Verona

Verona, a beautiful city with historical inspiration and literary indulgence throughout. I’m sure you’ll fall in love with it’s beauty just as much as I have.

Things to do

Verona provides rich Roman history, good food with the vibrant, bustling nature of a city centre.

A taste of Verona

• Bigoli – A signature pasta in Verona. I’d describe it as almost spaghetti like, but thicker! Usually served with duck, donkey or horse meat. The most traditional dish is bigoli in salsa with salted sardines and onions!
• Cavalo – Traditional horse meat stew… controversial in my country (England, UK) but in Verona, it’s a very popular local dish!
• Gnocchi – Another popular pasta in the North-East of Italy. This is essentially a soft dough dumpling typically made from potato. It’s nice and hearty with such a different smooth-like texture.
• Local Wine – For the red wine fans, try Bardolino and Amarone (one of my favourites!) and for the white wine lovers, Durello, Custoza and Soave will do the job (Soave was delicious!).

Arena di Verona- Hard to miss this spectacular Roman amphitheatre. It has 44 levels providing viewing for 22,000 spectators! One of the best preserved arenas around.

Casa Di Giulietta – Pretend you’re Shakespeares’ very own Juliet by capturing a picture of yourself on the inspired and iconic Juliet’s balcony. Its free to view the statue of Juliet however, to enter the house and stand looking over the balcony it’s approximately €3 each. Either way you’ll also get the chance to rub Juliet’s left breast for good luck!

Casa Di Romeo – If the family of Montigue is who you’d choose, why not visit Romeo’s house located just a 5 minute walk away.

Piazza Delle Erbe – Here you will find the main square of Verona. It has a big fountain in the centre, with market stalls to roam through, offering food & little trinkets to take home. There are boutique shops close by and restaurants encasing the square, so you can rest up and indulge your senses with your newly found romantic flair, which Verona has cast upon you.

Main Shopping street – For the shoppers out there, the main shopping street you will want to visit is Via Giuseppe Mazzini. Here you’ll have your fill of all the high street & designer shops. Perfect for those holiday wants and needs.

Castelvecchio – Known as the “old castle” and located in the centre of Verona, it’s main purpose was to guard the river Adige. Throughout the Middle Ages, this castle was a military post ruled by the Scaliger dynasty. Built by Cangrande il della Scala, the lord of Verona, after a conspiracy was made about his stepbrother. Now it’s more of a touristic spot, with lovely castle features and acoustic guitar played in the grounds, on occasion. If you would like to learn more about its history you can always visit the Castelvecchio Museum which is about €6 for entry. They do provide discounts to children, groups etc. Opening hours are usually, Monday: 1:30pm – 7:30pm & Tuesday – Sunday: 8:30am – 7:30pm.

Ponte Pietra – The classic Roman arch bridge, crosses the Adige River. It has a great view of the city at sunrise or sunset. A perfect place to stroll whilst enjoying your 2nd scoop of gelato.

Day Trips

I thought it might be best to provide you with a list of half day to full day trips which you might want to explore, depending on what time of year you visit.

Vinitaly – Every year at the end of April, is an international wine competition which is located within Verona! Started in 1967, and has continued ever since. It’s known as, “the largest wine show in the world”. Vinitaly is a must if you’re a wino like myself!

Piazzale Castel San Pietro – If you want the best view of Verona, or if you’re feeling guilty for eating that 3rd carb meal of the day plus…gelato! Then this hike is one for the Verona bucket list. Hike up at sunrise or sunset to make your holiday picture that bit more “Instagramable”.

Lake Garda – Want to sunbathe? Paddle? or go for a swim? Then take a day trip to Lake Garda. To reach the south (Sirmione) it’s about an hours drive or a 20 minute train journey. If you feel like you’d want to drive further afield, then travel to the northern parts of Lake Garda. It has views of stunning historical buildings to see, but that may be best to save for your next Italian adventure.

Parco Natura Viva – Yes, there is a zoo near Verona! It also has a safari park. This is a breeding centre for endangered species and the prices are about €22 for adults. Some discounts are available for children, seniors and babies come in for free! Opening hours are daily 9am – 6:30pm (but the safari park area is open till 4:30pm).

