Verona

The Arena and the opera festival

The Arena of Verona is the best-preserved Roman amphitheatre in the world after the Colosseum, built in the 1st century AD outside the city walls of the time and later absorbed into the urban fabric as the beating heart of the city. Its original outer ring largely collapsed in a medieval earthquake, but the inner ring, built of pink Verona marble, has survived intact and can still seat twenty thousand spectators. Since 1913 the Arena has hosted, every summer, one of the world's most celebrated opera festivals, with monumental productions of Aida, Nabucco and Turandot performed under the stars. Outside the opera season, the amphitheatre can be freely visited, and climbing to the top of the tiers rewards visitors with a superb view over Piazza Bra and the city's rooftops.

Juliet's House

On Via Cappello, just steps from Piazza delle Erbe, stands the Casa di Giulietta (Juliet's House), a fourteenth-century palace that popular tradition, from the nineteenth century onward, identified as the home of the Cappelletti family immortalised by Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet. The famous balcony, in fact added in the twentieth century using an ancient sarcophagus, and the bronze statue of Juliet in the courtyard have become absolute symbols of the city, drawing lovers from around the world who leave love notes on the walls of the entrance passage. Legend aside, the surrounding quarter preserves the medieval atmosphere of the old merchant streets, with workshops, Gothic palaces and photogenic corners at every turn.

The Basilica of San Zeno

On the edge of the historic centre, the Basilica di San Zeno Maggiore is considered one of the greatest masterpieces of Italian Romanesque architecture. Its tufa-and-marble façade is dominated by a large rose window known as the Wheel of Fortune and by the celebrated bronze portal, decorated with panels narrating biblical episodes and legends of Verona's patron saint. Inside, Andrea Mantegna's San Zeno Altarpiece triptych is one of the high points of Venetian Renaissance painting, while the Romanesque crypt and the wooden ceiling shaped like an upturned ship's hull complete a space of great spiritual atmosphere, away from the crowds of the centre.

Along the Adige river

The Adige river, with its green waters and strong current, wraps around the historic centre in a wide bend and has shaped its history, through memorable floods and the massive embankments built in the nineteenth century. Strolling along the riverside promenades, among plane trees and pastel-coloured palaces, is one of the most authentic ways to discover Verona away from the main tourist flows: from the Ponte Pietra, Roman in its oldest section and rebuilt after the war using original materials recovered from the riverbed, to the scenic Ponte Scaligero, all the way to the Veronetta district, buzzing with student life, bars and street art.

Events: opera and Vinitaly

Verona lives around major events that reinforce its international vocation. The Arena Opera Festival, every summer from June to September, draws audiences from all over the world to experience monumental productions in a unique setting. In spring, the city becomes the world capital of wine with Vinitaly, one of the leading international wine fairs, bringing producers and enthusiasts from every continent. Smaller-scale events add to the calendar, such as Verona Jazz at the Teatro Romano and the Christmas markets in Piazza dei Signori, which turn the centre into an atmospheric village.

Unmissable Experiences

• Salire sulle gradinate dell'Arena e, in estate, assistere a un'opera lirica sotto le stelle.
• Climb the Arena's tiers and, in summer, watch an opera performance under the stars.
• Subir a las gradas del Arena y, en verano, disfrutar de una ópera bajo las estrellas.
• Grimper les gradins des Arènes et, en été, assister à un opéra sous les étoiles.
• Die Ränge der Arena erklimmen und im Sommer eine Oper unter dem Sternenhimmel erleben.
• Subir às bancadas da Arena e, no verão, assistir a uma ópera sob as estrelas.
• Подняться по ступеням Арены и летом посмотреть оперу под звёздным небом.
• 登上竞技场的看台,若在夏季,不妨在星空下欣赏一场歌剧演出。
• アレーナの観客席に登り、夏なら星空の下でオペラ公演を鑑賞する。
• تسلّق مدرجات الأرينا، وفي الصيف حضور عرض أوبرالي تحت النجوم.
• एरीना की सीढ़ियों पर चढ़ें और गर्मियों में तारों तले एक ओपेरा प्रस्तुति देखें।
• Ανεβείτε στις κερκίδες της Αρένας και, το καλοκαίρι, παρακολουθήστε μια παράσταση όπερας κάτω από τ' αστέρια.
• Ngjituni në shkallaret e Arenës dhe, në verë, shikoni një shfaqje opere nën yje.