Milan to Bergamo: Private day trip

Bergamo's Città Alta rises within its UNESCO Venetian walls as one of northern Italy's most rewarding medieval hilltops — Romanesque piazzas, Renaissance frescoes, and century-old pasticcerie entirely removed from the pace of Milan below.

What to see

• The 16th-century Venetian walls (UNESCO World Heritage) encircle the entire upper city — enter through the dramatic Porta San Giacomo gate and the medieval world closes around you immediately
• Piazza Vecchia is the civic heart of the Città Alta — the Torre Civica, the Palazzo della Ragione with its open Gothic arcades, and the Contarini fountain donated by Venice frame one of the most harmonious medieval squares in northern Italy
• The Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore and the adjacent Cappella Colleoni
• The Accademia Carrara, just below the walls, holds one of the most underrated art collections in Italy

What to do

• Take the funicular from the lower city to the Città Alta — the 1887 cable car climbs through the walls in three minutes and is the most atmospheric way to arrive

What to eat

• Polenta e osei — Bergamo's signature cake, a sponge-shaped and decorated to resemble the traditional game-bird dish