Azienda Agricola Coffele Alberto – The multi award winning organically farmed vineyard is located about 30 minutes away from the city centre by car. It’s the first producer in the Soave DOC Classico zone to put an organic classification label on its wine! Vineyards are exposed to the sun and breeze whilst surrounded by olive trees, cherries and the woods (making the grapes extra juicy). The grapes absorb all the flavours engulfing its surroundings. Makes you want a glass, right?

Piazza San Zeno – Here you will find a quaint Sunday food market to browse. Definitely go buy and try some of those beautifully traditional Italian foods! It has a grand view of the San Zeno church behind. The market is relatively small and will probably take you about 30 minutes to an hour to browse through. There are restaurants close by to enjoy a typical Italian lunch if you haven’t had your fill!

Food & Drink

After you’ve read, “a taste of Verona”. Have a look through these restaurants & bars to tickle your fancy.

Due to this being a popular city, you may need to book your dinner reservations in advance. Most restaurant here don’t take email bookings. So, if you aren’t a confident speaker of the language, I suggest you get your hotel receptionist to phone at 12pm to book you the perfect dinner-time spot.

Osteria il Ciottolo – A truly traditional Veronesi experience. A must visit but you will definitely need to book in advance. This restaurant gets full fast, and once you dine there, you will understand why it’s at the top of my list of must-visits!

Sapore Downtown – Pizza? Yep all kinds! A great spot for pizza lovers (Seriously…who doesn’t love pizza?).

Nastro Azzurro – Classic Italian food near the Verona Arena. Dinner with a view I’d say! Nothing beats good food and a picturesque panorama of an Italian classic.

Osteria Locandina Cappello – A beautifully traditional restaurant found Via Cappello. The food is delicious especially the traditional rabbit ragu!

Osteria Sottocosta – Located in piazza Delle Erbe this restaurant offers a view of the market square.

Vini Liquori Giovanni Zampieri – The wine bar of wine bars, this is a spot the locals love to hang out at.

Gelateria Ponte Pietra – If you’re up near Ponte Pietra, treat yourself to some gelato! There’s loads of gelato bars around Verona, but I did enjoy a well deserved scoop of gelato goodness here.

Nightlife

Veronas nightlife, I would say is quite modest. The clubs aren’t as big as cities such as Rome. You will find more bars that offer live music at the weekend! Most bars are located down Piazza Erbe so you could always bar crawl through them if you fancy trying them all.

Caffe Filippini – This bar is a well known favourite in Verona, and quite rightly so! Situated here since 1901 you can have yourself a coffee or a cocktail! (both?) and for all you gin lovers out there, they have a famous cocktail called “Filippini” – a mix of gin, vermouth, lemon and ice. Don’t worry, they also serve food here.

Vini Liquori Giovanni Zampieri – This wine bar has to have a double mention. Mainly because this is where all the younger locals come to socialise! It’s usually pretty packed in there, so if you’re up for a drink with the locals – this is the spot for you.

Berfi’s Club – A popular club, found in the Veronses hills. With a summer terrace perfect for a dance overlooking the view of Verona.

Le Cantina del’Arena – For soulful live jazz music with good wine, good food and great atmosphere to top it off. This music brasserie will tick those boxes.

Transportation

Bus – The Verona City Hop on, hop off tour is a fantastic way to see the sights if you’re only passing through Verona or here for a mini weekend getaway.

Bike – In Verona, they supply a bike sharing service called Verona Bike. These docking stations are found throughout the city. Use the map on the website to find your closest docking station.

Train – Verona Porta Nuova is the main train station you will need to know about. It’s perfect for any day trips you’ve planned out of the city and back again!

Rent a car – Renting a car in Verona is another great option because with google maps and a good data roaming plan, you should have no worries about renting a car and setting your own destination for the day. Plenty of travel websites will provide you with ‘rent a car’ options, usually there is a standard deposit on your credit card for any damage made to the car therefore, make sure your card has a good credit limit and once that’s in order – drive on!

Taxi – A Taxi rank (24 hour radio service) can be found at Piazza delle Erbe, Piazza Bra & at the Verona Porta Nuova train station.

Airport – The closest is Valerio Catullo located around 15 minutes away from the city centre by car.