Milan Design Week: What We Saw, What We Loved, and What Made Us Walk 133,752 Steps

June 6, 2026

Milan during Design Week has a way of swallowing you whole.

Spring is in the air, the city is alive, the courtyards are open, the palazzos are full, and everywhere you turn there is another doorway, another installation, another showroom, another moment that makes you stop and think — how good is this?

It is very easy to lose yourself in it all. To forget about everything else going on back home and completely submerge yourself in design.

And that is the magic of Milan.

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This year, travelling solo, I had a very clear plan. Every day was mapped, organised and carefully timed. Not because I wanted to remove the spontaneity — that is half the joy — but because Milan Design Week has become big. Really big.

Fuorisalone seems to get bigger every year. It is no longer one design district or one fair, it is the whole city opening up.

Brera is still where the heavy hitters come out to play, with the leading design houses creating full showroom experiences that feel more like theatre than retail. Via Tortona keeps a slightly more experimental edge, full of emerging designers, installations and ideas that feel rawer and sometimes more surprising. Alcova has become one of the real highlights, taking over forgotten buildings and unexpected spaces with work that sits somewhere between design, art and madness. 5VIE brings the craft, the galleries, the collectible pieces and those beautiful historic Milanese settings. Isola has the younger energy, new voices and future-facing ideas. Durini is where the polished Italian design machine is on show.

And then there is fashion.

The fashion houses are now fully in the mix — taking over palazzos, building public installations, opening courtyards and creating immersive moments that pull design, lifestyle, art and brand storytelling together. It is not just furniture anymore. Milan Design Week has become a full city-wide cultural event.

You could chase the big names, follow the queues, disappear into a hidden courtyard or stumble across something brilliant by accident. That is the beauty of it. Milan gives you everything — you just need good shoes, a plan, and a willingness to keep moving.

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There really is something for everyone.

The only issue? Everyone else knows that too.

The queues were next level. Some of the installations were housed in the most incredible palazzos, but I simply refuse to queue for one or two hours when there is that much to see. Milan rewards movement. You have to keep going.

And then there was Salone.

If I am honest, Salone itself was a little disappointing this year. There were still moments, of course, but it feels like many of the big players are starting to pull away from the fair and invest more heavily in their own bricks-and-mortar showroom experiences around Brera and the city.

In previous visits, I remember leaving Salone challenged. I would see something and think, that is never going to work, only to be thinking about it six months later and realising how clever it actually was.

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This year felt more familiar.

Not bad. Just familiar.

There was a definite retro mood in the air. High gloss is back — at least for now. Stainless steel continues to hold its ground. Earthy layered tones are still everywhere. Mixed metals, walnut, soft curves, bolder stones, tactile surfaces and warmer palettes all made strong appearances.

It felt beautiful, but not always surprising.

That said, there were still plenty of moments that made the trip worthwhile.

Gessi was, as always, impressive. Their showroom just keeps expanding and their new steam shower absolutely blew me away. Boffi is always a must-see for me, and this year I was lucky enough to have a very special tour, which deserves its own post. Flexform in the old nun’s residence was unreal. Poliform was simply incredible. Bisazza, Rimadesio, Molteni, Antonio Lupi, Falper, Agape — the list goes on.

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Henge was a real highlight. The tactility, the surfaces, the atmosphere of the space — it was moody, refined and completely immersive. And the rubbed metal UNOX CASA oven? I want one. No further comment.

Modulnova also really stood out. They are always doing something clever with details, junctions and transitions, but this year the way they used gardens to separate rooms and soften movement between spaces was beautiful. It allowed light to move through adjoining areas without needing a solid wall. A very cool idea, and one that felt incredibly relevant to how we think about homes.

Because that is the best part of Milan. It is not about copying what you see. It is about absorbing ideas. Noticing details. Seeing how brands use space, light, material, scent, sound and movement to create feeling.

That is what stays with you.

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After not being back since before COVID, this trip reminded me how much I genuinely enjoy this week. The energy, the inspiration, the madness, the design conversations, the unexpected moments, the sore feet, the late dinners, the endless espresso, and yes — the drinks and carbs you absolutely earn after walking 133,752 steps in six days.

Milan is a lot.

But it is also a reminder of why we love design.

Now the only question is whether we go again next year, or give the feet a little more time to recover.

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