Fast Facts:
- Country: Italy
- City: Verona
- Location: Verona is part of the Veneto region with Venice as the capital.
- Language: Italian
- Currency: Euro
For this trip:
- Month of Travel: October
- Weather: 14 to 18 deg C
- What to Wear: Just enough to keep you warm and comfortable. Highly advisable to bring scarves or jackets as the weather can dramatically drop towards the end of the day.
Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” was set in Verona, Italy. Skipping it would be disrespectful to the English playwright if we were already traveling from Venice to Florence. Here’s how we made the most out of our overnight stay in this bustling city.
Where to Stay
Apart from the stellar reviews, we picked Alexandra’s House as a base because we needed to be closer to the train station, and still within walking distance from the centre. When we arrived, yes the guesthouse was spacious and spotless, but what’s most endearing are all the little sweet touches that Alexandra and her husband Tudor added to make our stay as comfortable as possible. We had welcome fruits and freshly baked pastries. They invited us for coffee and gave us a quick introduction to Verona’s history, places to see and restaurants to try. They offered for us to use their bicycles, so we can move around faster given our tight itinerary. And when we checked out, they gave us a cute fridge magnet as a gift. There’s nothing more memorable than service that’s personalized and passionate.
What to See
CastelVecchio Bridge
The castle was made as protection for the ruling family and the bridge served as an escape route that crosses the Adige River leading to the countryside.
Arco dei Gavi
From the castle, you can walk three minutes and see Arco dei Gavi, an arch that used to stand outside the center as an entrance to a road which led into the city.
Arena di Verona
Arena di Verona is one of the greatest examples of a complete piece of Roman architecture. With a capacity of 30,000 people, the amphitheater used to host sporting events and theatrical performances.
Casa di Giulietta
Casa di Giulietta is a five-minute walk from the arena. The municipality bought this house from the Dal Capello family because of the similarity of their name and Juliet’s family name. The house was then marketed as the Capulet family home complete with Juliet’s famous balcony.
Some touristy things to do include writing your and your partner’s name on a padlock, scrawling your names and wishes on the wall, touching the right breast of Juliet’s statue to make your love wishes come true (resist it, it looks rude) and inside the museum, sending a letter to Juliet via email.
Piazza delle Erbe
Walk four minutes from Juliet’s House and you’ll find Piazza delle Erbe, a space that functioned as a public area for markets, civil events and chariot races.
Torre dei Lamberti
The Lamberti Tower is the main attraction on Piazza delle Erbe. There are four bells in the tower with the most important one being the Rengo bell, which used to alert people of an imminent attack. You can climb the tower’s 368 stairs for a view of the city.
Piazza dei Signori
Next to the tower is the Arco della Costa that will lead you through to Piazza dei Signori, also called Piazza Dante because of the statue of Italian poet and author of the Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri, in the center.
Arche Scaligeri
Another one-minute walk will lead you to Arche Scaligeri, the monumental graves of the Lords of Verona.
Sant’Anastasia
Located in the most ancient part of the city, Sant’Anastasia is Verona’s largest church.
Castel San Pietro
Perched on a green hill, Castel San Pietro is where Verona was founded. From this strategic point, one can view the whole city. At the foot of the hill flows the river Adige with its famous Ponte Pietra (Stone Bridge).
Verona Cathedral
Not far from Castel San Pietro is the Verona Cathedral, a Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Where to Eat
Osterio al Duca is a family-run restaurant, marketed as the home of Romeo given its distance from Juliet’s House. It is popular among tourists and locals so try to reserve your spot ahead of your visit. Their menu features a selection of traditional Veronese favorites such as polenta, bigoli, horsemeat dishes, lots of pasta, lots of vino and our favorite, Tiramisu.
Verona can easily be explored in one day and is worth the visit especially if you’re already in the Veneto region. From here, we rode the train to our next destination, Firenze!
Watch our video!