INTER

Inter Milan Playbook: Your Unrivalled Experience Watching the Nerazzurri

By Brian Lee

Published on: February 16, 2026

If you are travelling to Milan to watch Inter, we’ve got you covered.

Not only does this guide include the best bars in the city, tickets and travel information, we also have top tips on where to eat from a Nerazzurri and Italy legend.

San Siro is one of football's greatest stadiums.
San Siro, home to Inter and AC Milan, is one of football’s greatest stadiums (Destination Calcio)

Where To Stay

Picture Milan as a series of circles – like the house of a curling rink used at the Winter Olympics in the city. It is easy to travel from the outside to the centre, or right across the city, and doesn’t take too long. So don’t be tied down to looking for a place near San Siro.

If you do want to be fairly close by, however, CityLife, Milan’s business and commercial district, is one option. There are apartment rentals and Airbnbs while some hotel rooms at the Melia Milano have a view of the stadium, with San Siro just a 30-minute stroll away. And if that sounds like too much in the late summer heat – or winter frost – the metro goes from Tre Torri, Lotto and Amendola.

The CityLife Shopping District is a huge mall with stores on one floor and restaurants on another. In the warmer months they extend outside and this is a nice place to spend time before a late kick-off. With plenty of green space, expect to see families enjoying picnics or kicking a ball around before heading to the game.

Another hotel, slightly further away, is the Nhow Milano on Via Tortona. It’s just under three miles from the stadium but door to door takes less than 45 minutes, which includes a 15-minute a walk to Porta Genova Metro. From there head to Garibaldi on line 2 then switch to line 5 for the San Siro. Outside high season, a large twin room is just under £150 per night but prices rise in the warmer weather, when the infinity pool on the roof opens (normally April). Navigli, with all its bars and restaurants, is just around the corner, as are a couple of must-sees for Inter fans (more on them below).

Where To Eat

Osteria del Corso is the favourite restaurant of Inter and Italy hero Christian Vieri. The former striker told Destination Calcio that their pasta is the ‘best in Italy’. He also pointed us towards the schiacciata at All’Antico Vinaio.

From one Nerazzurri legend to another, just a 10-minute walk from the Nhow Hotel, on the other side of the canal, is one of Javier Zanetti’s restaurants. El Gaucho di Javier Zanetti is the first one he opened in the city. And while it’s not cheap – a three course meal for two with a bottle of the Zanetti Malbec was €160 – it is well worth checking out.

And it sits just across the road from a car garage done out in Inter colours, with newspaper cuttings and pictures on the wall and a huge badge painted on the pavement outside. Owner Ricardo, whose brother did the artwork, has become a bit of a calcio celebrity. “I’ve had them all here, RAI, Gazzetta, ESPN… all for a look, it’s becoming a pain,” he told us with a laugh.

For something a bit quicker and cheaper, at the top of the same street is I Segreti di Pulcinella. The pizzas are €7-€8 and up there with the best we’ve tried (the campagnola was a particular favourite). But, you will have to put any Inter loyalty to one side and just embrace the calcio royalty. It’s wall to wall Maradona and Napoli, while the chef is known to watch whatever match is on, on his ipad while he’s cooking.

Slap bang in the city, on Via Santa Radegonda just a few minutes’ walk from the famous Duomo di Milano, is Luini. The bakery is famed for its panzerotti – tomato sauce and oozing mozzarella fried in dough. Just be prepared to join queues that can stretch back to the piazza. 

Chinatown is lively day and night, full of options for food and drink and known to be a popular choice among footballers.

Inter Milan and Italy legend Christian Vieri told us about his favourite restaurant (Destination Calcio)

Where To Drink

Take your pick from any of the places in Navigli. One of the city’s most picturesque locations, the canal system to the south of the centre buzzes day and night. 

Lined with bars and restaurants on both sides, you will find the away fans soaking up the atmosphere before European evenings, with its aperitivo options tough to beat. With bars usually open until 2am, Navigli is a good option after a late kick-off, too. But, be warned – in the warmer months mosquitoes love Milan, so repellent is a must.

If you’ve got a bit of time, it’s also a great place to spend a couple of hours and grab a bite on a Sunday morning.

Expect The Blues Canal to have Serie A on the TV but with the sound down so punters can watch the match and listen to the live band at the same time. And there’s football shirts all over the wall.

It is always worth getting to San Siro early for the pre-match buzz. Food stalls and merchandise trucks line the roads all the way up to the stadium – still one of the most iconic sights in football. 

The famous old ground will not be there much longer so take the opportunity to admire it from up close with a birra and panino among thousands with the same idea.

Inter fans are known to drink in Bar Doria on Via Plinio and watch games there, while the Bootleg Pub on Via Salutati shows only Inter matches and is a popular haunt for those who cannot get into the San Siro.

For something a bit more stylish, try Ceresio 7. This rooftop bar has a pool and is one of the chicest places in Milan for aperitivo at sunset.

Don’t Forget

Tickets – Tickets can be bought through the club’s official website once you register. Our guide has all the key information.

Inter are one of several Italian teams whose tickets are sold by P1travel.com although they are normally more expensive here.

Kick-off times will be moved for television, so bear that in mind when arranging a trip far in advance.

Merchandise – All of the match kits and Inter collections can be bought through their official online store. There is a store at the San Siro and also in Galleria Passarella (San Babila Metro) and Castello (Cairoli subway station).

Inter Milan fans would love a return to Piazza del Duomo to celebrate another Serie A title win (Photo by Alessandro Levati – FC Internazionale/Inter via Getty Images)

Did You Know?

In November 2025 Inter Milan and AC Milan confirmed plans to demolish the San Siro and replace it with a new 71,500-capacity stadium

Getting There

Three airports serve Milan with Linate the closest to the city centre – 15 minutes away by train and costing less than €3 for a ticket. 

Milan Malpensa is the biggest and busiest of the three, 45 minutes from Milan Centrale on the Malpensa Express. A ticket costs €13-€15 and there is also a shuttle bus, slightly cheaper and similar in journey time.

Bergamo Airport serves mainly budget airlines and the easiest route into Milan is taking the bus for around €10. Journey time is under an hour.

San Siro is the only stadium in Italy that has a direct stop on the subway. Take line M5 (linea Lilla), to stop San Siro Stadio, or line M1 (linea Rossa) to stop Piazzale Lotto, then walk along Viale Caprilli Street until you see the stadium.

Need Another Football Fix?  

Take your pick. Teams at every level of the calcio pyramid can be easily reached from Milan.

Monza is just over 10 minutes away on the train. It’s a lovely city but the the U-Power Stadium is open to the elements so not as much fun in the wind and rain. Another option is Reggio-Emilia – 35 minutes away on the fast train and home to Sassuolo and Reggiana, who share the Mapei Stadium. If it’s a Reggiana game you fancy, make sure you call the ground by its old name, the Citta del Tricolore. Reggiana are effectively tenants in a stadium they owned before it was bought by Sassuolo owners Mapei, and fans do not recognise the new name. 

A similar distance away by train, heading west, Novara has one of the biggest stadiums in Serie C, the Stadio Silvio Piola. Lower down the pyramid, Pavia are in Serie D and around 20 minutes south of the city centre by train.

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