The Milan scavenger hunt, explained
The Milan scavenger hunt is a self-guided city game you play on your phone: you walk through the centre of Milan, solve a riddle at each of 10 landmarks and unlock the stories behind them. It takes about 3 hours, with roughly 53 minutes of actual walking over 4.3 km, and you start whenever you like.
Highlights include Sforza Castle, Teatro alla Scala, Santa Maria delle Grazie, home of Leonardo's Last Supper, the Duomo, the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II and the frescoed church of San Maurizio. Milan's centre is flat and its sights lie close together, so it is easy to explore on foot.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 53 min · 4.3 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Polish
Ten riddles from the castle to La Scala
Read the stone, solve the riddle
At each of the 10 stops a riddle points you at something in plain view: a carved emblem, a date over a portal, a figure on a façade. Observation and logic are all it takes, and nobody expects you to know Milanese history.
Legends that come with the answers
Every answer unlocks a story: the Devil said to have left two holes with his horns in the column beside Sant'Ambrogio, the half-woolly sow carved on the Palazzo della Ragione and linked to the name Mediolanum, the luck that comes from spinning on the bull in the Galleria floor. If you would rather look up than down at a screen, the audio narration tells it all.
Flat streets, 53 minutes on foot
Google Maps takes you between the stops: 4.3 km and 53 minutes of walking without a single hill, through the quarter around Sant'Ambrogio and on to the Duomo. Trams cross the route here and there, so watch the tracks.
Breaks are part of the game
The game never times you. Stop for an espresso, finish the next day if you like, and if your hotel is near the Duomo, reorder the stops in the app and begin there.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of players. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Play when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
What kind of traveller the Milan hunt suits
One free day in Milan
The castle, Leonardo's church, two basilicas, the Duomo, the Galleria and La Scala fit into a single afternoon of 4.3 km. The riddles make you look at each of them properly instead of just ticking them off.
Children who like to spot things
The clues are things to find, which suits children: a castle that was only ever a house, a sow carved in stone, a bull in a floor mosaic. An adult plays along, and the flat route keeps small legs going.
Teams of colleagues or friends
Up to 5 players form a team and each follows the game on a phone of their own, which works for a group of friends as well as for colleagues in town for a trade fair. All of it happens outdoors on public ground, so nothing needs booking.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Teams of up to 5 work best; bigger groups split into several teams, one ticket per player.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
The route: from Sforza Castle past Sant'Ambrogio to the Duomo and La Scala
10 stops · about 53 min walking · start: Sforza Castle (Castello Sforzesco) · finish: Teatro alla Scala
The hunt starts at Sforza Castle and heads to Santa Maria delle Grazie, home of Leonardo's Last Supper, and the neo-medieval Castello Cova. Next come the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio with the Temple of Victory beside it, San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore, the medieval Piazza dei Mercanti, the Duomo and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, and you finish on Piazza della Scala in front of the opera house. Should the Duomo end suit you better as a start, the app opens the game there or at any other stop and reorders the rest, and since every answer is found outside, no ticket desk ever stands between you and the next riddle.
Open the route map ↗
1Sforza Castle (Castello Sforzesco)Start
Galeazzo II Visconti built the first castle here in the 14th century, and from 1450 Francesco Sforza turned it into his ducal residence. The tall Filarete Tower above the entrance was rebuilt by Luca Beltrami in 1900–1905, and the castle museums hold Michelangelo's last sculpture, the Rondanini Pietà.
2Santa Maria delle Grazie
Guiniforte Solari began this Dominican church in 1463, and its Renaissance apse and dome are attributed to Donato Bramante. In the refectory of the convent next door Leonardo da Vinci painted The Last Supper in 1495–1498, and church and convent have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980.
3Castello Cova
Castello Cova is a private residence on Via Carducci, built in the early 20th century in a neo-medieval style. With its brick walls, battlements and tower it looks like a small medieval castle, although it was built as a home and never served as a fortress.
4Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio
Saint Ambrose, bishop of Milan, founded this basilica in 379–386, and the present Romanesque church dates mostly from the late 11th and 12th centuries. Its two bell towers belonged to the monks and the canons, and according to legend the two holes in the marble column beside the church were made by the Devil's horns.
