Verona, Italy. Such a beautiful and romantic city. Located in an ideal location between two major attractions – Venice is second to none and the beautiful Lake Garda, but if you ask us it has much to offer on its own. Even if you’re not a hopeless romantic chasing Shakespearean fairy tales, the city is incredibly sweet, the Italian charm oozes out of it and has its advantages every season! Even UNESCO has given the entire city the title of a heritage site, thanks to its unique monuments and architecture. From history and spectacular fairy tales to atmospheric squares, we just loved everything – and that’s before we even started praising the city’s delicacies.
Verona Italy - What do you do in the city?
What do you do in Verona? Walk through the magical alleys of the city, admire the historical buildings, savor a wonderful cappuccino in a square full of people, shop, indulge in a boutique hotel in the heart of the city, and if you arrive during the Christmas period, then you will have a whole celebration of smells, flavors and colors. Christmas markets in Verona are some of the most beautiful and inviting in Italy
Piazza Delle Erbe
Piazza della Erbe is a central square in the city. The colorful buildings surrounding it, the famous clock tower, the fountain as well as the lighting at night simply make the place magical. The whole area is full of shops and cafes and the supply of stalls changes according to the holidays and holidays; sometimes you will find food and souvenirs, during the Christmas period you will find a food market and charming handicrafts that match the holiday and during the carnival of masks you will, of course, find masks, but not only.
After a quick passage and a few steps you will also find Signori Square with the statue of Dante (Piazza dei Signori), and besides being very kind it will also connect you to the complex of impressive Arche Scaligere
Casa di Giulietta's House of Juliet
A few meters from Erbe Square you will find the well known house of Juliet from the famous play “Romeo and Juliet”. It is very popular and attracts many tourists from around the world, who admire the Shakespearean play or maybe just want to find out what all the fuss is about. In the courtyard complex, tourists crowd and one by one take pictures with Juliet’s balcony and the iconic statue. When it’s your turn, don’t feel ashamed to take a picture with your hand on the breast in the statue, everyone has done it before and everyone will after you as well. According to the Italians’ belief, this is how you will gain health, luck and find eternal love.
Shopping in Verona
Right next to Juliet’s house the Via Capello is located which, together with the wonderful Via Mazzini street, is a favorite shopping center, containing a variety of designer stores and brands. In general, Via Mazzini is a fun street, full of prestigious shops and ice cream parlors and it will connect you with a relaxed and fun walk to the Arena Square. Avid shoppers will simply have to put on their most comfortable shoes and walk all the streets, big and small, and discover the hidden shops and boutique shops. Everything is beautiful, everything is inviting and the seasons of promotions come and go. Look for the signs – “SALDI”!
Bra Square - Piazza Bra
The Arena is a large and impressive Roman amphitheater which you can enter and be impressed inside by the astonishing piece of history, or alternatively make do with its magnificent presence from the outside. In this square all year round people enjoy sitting on the benches around the fountain, visiting the cafes and of course due to its size and importance, on Carnival of Masks many people gather there to watch the parade. On Christmas days there’s a large Christmas market as well.
All the wonderful sites we mentioned, as well as the wonderful little streets that are intertwined between them, are wrapped in the embrace of the Fiume Adige River, which crosses all of Verona, along which we recommend to wander at sunset and enjoy the magical sight. Every bridge that crosses the river tells the history of the city, you will often see that the bridges are built off of two types of bricks because they were destroyed and then rebuilt in different periods.
Recommended Restaurants in Verona
Recommended places to have Pastas – Ai Mascheroni Restaurant Osteria
Places for take-away Pizzas – Stone bridge focacceria
A place of pasta which is prepared on site – La Bottega della Gina XXL
Great Osteria – Osteria Il Ciottolo
Excellent Ice-cream – Gelateria La Romana
Recommended hotels in Verona
Lookouts over Verona
Sometimes days of fog and clouds unfortunately occur, but on nicer days it is always fun to take a moment to go up to observe the city from above. Here are our favorite lookouts, all of which can be walked up to balance out the amount of pizza and pasta, but you can totally afford to indulge and get on some of them with your car or the convenient public transport.
St. Peter's Castle
Colle San Pietro can be reached by car, by the ground cable car, or via a staircase right in front of Ponte Pietra bridge. This Romanesque fortress offers panoramic views of the city as well as the street that connects to it, which is surrounded by cafes and terraces offering stunning panoramas of Verona’s rooftops, churches and river.
Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes
This is undoubtedly one of the best observation points in Verona. The church and temple at the top of St. Mark’s Hill sit where there was once a fortress. The new and rounded church has undergone several renovations and we must admit that it is not the most impressive church in the city and certainly not in Italy, but either way we gathered here for the sake of the view.
Lamberti Tower
It is the tallest tower in the city since the Middle Ages of Verona – 84 meters and it is named after the powerful Lamberti family. It was built in 1172 but without the bells and clock, added only in subsequent versions. The view from above has been impressive ever since. If you are determined enough you can climb the stairs, but if you are full of tiramisu take the elevator.
Righteous Palace and Garden
Apart from the impressive view from the upper terraces of the garden, you can also enjoy the palace which now houses a museum where the palace is displayed as it looked like at the beginning of the 20th century, impressive and well-known public gardens in the Renaissance style that distinguishes them. Of course according to the period atmosphere, do not forget to get lost in the maze of bushes. Combined entrance to the garden and palace currently costs 11 euros. If you don’t have much time, just head to Punto Panoramico San Zeno in Monte and you’ll get straight to the viewpoint.
