We arrived in Verona, Italy after a few hours drive from Milan. We were ready to stretch our legs, but most of all we were eager to experience this symbol of Italian charm and romance. We kept using the promise of Italian ice cream as a bribe for our kids as we started exploring this beautiful medieval city. Read on to experience my charming walking tour of Verona, Italy.
After our intense walking through Milan, Verona felt much smaller and charming. Since we were a bit tired from our drive from Milan, we were eager to stretch our legs and enjoy this beautiful medieval city. So let’s put on some comfortable shoes and start our charming walking tour of Verona.
What to Expect when Visiting Verona Italy?
Based on our research we expected a medieval town with old walls and buildings. This is what we actually found, but Verona gave us much more than what we expected. So come along with me on a charming walking tour of Verona, Italy. We were surprised somewhat that Verona’s old town was a much larger medieval town with a lot more historical attractions, shopping and restaurants.
What is there to see in Verona? Verona has it all: lots of history, medieval and Roman history, rivers, beautiful views, bridges and shopping. We really wished we would have had a lot more time than the few hours we were able to spend in Verona. However, Verona is very busy and full of tourists. So, if you are looking for small medieval towns and quaint villages then you need to look elsewhere like Monteriggioni or San Gimignano.
Is one day in Verona enough? Yes, spending one full day in Verona will give you the opportunity to walk through all of Verona’s old town and see most attractions. If however, you want to also visit the Arena, Juliet’s house and climb in the Lamberti tower, you might need an extra day and proper planning so you have the tickets before hand.
Favorite Places on My Walking Tour of Verona
After lots of research prior to coming to Verona, I had a short list of things to see. Over the years I have developed, a very efficient trip planning strategy. This way I make sure our expectations match what our destination can offer. Our visit to Verona was more difficult because we only had a few hours available on our way to Venice. So we had to have a precise list and efficient logistics so that we won’t waste any of our limited time.
Fortunately, we did have a good plan and we enjoyed our time in Verona, Italy. Piazza Bra and the Roman amphitheater are the first attractions you will most likely see in Verona if you enter the town through Porta Nova. They are both worthwhile attractions and it’s worth your time to not rush through them. Castelvecchio is a beautiful medieval castle on your left as you look at the Roman Amphitheater.
It’s worth walking over the old bridge and walls and enjoy the beautiful views of the Adige River.
Via Mazzini and Piazza Dele Erbe are usually filled with tourists because Via Mazzini is the main shopping area in Verona and it leads to the beautiful medieval Piazza Dele Erbe. Walk on Ponte Pietra and enjoy the the beautiful views of the town and surrounding Hills. With the list of tourist attractions and a map in our hands we started exploring Verona on foot. So, come along with me on my walking tour of Verona, Italy.
Walking tour map of Verona
Yellow:start, Red:see, Green:walk up, Blue:walk back
See my photos from Verona
Book a local tour. This locally conducted walking tour of Verona will take you to the most important areas. This option is great if your time in Verona is limited.
We found the Verona Card to be very useful as it allowed us to skip the line and enter the Verona Arena without waiting at all. It also includes admission to the San Pietro Castle tramway which takes you quickly to the best vista point in Verona. The Verona Card also includes admission to 4 of the largest and most beautiful churches in Verona.
1. Piazza Bra
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Piazza Bra is a beautiful place to start our walking tour of Verona, Italy. After parking our car, we walked from the direction of Porta Nuova through the arched Portoni della Bra right into the large Piazza Bra with the large Roman Amphitheater dominating the square.
This is a striking place with many attractions for your eyes: there is the large Roman ruins, the beautiful earthy colored buildings and the small park with the water fountain in the middle. So, we lingered around for a while before going left towards Castelvecchio.
2. Castelvecchio
Old walls from Castelvecchio (Old Castle). This Old Castle houses the Civic Museum of Verona
The second stop on our walking tour of Verona is Castelvecchio which simply means the Old Castle. It is located immediately to the left as you enter Piazza Bra. A short side street takes us to the imposing Castelvecchio which currently houses the History Museum of the Verona region.
You don’t have to visit the museum in order to enjoy the old walls of Castelvecchio. Just walk through the museum courtyard and walk on the old castle walls.