5Temple of Victory
The Temple of Victory, also known as the Sacrario dei Caduti Milanesi, is Milan's memorial to the soldiers from the city who died in the First World War. The octagonal marble building was completed in the late 1920s and stands right next to the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio.
6San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore
This church was begun in 1503 for the most important Benedictine convent in Milan. A wall divides it into a hall for the public and a hall for the nuns, and its walls are covered in 16th-century frescoes, many by Bernardino Luini, which is why it is often called the Sistine Chapel of Milan.
7Piazza dei Mercanti
This square was the centre of medieval Milan. The Palazzo della Ragione, built in 1233, housed the city government, and on its arcade you can spot a relief of the half-woolly sow, linked by legend to the origin of the name Mediolanum, while opposite stands the Loggia degli Osii of 1316.
8Milan Cathedral (Duomo)
The cathedral was begun in 1386 under Gian Galeazzo Visconti, and its façade was only completed in Napoleon's time, in the early 19th century. Built of pale pink Candoglia marble, it is one of the largest Gothic cathedrals in the world, with thousands of statues and the gilded Madonnina on its highest spire.
9Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
Designed by Giuseppe Mengoni and built from 1865 to 1877, this glass-roofed arcade links Piazza del Duomo with Piazza della Scala, and its two wings meet under a large glass dome. Tradition says that spinning three times on your heel on the bull in the floor mosaic brings good luck.
10Teatro alla ScalaFinish
Milan's opera house opened on 3 August 1778 with Antonio Salieri's Europa riconosciuta, in a neoclassical building by Giuseppe Piermarini. It takes its name from the church of Santa Maria della Scala, which once stood on the site, and in the square in front stands Pietro Magni's monument to Leonardo da Vinci from 1872.
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Lone– Denmark –
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Claude– France –
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Pour une première utilisation , il faut s’adapter
Belgium –
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Lennard– Germany –
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Gute Rätseltour. Leider sind die Rätsel in den unterschiedlichen Städten immer sehr ähnlich. Aber als erstmalige Aktivität eine super Sache!
Ina– Germany –
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Germany –
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Christian– Norway –
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Germany –
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Toller Einblick in die Stadt mit dieser Schnitzeljagd. Die Rätsel machen es für Kinder und Erwachsene abwechslungsreich. Empfehlenswert.
Lauren– Canada –
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Germany –
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Es war super interessant
Germany –
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Leborgne– France –
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Bertje– Netherlands –
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Ging heel gemakkelijk. App op telefoon downloaden en wandelen maar. Tussendoor even bij de camper gaan lunchen en daarna de tour weer opgepakt. We hadden netjes voor 2 personen geboekt, zodat we allebei op onze eigen telefoon de informatie konden lezen. Leuke manier om het gezellige Metz beter te leren kennen.
Switzerland –
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Tolle Idee, dass man eine Stadt und ihre Winkel auf diese Weise entdecken kann. Mit vielen zusätzlichen Hintergrundinformationen. Empfehlenswert!
Denmark –
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Netherlands –
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Leuk!!
Stefanie– Germany –
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Schöne, abwechslungsreiche Tour durch Kos City. Ideal für Familien mit Kindern, unsere sind 7 und 12 Jahre alt. Alles wurde gut gefunden, anschaulich erklärt und auch die Rätsel waren lösbar.
France –
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Jessica– Austria –
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Eine rolle.Möglichkeit Venedig zu erkunden Fakten zu lernen und Rätsel zu lösen. Eine absolute 10/10
Azucena– Spain –
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Algo complicado para niños
Germany –
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Italy –
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France –
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Très bonne activité à faire pour découvrir les monuments de Tarragona. Je recommande le départ au niveau du parking avec le monuments des castells comme recommandé par l’application. On a apprécié de pouvoir prendre notre temps et faire à notre rythme pour profiter de l’environnement de chaque arrêt. Et on avait calculé pour finir avec la démonstration des castells au pied de la cathédrale. Un vrai plaisir pour la fin de la chasse au trésor. N’hésitez pas à regarder les jours et horaires des démonstrations pour finir en beauté. Seule remarque: une version sonore des informations serait intéressante.
