Editing Tourism in Italy (section)

=== Milan ===
{{main|Tourism in Milan}}
{{further|Milan}}
{{wide image|20170706 MilanoDuomo 9637 (36747362195).jpg|800px|align-cap=center|The [[Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II]], the [[Milan Cathedral]], the [[Royal Palace of Milan]] and the [[Palazzo dell'Arengario]] in [[Piazza del Duomo, Milan|Piazza del Duomo]]}}
[[File:Piazza mercanti Milano.JPG|thumb|[[Piazza Mercanti]] used to be the heart of Milan in the Middle Ages.]]
[[Milan]] is a city in [[northern Italy]], capital of [[Lombardy]], and the [[List of cities in Italy|second-most populous city proper in Italy]] after [[Rome]]. Milan is considered a leading alpha [[global city]],<ref>{{cite web |title=GaWC – The World According to GaWC 2018 |url=https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2018t.html |website=lboro.ac.uk |access-date=16 December 2019 |archive-date=3 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170503165246/http://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2016t.html |url-status=live }}</ref> with strengths in the fields of [[arts|art]], [[commerce]], [[design]], [[education]], [[entertainment]], [[fashion]], [[finance]], [[healthcare]], [[media (communication)|media]], [[service (economics)|services]], [[research]] and tourism. Its business district hosts [[Borsa Italiana|Italy's stock exchange]] ({{langx|it|Borsa Italiana}}), and the headquarters of national and international banks and companies. In terms of [[GDP]], Milan is the wealthiest city in Italy, it has the [[List of metropolitan areas in the European Union by GDP|third-largest economy]] among EU cities after Paris and Madrid and is the wealthiest among EU non-capital cities.<ref name="Gert">{{cite web |author=Gert-Jan Hospers|year=2002|title=Beyond the Blue Banana? Structural Change in Europe's Geo-Economy |work=42nd EUROPEAN CONGRESS of the Regional Science Association Young Scientist Session – Submission for EPAINOS Award 27–31 August 2002 – Dortmund, Germany |url = http://www.ersa.org/ersaconfs/ersa02/cd-rom/papers/210.pdf |access-date=27 September 2006 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070929001624/http://www.ersa.org/ersaconfs/ersa02/cd-rom/papers/210.pdf |archive-date= 29 September 2007}}</ref><ref name="Brookings">{{cite web|url=http://www.brookings.edu/research/interactives/global-metro-monitor-3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130106102340/http://www.brookings.edu/research/interactives/global-metro-monitor-3|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 January 2013|title=Global city GDP 2013–2014|publisher=[[Brookings Institution]]|access-date=8 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/923781/european-cities-by-gdp/|title=Leading European cities by GDP in 2017/18|website=statista.com|access-date=2021-10-26}}</ref> Milan is viewed along with [[Turin]] as the southernmost part of the [[Blue Banana]] urban development corridor (also known as the "European Megalopolis"), and one of the [[Four Motors for Europe]].

Milan is one of Europe's most important tourist destinations, and Italy's second; with 6.05 million international arrivals as measured in 2014, it placed itself as the 24th most visited city in the world.<ref name="auto"/> According to a particular source, 56% of international visitors to Milan are from Europe, whilst 44% of the city's tourists are Italian, and 56% are from abroad.<ref name="slideshare.net">{{cite web|url=http://www.slideshare.net/mtmexperience/tourist-characteristics-and-the-perceived-image-of-milan|title=Tourist Characteristics and the Perceived Image of Milan|author=Master in Tourism Management, Università IULM|access-date=9 June 2015|date=2009-02-10}}</ref> The most important European Union markets are the [[United Kingdom]] (16%), [[Germany]] (9%) and [[France]] (6%).<ref name="slideshare.net"/> According to the same study, most of the visitors who come from the [[United States|USA]] to the city go on business matters, whilst [[China|Chinese]] and [[Japan]]ese tourists mainly take up the [[leisure]] segment.<ref name="slideshare1">{{cite web|url=http://www.slideshare.net/mtmexperience/tourist-characteristics-and-the-perceived-image-of-milan |title=Tourist Characteristics and the Perceived Image of Milan |publisher=Slideshare.net |date= 2009-02-10|access-date=2010-01-03}}</ref>

The city boasts several popular tourist attractions, such as the city's [[Milan Cathedral|Duomo]] and [[Piazza del Duomo, Milan|Piazza]], the [[La Scala|Teatro alla Scala]], the [[San Siro|San Siro Stadium]], the [[Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II|Vittorio Emanuele II Gallery]], the [[Sforza Castle]], the [[Pinacoteca di Brera]] and the [[Via Monte Napoleone]]. Most tourists visit sights such as [[Milan Cathedral]], the [[Sforza Castle]] and the [[La Scala|Teatro alla Scala]], however, other main sights such as the [[Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio]], the [[Navigli]] and the [[Brera Academy|Brera district]] are less visited and prove to be less popular.<ref name="slideshare1"/>

The city also has numerous hotels, including the ultra-luxurious [[Town House Galleria]], which is the world's first [[hotel rating|seven-star]] hotel, ranked officially by the [[Société Générale de Surveillance]], and one of [[The Leading Hotels of the World]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/travel/heaven-at-the-worlds-first-sevenstar-hotel-20090103-79de.html |title=Heaven at Milan's Town House Galleria hotel |newspaper=[[The Age]] |date=7 January 2009 |access-date=21 January 2009 |location=Melbourne |archive-date=18 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090118144723/http://www.theage.com.au/travel/heaven-at-the-worlds-first-sevenstar-hotel-20090103-79de.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The average stay for a tourist in the city is of 3.43 nights, whilst foreigners stay for longer periods of time, 77% of which stay for a 2-5 night average.<ref name="slideshare1"/> Of the 75% of visitors who stay in hotels, 4-star ones are the most popular (47%), whilst 5-stars, or less than 3-stars, represent 11% and 15% of the charts respectively.