Where’s the Free WiFi in Milan?

The husband and I are going on a fact-finding mission to Milan next month – him to have possible job-related meetings and me to consider what it might be like to live there. While his itinerary is going to be full of meetings and networking, mine is going to be full of finding places where I can get free WiFi access so I can work while I’m there.

Toward that end, I’ve been hunting around for information on free WiFi in Milan, and I’m pleased to report that it looks like there’s plenty of it. Of course, looks can be deceiving. Are these places which advertise free WiFi the kinds of places I’d feel welcome and comfortable hanging out for hours at a time, ordering the occasional drink or snack to help offset my internet usage? Is the WiFi consistent and reliable? I don’t know the answers to these questions, so I’m going to reach out to the folks who live in Milan whose blogs I read to see if they can help me out. Because really, even if the hotel we end up choosing has free WiFi, I think I’ll go stir-crazy if I’m confined to my hotel room – or even the hotel lobby – for a week.

So far, my research had yielded the following information:

• This site seems to have a good listing of spots with free WiFi in Milan, but the questions I have from the paragraph above still apply. I’ll need more information about them before I start plotting my week hopping from bar to bar on that list.
• Alex, who writes from inside “the living museum,” lives in Milan, and he recently wrote about a new free WiFi spot in a park in the city. I’m not really planning to use that one, as it’s already getting cold in Milan and I can’t imagine that it’ll be any warmer by next month. Plus, you only get a three-hour pass for free, it appears. Better than nothing, but I’m hoping to find something that’s both all day and indoors.
• Nicole Martinelli writes about the same park that Alex did, including two more places where you can go register to get your three hour pass. And according to Nicole, once your three hours expires you just have to go get another pass. Which would be fine if this was just something to kill time between meetings, but I’ll be needing a full day’s use of WiFi for probably five of the days I’m in Milan.

So, if you know of good places to check for free WiFi, let me know. I know Starbucks is a decent back-up plan in most places, although it’s not free if you don’t already have T-Mobile, but I think Starbucks hasn’t made it to Italy yet, and even if it has I’d rather avoid the invading coffee company’s big green logo if I can help it.

UPDATE: After corresponding a bit with Alex, he’s pointed me to another site on which to look up free WiFi hotspots in Milan.