If you loved the original, you already know the thrill: Andy and Miranda are back, and in The Devil Wears Prada 2 the story sweeps from New York to Italy — Milan and Lake Como. Between the marble of Milan Fashion Week and a glittering villa on Lake Como, the sequel is practically a love letter to northern Italy.
I happened to be staying on Lake Como and in Milan in June 2026, so I walked several of the film’s real locations myself. This guide skips the New York scenes and focuses only on the Italian filming locations you can actually visit — with how to get there, the best time of day, and honest tips for travelling as a woman in her 40s or 50s.
📑 Contents
- About the film
- Location 1: Piazza del Duomo, Milan
- Location 2: Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
- Location 3: Accademia di Brera (Brera Academy)
- Location 4: Palazzo Parigi Hotel
- Location 5: Santa Maria delle Grazie
- Location 6: Villa Arconati & Il Salumaio
- Location 7: Villa Balbiano, Lake Como
- Before you go: watch & read
- Tips for visiting (from one over-40 traveller to another)
- The Italian locations at a glance
About the film
- Title: The Devil Wears Prada 2
- Released: 1 May 2026 in US theaters (20th Century Studios); premiered in New York on 20 April 2026
- Director: David Frankel (returning from the original)
- Returning cast: Meryl Streep (Miranda), Anne Hathaway (Andy), Emily Blunt (Emily) and Stanley Tucci (Nigel), with newcomers including Kenneth Branagh, Simone Ashley and Lucy Liu
- Scene-stealer: Lady Gaga appears as a musical guest at Runway’s Milan Fashion Week gala
The plot follows Miranda steering Runway through the decline of print magazines. Under new ownership and facing brutal budget cuts to its flagship Milan fashion event, Andy schemes to save the magazine with the help of a wealthy patron — Emily’s boyfriend Benji, whose Lake Como villa becomes one of the film’s most beautiful backdrops.
Location 1: Piazza del Duomo, Milan
The film opens with a sweeping aerial shot of Milan that glides down to the Duomo. During Fashion Week, editors and models stream across this square — it is the world of Prada made real. Up close, the cathedral’s 135 spires are genuinely breathtaking.
Getting there: Metro M1/M3 to “Duomo”.
Best time: before 8am, when the light is soft and the crowds haven’t arrived.
Photo tip: frame the cathedral from the Galleria side, and consider the rooftop terraces (ticketed) for a close-up of the spires.
Location 2: Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
Right beside the Duomo stands one of the world’s oldest shopping arcades. In the film, Miranda takes a solitary stroll through it. Beneath its soaring glass dome sit the flagship boutiques of Prada and Louis Vuitton — be sure to photograph the Prada sign, the very name in the film’s title.
Entry: free, open as a public passage.
Local lore: spin on the heel of the mosaic bull in the floor for good luck.
Photo tip: come early — an empty Galleria looks exactly like a film set.
🎬 Walk the Milan locations with a guide
See the Duomo, the Galleria and more on a small-group Milan walking tour — the easiest way to cover the film’s city locations in a morning.
👉 Browse Milan walking tours on Viator →
Location 3: Accademia di Brera (Brera Academy)
The film’s climactic Runway fashion show — the one with Lady Gaga’s performance — was filmed here. The rest of the year it’s a fine-art museum holding masterpieces by Raphael and Caravaggio, set in the chic, cobblestoned Brera district.
Address: Via Brera 28 (Metro M2 “Lanza” or M3 “Montenapoleone”).
Worth knowing: pair the gallery with a slow wander through Brera’s lanes and cafés.
Location 4: Palazzo Parigi Hotel
In the film this is where the Runway team stays — and it’s a real five-star hotel in central Milan, known for its spa and elegant afternoon tea. If you want to live the fantasy, you can book a night in the same hotel.
Address: Corso di Porta Nuova 1, near the Brera district.
Location 5: Santa Maria delle Grazie
The UNESCO-listed church home to Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper appears as the setting for the film’s gala dinner. (To protect the fragile mural, the interior dinner scene itself was faithfully recreated on a studio set.) Seeing the real Last Supper requires a timed ticket booked well in advance.
🍽️ See Leonardo’s Last Supper
Tickets sell out weeks ahead — skip-the-line and guided options are the reliable way in.
👉 Check Last Supper tickets on Viator →
Location 6: Villa Arconati & Il Salumaio
Villa Arconati, a magnificent aristocratic estate on the edge of Milan (sometimes called “the Versailles of Lombardy”), hosts one of the film’s fashion events.
And Il Salumaio di Montenapoleone (Via Santo Spirito 10), a historic gourmet deli-restaurant in the heart of the luxury shopping district, is where Emily lunches with Donatella Versace — a lovely, very ‘Milan’ spot for lunch yourself.
Location 7: Villa Balbiano, Lake Como
The film’s Lake Como showpiece is Benji’s villa, where Andy and Emily arrive by speedboat, slicing across the water with the villa rising behind them. It was filmed at the 16th-century Villa Balbiano in Ossuccio — the same opulent estate used in House of Gucci.
⚠ Don’t confuse the two villas! The one in the film is Villa Balbiano (Ossuccio). It is not the famous Villa del Balbianello (Lenno) of Star Wars and Casino Royale fame — that’s a different building, though both sit close together on Lake Como’s western shore and are well worth combining. Villa Balbiano is largely private (rentals/stays), so the realistic way to admire it is from the water on a boat tour.
If you’d like to visit its romantic neighbour, here’s my full guide: Villa del Balbianello — the complete visitor’s guide to Lake Como’s most romantic villa.
⛵ Glide past Villa Balbiano by boat
The villas of the western shore are best seen from the lake — many day trips from Milan combine a boat tour with the prettiest villages.
👉 Browse Lake Como boat tours on Viator →
Before you go: watch & read
Rewatching the films and re-reading the books before your trip makes every location land harder — that “this is the spot!” feeling is half the fun.
🎬 Rewatch the original first
Stream or own the original The Devil Wears Prada before you travel.
👉 Find The Devil Wears Prada on Amazon →
📖 Read the novels
Lauren Weisberger’s original novel (and its sequel) are perfect plane reading.
👉 Browse the books on Amazon →
🗺️ Pack a guidebook
A good Milan & Lake Como guide helps you build the trip around the locations.
👉 Find Milan & Lake Como guides on Amazon →
Tips for visiting (from one over-40 traveller to another)
- Watch the films first. The “that’s the scene!” moments are ten times sweeter when it’s fresh.
- Go early for empty photos. Both the Duomo and the Galleria are near-deserted before 8am.
- Mind Fashion Week dates. Hotel prices spike in late Feb–March and September; other months are easier and cheaper.
- Solo travel is very doable. Central Milan is busy and comfortable by day — just stay pickpocket-aware in the crowds.
The Italian locations at a glance
| Location | City | Scene | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Piazza del Duomo | Milan | Opening aerial | Free / rooftop ticketed |
| Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II | Milan | Miranda’s walk | Free |
| Brera Academy | Milan | Lady Gaga show | Ticketed |
| Palazzo Parigi | Milan | Team’s hotel | Stay / dine |
| Santa Maria delle Grazie | Milan | Gala dinner | Book ahead |
| Villa Arconati | Milan area | Fashion event | Check opening days |
| Il Salumaio | Milan | Emily’s lunch | Dine |
| Villa Balbiano | Lake Como | Speedboat arrival | View from the water |
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