Free drinking water in Milan
Tap water in Milan is safe to drink and regularly tested, so refilling a bottle is both cheap and easy. Locals call the small public fountains with a constant trickle «vedovelle», and the cast-iron ones topped with a dragon head the «draghi verdi» (green dragons). You will spot them in residential streets, near gardens and on many central blocks, usually with a drinking spout at hand height.
The city also has neighbourhood «case dell'acqua», small kiosks where you can fill up with chilled still or sparkling water. They are handy if you are staying a few days, though they sometimes work with a card or a small fee. For a quick top-up while sightseeing, the open-air fountains are simpler.
Public toilets: what to expect downtown
Like in most big Italian cities, public toilets in central Milan are few and far between. The practical answer is to plan your breaks. Milano Centrale station, large museums, department stores and shopping centres all have restrooms, often for a small fee but kept in decent shape. In cafés and bars it is polite to order something before asking to use the bathroom.
In large green spaces such as Parco Sempione, the Giardini Pubblici Indro Montanelli or Parco Nord, facilities are easier to find, though opening times change with season and weather. In winter and in the evening some close early.
A sample walk: Duomo, Castello and the Navigli
A classic first day can be split into stages. Start at the Duomo and Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II with a full bottle, then walk on toward Castello Sforzesco and Parco Sempione for a long rest on the grass. In the afternoon head south to the Darsena and the Navigli: the area is packed with bars, so restrooms are easy, but free drinking water is less obvious.
- Check the route in the morning and note the fountains you will pass.
- Summers are humid: drink often, even in the shade.
- Keep a few coins for paid restrooms at stations and major attractions.
- If you travel with kids or a wheelchair, check accessibility and changing tables beforehand.
OpenStreetMap data and the PitSpot app
The numbers at the top of this page come from OpenStreetMap, the collaborative map database. We count the objects tagged as drinking water and as toilets inside the municipal boundary. This is not an official guide, so a point may be moved or removed before the map catches up. Use the figures as orientation, not as a guarantee.
To keep everything on a map in your pocket we are building PitSpot, a free Android app that shows water fountains and public toilets near you. If you would like a heads-up at launch, you can join the waitlist from the homepage.