Among the cloisters of the University of Pavia, in the shade of the magnolias

In Pavia, along Corso Strada Nuova, most visitors walk past the University's Central Building without stepping through the gate. It's a mistake. Beyond the entrance hall opens a sequence of courtyards that tells centuries of university history, one of the quietest and least touristy places in the city.

The intimate courtyard

The Courtyard of the Magnolias owes its name to the trees that shade its centre: in spring, when the white and pink flowers open, the space becomes a small suspended stage, far from the noise of the street. It is one of the complex's nine courtyards, and perhaps the most intimate. Students revising on the benches, the odd professor passing through, the rustle of pages: no crowds, no queues.

Across the ages

As you walk you cross different eras. There is the 15th-century core in the shape of a cross, heir to the ancient San Matteo hospital, with its cloisters and porticoed loggias. The nearby Sforza Courtyard still preserves some original terracotta decorations, details you notice only by slowing your pace and lifting your gaze towards the vaults. Other courtyards bear the names of scholars and of fallen students, living memory woven into the stone.

A living university

The charm of this place is that it is not a fenced-off museum but a working university, which can be crossed free of charge during opening hours, with respect for those who study and work there. You enter on tiptoe, wander from one courtyard to another, sit down in the shade. It is worth pairing the visit with the Museum for the History of the University, housed in the complex, to give context to what you have seen.

How and when to go

It's best to come outside the busiest lecture hours, perhaps in the morning or late afternoon, and in the mild seasons. Pavia can be reached in a little over half an hour by train from Milan: a slow, quiet alternative to Italy's more famous and crowded university courtyards.

Related guides: Unusual Lombardy: hidden villages and little-known places away from Milan.

How to get there

The University is in the centre of Pavia, easily reached on foot. Pavia's railway station is well connected by regional trains from Milan and Piedmont and is a short walk from the university area. By car you arrive via the A7 Milan-Genoa motorway or the roads linking the Lombard capital; the reference airports remain the Milanese ones of Linate and Malpensa. In the historic centre it is best to leave the car in the outer car parks and continue on foot.

Practical guides

• How to get to Pavia: trains, planes, cars and buses
• What to see in Pavia in 2 days: itinerary through the Certosa, the university and the Ticino
• Where to stay in Pavia: neighborhoods, accommodation and practical tips
• Where to eat in Pavia: best restaurants, osterias and Pavese risotto guide