About half way, you will get beautiful views of River Adige as it meanders around the old town of Verona. This is a great place to take great travel photos.
3. Roman Arena of Verona
The old Roman Arena in Verona is the second largest arena left from Roman times in Italy
Walking back to Piazza Bra, we will stop at the imposing Roman Arena. This is the second largest Roman Amphitheater after the Colloseum in Rome.
During the summer, the Roman Arena in Verona hosts many opera and music performances. So, if you have time to attend in the evening, these concerts are amazing not only because of the great historical setting but also because of amazing performers.
Continuing our walking tour of Verona, we follow the crowds along Via Giuseppe Mazzini, which is filled with beautiful tourist shops and will lead us to Juliet’s House and Piaza dele Erbe.
4. Juliet’s House
Lovers’ notes left on a board at Juliet’s House
At the end of Via Mazzini we come across Via Capello, and we go right and follow the crowds to our fourth stop on our walking tour of Verona. We come to the place that made Verona famous.
Verona is most famous for being the setting for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet play.
Juliet’s House is such a popular attraction that it is very difficult to actually go in the small courtyard and visit the place. During the summer, when we visited Verona there was an impossible number of tourists inside the small courtyard at Juliet’s house. Unfortunately we were only able to look around a little bit during our first visit to Verona.
During my last visit in 2024, Juliet’s House courtyard is not reachable from the street anymore as it has become only the exit for visitors to Juliet’s House. I found this place super busy and impossible to visit without having a ticket bought way in advance.
How do you buy tickets to visit Juliet’s House in Verona? Well, things have changed and it looks like you can only buy tickets to Juliet’s House on the official Verona Museum website. You can also book this local Verona tour which includes tickets to Juliet’s House and a beautiful walking tour.
5. Piazza dele Erbe
Piazza dele Erbe is filled with beautiful old buildings and is dominated by Lamberti Tower
From Juliet’s House we go back on Via Capello we arrive shortly in Piazza dele Erbe where everything seemed to be moving. This is my favorite stop on our walking tour of Verona.
There were so many people resting at small cafes and restaurants or browsing the small market in the middle of the square. Piazza dele Erbe is great longer stop where you can rest a little and have a yummy snack at one of the many cafes.
Lamberti Tower is the tall building that dominates the square. It is an impressive tower, with very complex and beautiful ornaments, which you can also visit by climbing the stairs. However, like most tourist attractions in Verona, you need to get your ticket in advance in order to climb Lamberti Tower.
6. Piazza dei Signori
Piazza dei Signori gives you a glimpse into Verona’s history
See my photos from Verona.
Tucked away right next to the busy Piazza delle Erbe, Piazza dei Signori provides a bit of a break as most people remain in the larger square. During medieval Verona, when Venice was dominating the area, the powerful Scala family was building an administrative center for the affairs of Verona. Piazza dei Signori is flanked by important historical buildings and give the tourist some sitting space on the old stairs. Families with small children love Piazza dei Signori as it provides lots of space for running around and playing for the kids, while the parents can rest or enjoy a local restaurant overlooking Piazza dei Signori.
In addition, Piazza dei Signori is connected to the elaborate tombs of the Scala family and the ancient Santa Maria Antica church. From here you can continue your walking tour of Verona by walking towards Il Duomo di Verona and the ancient Ponte Pietra bridge.
7. Il Duomo di Verona
Duomo di Verona (The Dome of Verona) is a 12th century church filled with early Renaissance art
The Verona Cathedral is the old church in the north of old town Verona . Built in the 12th century, the Verona Cathedral has a concentration of early Renaissance art and architecture. It is a great stop on our walking tour of Verona because it gives us time to go slow and actually think about these really old places.
8. Ponte Pietra
The old Stone Bridge (Ponte Pietra) connects Verona across river Adige
From Duomo di Verona we followed some of the larger streets and came out from the old city on Ponte Pietra. This is one beautiful and old bridge that gives you great views of the city and surrounding hills. Take your time to walk on Ponte Pietra and take in the views on both sides of the bridge. This is also a great place for pictures of Verona’s old town. Ponte Pietra simply means the Stone Bridge, and it boasts arches built during the Roman times.
