The Hotel Principe di Savoia is Right up Milan’s alley

When Madonna stayed at the Hotel Principe di Savoia in Milan she brought with her about 40 staff members.

She was in Milan for five nights on a concert tour. The 40-strong entourage did not include her band and back-up singers. They stayed elsewhere. Somewhere a little less expensive, I can only presume.

Madonna’s personal staff did, however, include a maid. Madge obviously didn’t want the Principe hotel staff to get their hands on her dirty laundry.

In contrast, when actor George Clooney dropped in to the graceful and ornate neoclassical lobby, he filled out his own registration card at the front desk and used his own credit card to pay the bill.

There are reports that Clooney did cause a little angst, however, when he went downtown and bought a set of tenpin bowls and a bowling ball.

Apparently the hallway in the $23,000-a-night presidential suite reminded him of an alley.

Hitting the suite spot

The 500sq m suite, on the same level as the hotel’s spa, boasts three bedrooms, a dining room (with grand piano), living room and private spa including a swimming pool, whirlpool, sauna and Turkish bath. As you would expect, it also has views of the snow-capped mountains in the distance.

David Beckham called the Principe home during his stint with AC Milan. Posh and the kids would pop over whenever they could to keep him company during one of his five-month stints in this northern Italian city. Beckham was quiet and did his best to stay away from the paparazzi.

According to staff, Posh was lovely, and as she has always been my favourite Spice Girl, I was very pleased to hear that.

The style icon of Milan

The Principe is Milan’s most elegant address, and it is now a Hollywood star in its own right. Part of Sofia Coppola’s new film, Somewhere, was filmed here.

The movie, starring Stephen Dorff and Elle Fanning, won the Golden Lion prize at this year’s Venice Film Festival and is in cinemas now.

Perfect spot to shoot a movie

In the film, Dorff plays a Hollywood star whose empty life changes dramatically with the arrival of his daughter, played by the younger of the Fanning sisters. The film is shot almost entirely in hotels, and while the Chateau Marmont in LA gets top billing, the Principe steals the show.

The hotel, which has 269 rooms and 132 suites, dominates the Piazza della Repubblica and is about a 15-minute walk from downtown Milan.

It is a style icon in Milan and has attracted international guests since opening in 1927.

In fact, this hotel is how I imagined Milan would be graceful, classical, cutting-edge, sophisticated, Armani, Prada, Missoni and Gucci.

While the hotel lived up to my expectations, the city is a slightly different story.

Milan is known for beautiful things. It is the home of fashion. Every model born dreams of one day walking the catwalk here. It is where the world’s most elegant furniture is made. And, of course, it is the home of fast cars.

But this city of 1.3 million on first glance feels more like an industrial centre. Walk the streets and you can’t help but be stunned by the graffiti that covers almost every space available. On the 15-minute walk from the hotel to the city, I struggle with the congested urban landscape. What do people come here for?

What’s for The Last Supper?

I find my first reason at the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. I had seen pictures of Leonardo da Vinci’s fresco, The Last Supper, but nothing prepared me for the real thing. Inside this tiny church, which was lucky to survive the bombings of World War II, we wait a few minutes before our group is escorted into the old dining hall.

The Last Supper is almost 9m wide by 4.5m high. It was painted by da Vinci in the 15th century and is the painter’s interpretation of the Gospel of John 13:21, in which Jesus announces one of his Apostles will betray him.It almost brought me to tears.

I was bolted to the floor, as I studied the painting for the 20 minutes I was allowed inside. Had it been possible to come back again, and again, I would have. But you need to book in advance.

Tickets are only €8 ($10), but go to www.viator.com and get a ticket as soon as you know you are going to Milan.

When I left the church, Milan had changed. It was somehow more beautiful. Perhaps that’s because my next stop was the Duomo, one of most imposing cathedrals in Italy. Construction began in 1386 and it wasn’t finished until 1965.

The Duomo is the city’s focal point. The main shopping streets, to the north, have every major brand and you can see the locals modelling the latest lines as they strut from shop to shop.Italians dress to shop, they dress to eat and unbelievably still manage to fit into tight clothes despite a diet of pizza, pasta and myriad gelato flavours.

Sometimes life just isn’t fair.