Italy. A visit not to be missed to discover the history of Monza and the figure of the Longobard Queen Teodolinda also through her life finely frescoed by the Zavattari brothers in the chapel.

Inside the Cathedral of Monza complex is the Museum and Treasure of Monza Cathedral. "A journey spanning more than 1,400 years, during which the history of the church was often intertwined with that of the great political and religious institutions of Italy and Europe, in a web of relationships to which the collections are a vivid and often spectacular testimony."

Info and reservations: here the link of the site with timetables and rates with the possibility of booking "packages" of visits.

The visit will last about the entire morning between visit to the Cathedral, Museum and Chapel. We suggest on the way out a tour of the adjacent streets where you can admire monuments such as the Arengario, the city's ancient municipal palace that dates back to the 13th century and from which the main streets of Monza's historic center depart, or the Medieval Tower of Theodolinda located on Lambro Street that dates back to the 13th century. It is also called Porta Lambro precisely because it was used as a gateway to the city for goods arriving by river.

For a lunch break dedicated to traditional Lombard cuisine and beyond, we point out several restaurants located in the city center within walking distance of the city's monuments of historical and artistic interest

Prenota la tua visita al Museo del Duomo

BETWEEN BEAUTY AND HISTORY

MUSEI CIVICI

Ponte dei Leoni

CAPPELLA ESPIATORIA

In addition to the places of interest we have suggested (Monza Cathedral and Duomo Museum), we also recommend a visit to the Civic Museums of Monza. After 30 years of closure, the Monza Civic Museums reopened to the public in 2014, housed in the medieval complex of the Casa degli Humiliati. A museum guardian of the city's memory, where the city's collections dwell, from archaeological finds to contemporary art.

Another visit we recommend involves the Bridges on the Lambro River. A walk along the river to discover the many ancient bridges that span the Lambro. From the monumental Ponte dei Leoni to the oldest Ponte New Bridge from the 1300s. From here it is possible to see the base wall of the medieval walls, demolished in the 19th century.

The complex of Santa Maria delle Grazie, another jewel worth to be visited, is an evocative Franciscan sanctuary dating back to 1463, when the Friars Minor Observant settled in this peripheral area next to the course of the Lambro, outside the walls that surrounded Monza.

The Expiatory Chapel was designed by architect Giuseppe Sacconi, who also designed the Altare della Patria in Rome, the Chapel stands on the very spot where anarchist Gaetano Bresci killed King Umberto I of Savoy on July 29, 1900. The interior is studded with precious mosaics that are worth admiring.

Scopri i Musei Civici

Scopri la Cappella Espiatoria

REGAL VISIT

VILLA REALE

GIARDINI REALI

ROSETO

For the second day, we suggest exploring and visiting the Monza Park and Villa Reale area. A parking inside the Park connected to the Reggia and there are also several restaurants in the surroundings that meet your every need. The Villa Reale in Monza can be reached on foot in about 10 to 15 minutes from the center or by car.

The Villa Reale is a jewel of the city commissioned by Empress Maria Theresa of Austria as her son Ferdinand's summer country residence between 1777 and 1780. The building is built in the Neoclassical style and houses about seven hundred rooms inside. Beauty that holds up to comparison with the world-famous Royal Palace of Caserta and the even more famous Palace of Versailles.

The new tour itinerary includes 28 rooms including apartments and halls: a true journey through history from the Habsburgs to the Savoy. The visit, lasting about 60 minutes, will start from the entrance hall leading to the representative rooms of the First Floor Noble, which most of all still bear the neoclassical decorations; it will then continue in the spaces of the Second Floor with the celebrated apartment of the Prince of Naples, adapted by the architect Majnoni on the occasion of the wedding of Victor Emmanuel III; then it will be the turn of the library and its fascinating boiserie made of walnut wood and the apartments of the King and the Queen, finally ending in the central hall with its splendid view of the Royal Gardens.
Online booking is recommended (there is, however, a ticket office on the Ground Floor of the Royal Villa),it will be possible to visit the spaces of the monumental complex on Saturday and Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.30, with last entry one hour before closing.

The Royal Gardens with ponds, small waterfalls, grottoes, numerous peculiar and centuries-old trees that are located behind the building and connect the Villa to Monza Park also deserve a visit; the Orangerie (or Serrone) with its various species of citrus and exotic plants; the Roseto with its many varieties of flowers to be discovered and admired. "The planting includes different thematic sections, depending on the rose collections planted, with some old varieties arranged around the water feature, or climbing, along the gate and on the arbor. Most of the space is in each case devoted to roses participating in the annual Competitions, with more than 400 varieties, created by rose growers from around the world and judged by international technicians, poets, artists, and fashion or television personalities."

Scopri la Villa reale di Monza

Scori il Roseto Niso Fumagalli

DISCOVER AND EXPERIENCE THE GREEN LUNG

PARCO DI MONZA

MULINI ASCIUTTI

VILLA MIRABELLO

PARCO DI MONZA

If you are a nature lover or are simply looking for a place that can give you tranquility and relaxation away from the noise of the city, you you can miss a visit to the Parco di Monza, the fenced-in city park largest in Europe with its 700 hectares of greenery, numerous historic farmhouses, eye-catching stone bridges and monumental trees worth admiring. The visit can be done on foot or by bike (there is a bike rental inside). We recommend renting a bike as being very extensive it would be a better method of visiting.

Inside is also the world-famous Autodromo Nazionale Monza (the Temple of Speed), home to motor racing such as the world-famous Formula 1, and if you are a motor enthusiast, it is a must-see.

Scopri tutto sull'Autodromo Nazionale Monza

Scopri cosa fare al Parco di Monza

Where

Start point: Duomo di Monza
Piazza Duomo, 20900 Monza MB
Get me there

Destination: Autodromo Nazionale Monza
Via Vedano 5, 20900 Monza MB

Find nearby

Arts & Culture 02 km

DUOMO DI MONZA

Piazza Duomo, 20900 Monza MB

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VILLA REALE DI MONZA

AUTODROMO NAZIONALE MONZA

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Visit Villa Reale di Monza

MONZA CIRCUIT EXPERIENCE

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ART EXHIBITION: UNSEEN – THE NEVER SEEN PHOTOS OF VIVIAN MAIER

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Formula 1 Gran Premio d'Italia 2025

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