I can’t help feeling what kind of city Verona would be if it wasn’t famous for the story of Romeo and Juliet. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a beautiful city, it has beautiful views, it’s surrounded by mountains, the centre is surrounded by a river and there are lots of great traditional Italian pastry shops. Just the way I like it. I’d want to come here anyway, and a lot of tourists are drawn here perhaps more by the Roman amphitheatre, which is the real big landmark of the city. So hopefully it’s not that people come here mainly for the story of two people who have never even been here.
Tip: In Verona, don’t miss a visit to the Verona Arena. I prefer to book tickets online in advance, as the main sights tend to sell out quickly.
Where to stay in Verona
Verona is small, so it’s practically a 20-minute walk from anywhere to the centre. If you’re here for a day or two, the Centro Storico definitely makes sense, right in between the main sites, near Piazza delle Erbe. I liked the Porta Nuova area, which is between the station and the centre, so it was close to the train for trips. A nice little bit outside the tourist center is Borgo Trento.
Tips for accommodation in Verona
- Trucco di Giulietta – design boutique hotel right next to Juliet’s house in the historic centre,
- Hotel Milano & SPA – a stylish hotel steps from the arena with a rooftop terrace and spa,
- Boutique Hotel Scalzi – elegant boutique hotel in a historic building close to the centre.
Tickets for sights in Verona
When visiting Verona, it’s worth buying tickets online in advance. There are often long queues at the most famous sights and booking will save you a lot of time.
- Verona Arena – a ticket to the famous Roman amphitheatre in the city centre,
- Juliet’s House – a ticket to the famous house from Romeo and Juliet,
- Lake Garda – a day trip from Verona to Italy’s largest lake.
Things to see in Verona
Verona’s historic centre is a compact tangle of pretty, historic streets that always lead past great Italian restaurants and patisseries. The romantic cloud of Romeo and Juliet seems to hang over the city.
Arena
The Roman Amphitheatre, which is older than the Colosseum in Rome. During the summer opera festival, opera performances are held here. Otherwise you can visit the Arena too, the best way is of course to go up to the top floor and have a view from there, of the Arena and the city beyond.
Casa di Giullieta
Julia’s famous house with the balcony. The small courtyard with Juliet’s statue and balcony is free of charge. It is customary (it is a modern, not historical custom) to caress Juliet’s right breast, it brings good luck in love. Finding it, for those who don’t have it, and keeping it, for those who already do.
In addition to the courtyard, you can also go directly to Julie’s house and balcony, but that’s by ticket.
Next to the courtyard (next to the exit) is a souvenir shop, where “for customers” they allow access to their balcony and you can take pictures of the square from above.
Piazza delle Erbe
Beautiful square (by the way, almost every town in the region has a square with the same name). There are lots of historical buildings and there used to be markets with stalls. On the north side of the square is the Fountain of the Madonna Verona. The dominant feature of the square is the Torre Lamberto tower.
Torre Lamberto
The tower in Piazza delle Erbe can be climbed up to the lookout, either by climbing the 368 steps or by taking the elevator (and only a few steps from there). From here you can see the Piazza della Erbe from above, the whole city and the (snow-capped) mountain peaks on the horizon.
If you prefer the view where the tower will be, at the end of the square is Palazzo Maffei Casa Museo, where you can go to the museum, but you can also buy a separate entrance to the roof terrace. It’s just a small gallery and it’s not that high up, so you primarily see the nearest rooftops, but the view of the piazza and Torro Lamberte is nice.
Castelvecchio
The medieval castle was used as a military fortress, a protective line of the town and a storehouse of weapons in the 14th century. Today it houses a museum and gallery. It contains collections of medieval, Renaissance and Baroque art, including sculptures, paintings, weapons and army historical exhibits.
One of Italy’s most beautiful bridges, the Scaligero Bridge, leads from the castle and connects the castle to the town on the other side of the Adige River. The bridge is made of brick and has several arches that create its characteristic appearance.
Castel San Pietro
Across the river, beyond the Ponte Pietra bridge, is Castel San Pietro on a hill.
It can be reached either on foot, as soon as you cross the bridge, or directly across the street is the Scalone Castello S. Pietro. This is the way up, sometimes it’s stairs, sometimes it’s uphill. The other option is the Funicolare di Castel San Pietro cable car. You’ll find this if you head a little left of the bridge along the sloping street, after a few metres you’ll reach the unmissable cable car station. You can buy a ticket at the ticket machine on site, up is €2, return €3. There’s only one car per route and there are a lot of people, so there’s a queue, but it runs more or less continuously back and forth. I traditionally chose to go up by cable car, down on foot.
What to taste in Verona
Verona is full of restaurants and patisseries and, as it happens in Italy, it’s not hard to find good Italian food. There are specialities from a wide range of Italian cuisine, but also local specialities from the Veneto region. These include the pastissada de caval, which is a stew of horse meat with vegetables, usually served with polenta, which is quite a popular side dish here.
You can try rissoto al Amarone, which is risotto with Amarone red wine. Just as simple as that (plus parmesan). Of the pastas, bigoli (thicker spaghetti) is popular here, with a sauce of duck ragout, bigoli con l’arnata. Local sweets abound, one being the veneziana, which is a kind of doughnut with vanilla cream or chocolate. Aperol also comes from the region.
Where to go on a trip from Verona
There is a fairly strong concentration of interesting places to visit around Verona that are easily accessible by train or car, so you can combine your visit. Even Bologna, Venice, Milan, Parma or Modena can be reached in under 2 hours.
Vicenza
Vicenza is a small town about half an hour by train from Verona, but where the Teatro Olimpico, the world’s first stone-roofed theatre, is prominent. In addition, there are several important palaces, such as Palazzo Chiericati and Villa La Rotonda, which are masterpieces of the famous architect Andrea Palladio.
It’s for a fairly quick visit, not a day trip. I combined it with a visit to Padua, it’s on the same train line.
Padua
Padua is a university city, with one of the oldest university campuses in Europe. There is the Scrovegni Chapel, which is decorated with beautiful frescoes by Giotto, and the Basilica of St. Anthony. The local botanical garden is famous; it is the oldest in the world and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Lago di Garda
Italy’s largest lake, Lago di Garda is a short drive from Verona and ideal for a day trip. It’s about half an hour by car or train. The lake is surrounded by picturesque towns such as Sirmione, with its historic castle and thermal baths, or Malcesine, overlooking the lake from Monte Baldo, which can be reached by cable car.
The lake surroundings are ideal for walks or even longer treks, cycling and water sports. Picturesque villages, historical monuments, great restaurants and beautiful natural scenery make Lago di Garda a popular tourist destination.
Where is Verona
Verona is in northern Italy, in the Veneto region, more or less halfway between Milan and Venice. It lies on the Adige River.
How to get to Verona
Verona also has its own airport, Aeroporto Valerio Catullo di Verona Villafranca (VRN), with low-cost flights and a journey time of about an hour and a half.
From the airport to the city centre
The airport is small, so you can get through it in a minute, and getting there is easy. The airport is about 12 kilometres from the centre and there is an Airlink bus 199 that stops right outside the airport exit (just cross the road). This goes all the way to the centre at Stazione Porta Nuova, which is by the train station and Porta Nuova. It’s completely non-stop, so it only takes 15 minutes. From there, depending on where you live, you can change to another bus or walk it.
On the bus, you can pay with cash or card at the driver. If you pay by card, the amount will not be charged until after midnight, along with other public transport journeys. The journey from the airport alone costs 7 euros.
