Verona
Bristling with fishtail battlements along the river Adige, Castelvecchio was built in the 1350s by Cangrande II. Severely damaged by Napoleon and WWII…
Must-see attractions in The Veneto
Giudecca, Lido & the Southern Islands
In 1951, industrialist and art patron Vittorio Cini – a survivor of Dachau – acquired the monastery of San Giorgio and restored it in memory of his son,…
Venice
Begun under Napoleon as the city's first public green space, these leafy gardens are now the main home of the Biennale. Around half of the gardens is open…
Scuola Dalmata di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni
Venice
This 15th-century Dalmatian religious-confraternity house is dedicated to favourite Slavic saints George, Tryphon and Jerome, whose lives are captured…
Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista
San Polo & Santa Croce
One of Venice's five main religious confraternities, the lay brothers of St John the Evangelist performed works of charity but also supported the arts by…
San Polo & Santa Croce
The stately exterior of this Baldassare Longhena–designed 1710 palazzo hides two intriguing art museums that could hardly be more different: the Galleria…
Venice
This grand showpiece square beautifully encapsulates the splendour of Venice's past and its tourist-fuelled present. Flanked by the arcaded Procuratie…
Murano, Burano & the Northern Islands
Burano, with its cheery pastel-coloured houses, is renowned for its handmade lace, which once graced the decolletage and ruffs of European aristocracy…
Verona
One of Verona's most popular attractions, this 84m-high watchtower provides panoramic views of Verona and nearby mountains. Begun in the 12th century and…
Murano, Burano & the Northern Islands
Torcello, the republic's original island settlement, was largely abandoned due to malaria and now counts only around 14 permanent residents. Its mosaic…
The Veneto
A World Heritage Site, the 16th-century Villa di Maser is a spectacular monument to the Venetian bea vita (good life). Designed by the inimitable Andrea…
Veneto Dolomites
Part of Reinhold Messner’s five-museum ode to the Dolomites, the so-called Museum in the Clouds on Monte Rite (2181m) offers a complete 360-degree…
Venice
The free-standing bell tower, visible from the square behind, leans disconcertingly, but this brick Gothic church has stood tall since the 13th century…
Venice
Find design inspiration at the palatial home studio of art nouveau designer Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo (1871–1949), whose uncorseted Delphi-goddess frocks…
Gypsotheca e Museo Antonio Canova
The Veneto
Antonio Canova was Italy’s master of neoclassical sculpture. He made marble come alive, and you can see his fascinating modelling technique at the…
The Veneto
Fleeing false charges of corruption in Florence, Italy’s great medieval poet Dante Alighieri escaped to Verona and the protection of the Scala family…
San Polo & Santa Croce
A superb feat of engineering, Antonio da Ponte’s 1592 Istrian stone span took three years and 250,000 gold ducats to construct. Adorned with stone reliefs…
Museo all’Aperto delle 5 Torri
Veneto Dolomites
Thanks to the heavenly views from the Cinque Torri, the area was a hotspot of fighting during WWI, when the Italian army established their artillery…
Padua
At the southern edge of the historical centre, this odd, elliptical garden was long used as a communal sports ground. Today it's a popular spot for locals…
The Veneto
The most romantic Brenta villa, the Palladio-designed, Unesco-listed Villa Foscari (built 1555–60) got its nickname La Malcontenta from a grande dame of…
Venice
The Grimani family built their Renaissance palazzo (mansion) in 1568 to showcase the extraordinary Graeco-Roman sculpture collection of Cardinal Giovanni…
Museo di Storia Naturale di Venezia
San Polo & Santa Croce
Never mind the doge: insatiable curiosity rules Venice, and inside the former Fondaco dei Turchi (Turkish Trading House) it runs wild. The adventure…
Chiesa di San Nicolò dei Mendicoli
Venice
Other churches might be grander, but none is more quintessentially Venetian than this 12th-century church with a history of service to the poor. Its…
Chiesa di San Francesco della Vigna
Venice
Designed and built by Jacopo Sansovino, with a facade by Palladio, this enchanting Franciscan church is one of Venice’s most underappreciated attractions…
Venice
Antonio Scarpignano’s relatively austere 1508–48 facade creates a sense of false modesty at this neighbourhood church. The interior is adorned with floor…
Venice
In 1869 Conte Giovanni Querini Stampalia made a gift of his ancestral 16th-century palazzo (mansion) to the city on the forward-thinking condition that…
Venice
The two hardest-working men in Venice stand duty on a rooftop around the clock, and wear no pants. The 'Do Mori' (Two Moors) exposed to the elements atop…
Venice
Accessed by a narrow staircase leading up from Basilica di San Marco's atrium, this museum transports visitors to the level of the church's rear mosaics…
Venice
Bartolomeo Colleoni's galloping bronze equestrian statue is one of only two such public monuments in Venice – and an extraordinary example of early…
San Polo & Santa Croce
Venice received a dazzling addition to its property portfolio in 1945 when Count Alvise Nicolò Mocenigo bequeathed his family's 17th-century palazzo to…
Verona
A masterpiece of Romanesque architecture, the striped brick-and-stone basilica was built in honour of the city’s patron saint. Enter through the flower…
Verona
Juliet's house is a spectacle, but not for the reasons you might imagine – entering the courtyard off Via Cappello, you are greeted by a young…
Venice
Like a revolver pulled from a petticoat, ultramodern Negozio Olivetti was an outright provocation when it first appeared under the frilly arcades of the…
Venice
When 15th-century Venetian girls showed more interest in sailors than saints, they were sent to the convent adjoining San Zaccaria. The wealth showered on…
Venice
Stretching east from San Marco, this broad waterfront avenue is one of the world’s great promenades. Schiavoni (literally ‘Slavs’) refers to the people…
Padua
A pilgrimage site and the burial place of St Anthony of Padua (1193–1231), this huge church was begun in 1232, its polyglot style incorporating rising…
Venice
The Padiglione delle Navi is a vast 2000-sq-metre warehouse containing a fabulous collection of model historic boats, including typical Venetian luggers,…
Chiesa di San Giacomo dall’Orio
San Polo & Santa Croce
Romanesque St James' Church was founded in the 9th century and completed in Latin-cross form in 1225, with chapels bubbling along the edges. Within the…
Verona
Verona’s 12th-century duomo is a striking Romanesque creation, with bug-eyed statues of Charlemagne’s paladins Roland and Oliver, crafted by medieval…
Verona
Dating from the 13th to 15th centuries and featuring an elegantly decorated vaulted ceiling, the Gothic Basilica di Sant’Anastasia is Verona’s largest…
