Castello Sforzesco and Parco Sempione

The Sforza castle is a square red-brick fortress at the top of Via Dante, built by the dukes of Milan in the fifteenth century and big enough to hold three separate courtyards inside its walls. Behind it, Parco Sempione runs for a kilometre to the Arco della Pace, which gives the location something rare in central Milan: space, grass and long sightlines.

The courtyards are the best part and they are free to walk into. The Piazza d'Armi, immediately inside the main gate, is enormous and free of clutter; the Corte Ducale beyond it is smaller, arcaded and shaded — a good midday room. Outside, the moat side gives brick walls and towers without the crowd at the front gate.

On the park side, the castle and its central tower reflect in the fountain pool, which is the classic wide frame, best in late afternoon when the brick warms to orange. The park is a working city park — joggers, prams, football — so it suits family sessions that want movement rather than staged calm. It stays open until dark; the castle courtyards close earlier.