Short answer: the ticket costs €15 including the booking fee, entry is strictly timed, and only 40 people are admitted every 15 minutes. That quota, not the price, is the whole problem. Tickets are released in blocks rather than on a rolling calendar, with an extra batch every Wednesday at 12:00 for the following week. The museum is closed on Mondays.
The rules that decide whether you get in
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Price | €15 adult, reservation fee included; €2 for EU/EEA visitors aged 18 to 25; under 18 free |
| Everyone needs a ticket | Including free ones: no ticket, no time slot, no entry |
| Capacity | 40 people per 15-minute slot |
| Visit length | 15 minutes in the refectory. It is not negotiable |
| Opening | Tuesday to Sunday, roughly 08:15 to 19:00, last entry 18:45 |
| Closed | Mondays |
| Max per booking | 5 online, 9 by phone, 10 or more only as a group by email |
How the ticket release actually works
This is where most visitors fail. The museum does not sell a rolling twelve months ahead. Tickets appear in blocks of roughly three months, announced in advance, and the whole block can be gone within days of release for peak dates.
The second chance is weekly: every Wednesday at 12:00, additional tickets for the following week go on sale online. These are the returns and unallocated slots, and they are the realistic route for anyone who did not book months out.
- Check the official museum site for the current sales window before planning dates.
- If your dates are inside an open block, book immediately: waiting a week rarely helps.
- If the block is sold out, set an alarm for Wednesday at 12:00 Italian time and be logged in beforehand.
- If that fails, look at guided tours, which hold their own allocation.
Guided tours: the honest trade-off
Tour operators hold blocks of slots, so a guided visit is often available when the direct ticket is not. You pay considerably more than €15 for the same 15 minutes, and part of what you buy is availability rather than expertise.
That is not automatically a bad deal. A good guide uses the 15 minutes well, and the wall itself gives up little without context: what is left is a fragile, heavily restored surface, and knowing what you are looking at changes the visit. Just be clear that you are paying for access first and commentary second.
What the visit is like
You arrive at Santa Maria delle Grazie, wait in a small holding area, and pass through climate-controlled doors in a group. Inside the refectory the light is low, the air is dry and the timer starts. Fifteen minutes later everyone leaves together.
Two things surprise people. First, the painting is huge: it fills the end wall of a monks' dining hall, and photographs never convey the scale. Second, the condition is poor and always will be. Leonardo used an experimental technique that began deteriorating within his lifetime, and what survives has been restored repeatedly. You are looking at a ghost of the original, and it is still worth the trip.
Practical notes
- Arrive 20 minutes early. Late arrivals lose the slot, and the slot is not transferable to a later one.
- Bring the ID you booked with. Reduced and free tickets are checked.
- No large bags. There is a small cloakroom and limited space.
- Photography without flash is usually permitted, but the low light defeats most phones. Look rather than shoot.
- Combine it with the church itself, which is free and takes ten minutes, and with the Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia a short walk away.
If you cannot get a ticket
It happens, especially in summer. Reasonable substitutes in Milan: the Pinacoteca di Brera for Renaissance painting at a fraction of the effort, the Ambrosiana for Leonardo's Codex Atlanticus drawings, and the Sforza Castle for the late Michelangelo Pietà. None of them replaces the refectory, but all three are open on days when the Last Supper is not.
FAQ
How much is a Last Supper ticket?
€15 for an adult with the reservation fee included. EU and EEA visitors aged 18 to 25 pay €2, under 18s are free, and everyone still needs a booked time slot.
How long do you get to see it?
Fifteen minutes, in a group of up to 40 people.
When do tickets go on sale?
In blocks of about three months, announced on the official site, plus an additional release every Wednesday at 12:00 for the following week.
Is the museum open on Mondays?
No. It opens Tuesday to Sunday, with last entry at 18:45.
Are guided tours worth the extra cost?
They are often the only way in at short notice, and a good guide adds real context to a difficult painting. Understand that you are paying mainly for availability.
Can I buy a ticket at the door?
No. Every visit requires an advance reservation with a time slot.
Prices, capacity and release rules in this guide follow the museum's official published information. Sales windows and opening arrangements change, so check the official site before planning your dates around a visit.
About the author
Written by the GetExperience editorial team, which researches and writes the city guides on this blog. We explain how a ticketing system works, including the release schedule, rather than telling you to "book early" and leaving it there.