Magical Milan

and its celebrated vividness. Bookings should be made two months in advance, to get your allotted 15 minutes of face-time with the mural.

Steer clear of the numerous rip-off ticket touts, trawling the streets (and the internet) offering entrance tickets at exorbitant prices. You shouldn’t have to pay any more than €15.

For further information, go to www. cenacolovinciano.org.

If you really want to splash out in the style stakes, Hotel Principe di Savoia should be your Milanese address.

Entering this graceful space, savour the over-the-top marble foyer and reams of polished oak, a time-honoured antidote to the overdose of designer hotels in Milan.

There is a neoclassical soul to this hotel, a hospitality temple.

No stranger to hosting the world’s most glamorous stars, this Dorchester Collection hotel is seen as something of an institution in Milan.

First opening its doors in 1896, the AC Milan football club was founded at the hotel about 20 years later.

By the 1930s, the Principe had become a tractor-beam for the glitterati, welcoming the likes of Charlie Chaplin, Eva Peron, Maria Callas, and more recently George Clooney, , Elton John and Luciano Pavarotti. His favourite dish was pasta with zucchini, tomatoes and ricotta. You’ll still find it on the menu today as “Penne alla Pavarotti”. Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Carter, Robert De Niro and Madonna have all stayed in the presidential suite, which has its own Pompeian-style swimming pool. It featured in Sofia Coppola’s 2010 film, Somewhere.

Milan's grand dame has all the trappings of a landmark luxury hotel, with Murano chandeliers celebrating its sense of place.

Most of the guest rooms and suites are stately and spacious, where the craftsmanship sings out loud, from marquetry, mosaics and frescoes to lavish marble bathrooms, equipped with Acqua di Parma toiletries.

Guest rooms are bedecked in traditional dark-wood furniture and deluxe fabrics, integrated with all the mod-cons.

Staff are exceptionally efficient and unfailingly helpful.

The Principe bar is an elegant aperitivo spot, and the Acanto restaurant has garden seating and is open from breakfast to dinner.

Lighter food, sneaky treats and High Tea are served with style in Il Salotto reception area. It’s a landmark hotel experience. www.dorchestercollection.com.