Denmark –
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Kom rundt i byen og hørte om Warszawa historie
Germany –
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Die Schnitzeljagd hat Spaß gemacht 🙂 Die Punkte waren gut zu finden und durch die Fragen/Aufgaben, hat man sich viele Dinge und Details noch genauer angeschaut. Die Aufgabenstellungen waren nur nicht immer ganz eindeutig was etwas schade war . Aber ansonsten alles gut 🙂
Germany –
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Das „Rätsellösen“ war witzig und hat den Stadtrundgang abwechslungsreich gestaltet. Wir hatten vor Jahren schon mal eine Stadtführung gemacht und haben mit der Schnitzeljagd trotzdem noch einiges andere erfahren. Die Infos (gut zu lesen, nicht zu umfangreich) und die Aufgaben wechseln sich ab. Über die App ist die Tour sehr flexibel handhabbar, nach eigenem Tempo, man kann Pausen machen, wie man möchte und nach Belieben die Schnitzeljagd fortführen.
France –
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Netherlands –
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De vragen hadden een tandje moeilijker gemogen. Maar dit is heel leuk om als date te doen.
Desiree Kieffer– Switzerland –
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Ich finde 7 Euro pro Person eigentlich einen stolzen Preis dafür, dass man zusätzlich eine App downloaden landen und die Infos lesen muss. Man kann auch nur für eine Person bezahlen und zu zweit losziehen. Die Informationen sind jedoch interessant und ich habe einiges über Lübeck gelernt. Man muss diese Art der Stadterkundung mögen und neugierig sein.
Switzerland –
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Chilling– Belgium –
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The questions where not too easy nor too hard. Overall very nice game. We had a lot of fun
Germany –
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Flexibilität- Infos- individuell im eigenen Tempo!
Grace– United Kingdom –
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Germany –
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Einige Orte entdeckt, die man so vielleicht gar nicht so wahrgenommen hätte!
Ana Beatriz– Portugal –
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Germany –
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Super schön flexibel. Viele machbare Rätsel.
Constance– Germany –
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Schöne Tour, hat uns viel Spaß gemacht.
Australia –
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good fun way to see the city
Constance– Germany –
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Die Dauer
Cotrez– France –
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Ludique et culturelle à la fois, nous avons passé un agréable moment en famille. Les énigmes sont sympas !
Sabine Smit– Netherlands –
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Je maakt op een ludieke en gezellige manier kennis van de stad!
Lou– Australia –
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I recently did the Zaragoza scavenger hunt with my daughter, and we had an absolute blast! It was so much fun hunting for clues and learning about the city’s history along the way. If you’re short on time but still want to explore, this is a fantastic, portable way to see the sights.
Angela– Germany –
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Canada –
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Solène– France –
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Bonne activité, cependant le cercle reste très restreint, et elle ne nous pousse pas à visiter les différents monuments de la ville.
Anett– Germany –
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Gisela– Germany –
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Es war eine sehr schöne Tour. Durch die Schnitzeljagd lernt man die Stadt ganz anders kennen.
Dani– Switzerland –
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Diese selbstgeführte Schnitzeljagd ist sensationell aufbereitet! Wir waren mit unserer Tochter (16) unterwegs, sie übernahm den Part des Navigators ;-). Nichts ist zwingend, am Ende ist man um einige Ecken und Fakten klüger als zuvor. Alle Orte sind gut auffindbar, die Reihenfolge ist optimal, kann (könnte) auch geändert werden. Schwierigkeitsgrad ist angemessen: Weder unlösbar noch banal, nicht allzu schwierig. Sehr einfach zu buchen. Die Beschreibung, Dauer etc. trifft ziemlich gut zu. Unterhaltsam und informativ, unbedingt machen!
France –
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Arnaud– Belgium –
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Super, on a bien visité grâce à cette activité. Juste une énigme un peu spécial/difficile, sinon parfait.