Verona, what to see in the city of Romeo and Juliet

È popolare per essere la città dell’amore, grazie alla tragedia amorosa di Romeo e Giulietta di Shakespeare, ispirata proprio a quei luoghi e fonte principale del turismo di Verona. Ma questa meravigliosa città è anche tanto altro. In questa breve guida vi spiegheremo what to see in Verona illustrandovi i places of interest della città veneta.

Verona: what to do and what to visit

What to See in Verona

It is clear from the start that the city of Verona is a place suited for romantic walks. The very ancient and well-preserved historic center, the picturesque corners, the wells and courtyards, the arcades, are examples. And then there is the Adige, the river that crosses the city. To connect one part of the city to the other, some undeniably beautiful bridges have been built, including the Ponte Scaligero and the Ponte Pietra. All around, you can admire ancient palaces and bell towers. And then the squares. Piazza delle Erbe, which is the heart of the city, Piazza Bra and Piazza Mercato Vecchio.

Verona is also the city of the Arena, the largest opera theater in the world built twenty centuries ago. The summer opera season is one of the world’s greatest attractions for enthusiasts of this musical branch. In this open-air theater with perfect acoustics, the notes of Aida and its triumphant march echo.

Verona is the home of Pandoro but also of Italian gastronomy. Those who go to Verona cannot avoid tasting the Pastissada de Caval, the Bollito with Pearà, the risotto di Isola, the tortellini di Valeggio, all washed down with a glass of Valpolicella, Recioto, Custoza, Soave and Bardolino.

Getting to Verona is not difficult. Its central position makes it reachable from the main Italian road and railway arteries. You may have asked yourself what to do in Verona, what to visit. Here is a short list of places of interest in Verona and things you absolutely must not miss.

1 Arena of Verona

The Arena of Verona is the Roman amphitheater key symbol of the city together with the house of Juliet. Built in the 1st century BC and used for gladiator shows, it is currently the venue for concerts and performances by various Italian and international artists.

2 Verona, Piazza Bra

Piazza Bra in Verona is the heart of the city, where you can enjoy a great aperitif admiring the Arena, the Palazzo della Gran Guardia, which today hosts exhibitions and conferences, Palazzo Barbieri and the Lapidary Museum Maffeiano. It is the center of Verona and is really very characteristic.

3 Verona, Juliet’s House

Together with the Arena, the House of Juliet is the most visited building by tourists. It is located at Via Cappello, 23. Its Gothic style attracts art lovers. It will be impossible not to recognize it, as upon your arrival, you will find the walls covered with love messages written on post-its and letters. You can visit the house and the famous balcony, the symbol of Shakespeare’s love story. Don’t forget to capture the moment by taking a photo with the statue of Juliet, placed right below the balcony. Touch her right breast, it seems to be a help for romantic success. You never know!

4 Piazza dei Signori in Verona

Piazza dei Signori in Verona: from Juliet’s house, moving towards the Arco della Costa, you will reach this square. Hanging from its arch is a whale rib. It is said it will fall off when a pure soul passes underneath. Try to walk there!

5 Piazza delle Erbe

It is the oldest square in Verona and is located just above the area of the Roman Forum. It was the center of political and economic life; over time the Roman buildings gave way to medieval ones. Piazza delle Erbe is also simply called Piazza Erbe.

6 Museum of the Cavalcaselle Frescoes

The convent complex of San Francesco al Corso dates back to the 13th century. In 1935 Antonio Avena, then Director of the Civic Museums, opened to the public the so-called “Tomb of Juliet,” the place where the ark that according to legend housed the bodies of Romeo and Juliet was placed, making it a tourist attraction. In the adjoining Museo degli Affreschi “G.B. Cavalcaselle,” inaugurated in 1975, cycles of frescoes from Veronese buildings from the Middle Ages to the 16th century and sculptures from the 19th century are exhibited, while the church of San Francesco houses large paintings on canvas from the 16th to the 18th century. In the basement, there is a deposit of Roman amphorae from the 1st century AD found in excavations in the area. In the courtyard, medieval and modern stone material (architectural and sculptural) is deposited in anticipation of a lapidary exhibit.

7 Early Christian Basilicas and Roman Domus

Beneath the floor of the church of Sant’Elena and the cloister of the Capitolare, the remains of two early Christian basilicas are visible, the older and smaller from the mid-4th century AD, the larger and more recent from the mid-5th century AD, with beautiful mosaic floors.

In the large room beneath the bank offices, the remains of the Roman domus are visible, which is very well preserved with mosaic and beaten pavement rooms arranged around a small courtyard with a peristyle.

8 Castelvecchio Museum

The Castelvecchio Museum houses important collections of medieval, Renaissance, and modern art (up to the 18th century):
– 29 exhibition rooms of paintings, sculptures, archaeological finds, weapons with 622 works exhibited
– Specialized cabinets: about 90,000 coins and medals, 2,650 drawings, 8,000 prints, 800 photographic plates
– In storage: 2,500 paintings, about 500 sculptures and bronzes, about 800 furniture and decorative art objects, 300 weapons, and 200 ethnographic collection pieces
Besides exhibition halls, the Drawings and Prints Cabinet, and the Numismatic Cabinet, there are: management, administrative and technical offices, general archive, photo library, room for temporary exhibitions, catalog sales point, artisanal aid laboratories.
The restoration, begun at the end of the fifties, saw close collaboration between director Licisco Magagnato and designer Carlo Scarpa both in planning a philological restoration of spaces and in choosing and placing the works functionally and emotionally closest to the idea of the museum as a total work of art. Since then, the Castelvecchio Museum has become a reference point.

9 Remains of the Curia and a Cult Complex

Accessible from the 12 Apostoli restaurant and a private house, a stretch of the west side of the curia podium, part of the paving of a cardo, the base of a tower house, and for 37 meters the exterior side of the eastern wall of the porch that closed the supposed imperial cult complex are visible.

10 Verona Radio Museum

The museum illustrates the history of the Radio, from the first scientific equipment, ranging from the early 20th century to the design of the fifties, through 700 devices from 7 countries.

11 Hypogeum of Santa Maria in Stelle

From an 18th-century access next to the parish church, you enter a corridor opening onto two mosaic-floored rooms, one of which has beautiful paintings, very well preserved, with scenes from the Old and New Testament dating back to the 5th century AD. The hypogeum is older, however, and was originally used for water collection; in the last stretch beyond the rooms it still serves this function and with a narrow passage reaches a spring.

12 MA African Museum

The Ma – African Museum, features an exhibition of artistic objects from traditional Africa. “Life in Africa” is narrated through sculptures, artifacts, utensils, clothing, work tools, musical instruments, and much more, reconstructing the fundamental stages of existence from birth to death. African populations emphasize with special celebrations the different phases of human life with rites of passage and symbolic representations and festivities, which vary from one ethnic group to another, depicted in artisanal and artistic objects.

15 Where to stay in Verona

Verona, where to stay: it is not an inexpensive city, but certainly, by booking well in advance, you will be able to find hotels in Verona at advantageous prices. Our advice is to stay in the center so that you can enjoy being close to the main attractions.