The Navigli

It surprises many visitors that Milan, far from the sea and on no great river, was once a city of canals. From the twelfth century onwards, the Milanese dug a network of navigable waterways, the Navigli, to bring water for irrigation and defence and to carry goods into the city, and it was along the Naviglio Grande that the marble for the Duomo arrived from Lake Maggiore. Leonardo da Vinci worked on improving the locks during his years in Milan. Most of the inner ring of canals was covered over in the twentieth century, but in the south-west of the city two survive in the open air: the Naviglio Grande and the Naviglio Pavese, which meet at the Darsena, the old port basin near Porta Ticinese, restored and reopened as a waterfront promenade for Expo 2015. Today the Navigli is the city's favourite place to go out. By day, the Naviglio Grande is a quiet stretch of towpaths, old railing houses with balconies opening onto shared courtyards, artist studios, bookshops and vintage stores; look for the Vicolo dei Lavandai, a tiny lane where washerwomen once scrubbed linen on stone slabs under a wooden roof, and the little church of San Cristoforo further out. On the last Sunday of most months, a large antiques and collectables market fills the banks of the Naviglio Grande. From late afternoon, the bars along both canals put out their tables and the area fills with Milanese of every age for aperitivo, the early-evening ritual of a drink with snacks or a buffet, which turns into dinner and then nightlife. Boat tours along the canals run in the warmer months from the Darsena.

When to go: the Navigli has two personalities. Come in the morning or early afternoon for photographs, quiet towpaths, galleries and the vintage shops, and on the last Sunday of the month for the antiques market, one of the best in northern Italy. Come from about six in the evening for aperitivo, when the canalsides are at their most atmospheric, with the lights reflecting on the water. Friday and Saturday nights are busy and loud until late, popular with students and young Milanese. In summer, the area hosts outdoor events and the boat tours run; in winter, the canals are sometimes drained for maintenance for a period, which takes some of the charm away, so do not plan a romantic canal evening around a winter date without checking.

Aperitivo, decoded: you order a drink, typically a spritz, a Negroni or a glass of wine, and it arrives with snacks, or with access to a buffet in some bars. Quality varies a great deal: along the busiest stretch of the Naviglio Grande, many buffets are aimed at volume, so look for places where locals sit and the food is made to order. A Negroni Sbagliato, the Milanese variation with sparkling wine in place of gin, is the local classic. Dinner in the Navigli can be good, but the best trattorias are often a street or two back from the water.

Getting there and around: the Porta Genova metro station on the green line is a few minutes from the Naviglio Grande, and trams run along the Darsena. From the Duomo, it is a pleasant walk south-west down Via Torino and Corso di Porta Ticinese, passing the Roman columns of San Lorenzo, where young Milanese gather in the evening, and the basilica of Sant'Eustorgio. The Tortona design district, busy during Design Week in April, is just across the tracks from Porta Genova. Keep bags close in the evening crowds and watch your step on the canal edges, which have no railings in places.