If you want to go up the hill and see the imposing San Pietro Castle, you will find the cable car entrance right across the street from Ponte Pietra to your left. This will save you quite a bit of walking going uphill. Since we arrived somewhat late, the cable car was closed and we took the very picturesque narrow set of stairs that take you up to the castle.
9. San Pietro Castle
Beautiful View of old town Verona seen from San Pietro Castle
San Pietro Castle overlooks the entire Verona old town and provides gorgeous views in every direction. We climbed the narrow stairs leading to the viewing platform in front of the castle, but you can also take the fast tramway that will take you up in a couple of minutes for a cost. Climbing the stairs gives you more opportunities for views as you climb higher and higher and you also get to see some of the ruins of the old Roman Amphiteatre.
Is it worth climbing to San Pietro Castle in Verona? Yes it is worth your time and effort. The views from the top are just gorgeous and you can see almost 360 degrees around. We loved it.
10. Porta dei Borsari
The beautiful San Matteo Church restaurant and pizzeria is located behind Porta dei Borsari.
Old medieval towns like Verona had their defenses split between the various regions on the town. Each region had their own entrance gate and they were responsible for defending it. Borsari were the old bag makers who were skilled leather workers.
Our last stop on our walking tour of Verona is Porta dei Borsari which is a charming part of Verona’s old town. Porta dei Borsari area of Verona is filled with restaurants, shops and lots of medieval buildings which quickly take you back in time. If you stray from the crowds of tourists and wonder the small narrow streets you will find architectural gems and much Italian charm.
Plan Your Trip to Verona
- Watch my video about planning your trip to Verona. My video gives you the essential things you need for planning your trip to Verona.
- Find budget hotels in Verona. If you planning to visit this beautiful area and you want to spend more time in Verona, you can find plenty of budget accommodations for every budget.
- Book a charming local walking tour of Verona. This is a great tour led by local guide which will take you to most sights.
- We found the Verona Card to be very useful as it allowed us to skip the line and enter the Verona Arena without waiting at all. It also includes admission to the San Pietro Castle tramway which takes you quickly to the best vista point in Verona. The Verona Card also includes admission to 4 of the largest and most beautiful churches in Verona.
- Capital One Venture is my favorite travel credit card for Europe. Comes with a generous $750 sign up bonus and the simplest way to use rewards as you can book your travel anywhere. Compare it!
- Finding parking in Verona was tricky for us because our navigation system led us to enter the town the wrong way. We arrived in Verona from Milan with our Italian rental car. After asking for directions in my broken Italian, we had to come all the way around the city to Porta Nova where a modern, large and multi-leveled Verona Cittadella parking structure waited for us. However, on our second visit, we found the Cittadella parking structure way too busy with a long line to actually go in. Only one block further south we found the Arena parking structure which had plenty of parking.
Is Verona Worth Visiting?
Absolutely! I have visited Verona twice during our tours in Italy, and Verona has become my favorite town in Italy. Verona is full of Italian charm, history and you can easily walk everywhere in old town Verona. While you can easily visit Verona in one day, you can also spend two full days taking your time to enjoy this beautiful old town. So, yes, Verona is definitely worth visiting!
How about you? Have you visited Verona, Italy? What was your own experience visiting this city? Leave a comment below.
- Charming Northern Italy Itinerary
- Walking tour of Milan
- Charming walking tour of Verona
- Venice Main Island walking tour
- Walking tour of Murano Island
- A colorful walking tour of Burano Island
- In the Dolomites at Barcis
- Treviso is a surprising destination
- In-depth walking tour of Padua
- Short tour of quaint Soave
- In-depth walking tour of Sirmione
- In-depth walking tour of Genoa
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Thanks so much for your post, it was very helpful while I was visiting Verona.
Tova…glad to hear you used my walking tour of Verona. We also loved visiting.
Thanks for this. Your guide is very helpful. Make sure to not miss the Scaliger Castle in Villafranca di Verona next time. Enjoy your travels!
Martina…thank you for the tip. Villa Franca is not far from Verona so it looks interesting if people have more time in the Verona area.
Thanks for this very helpful guide. I took most of these tips to plan my 4 hour stopover in Verona today. Such a charming place.
Suhaasi…really glad to hear that my walking tour of Verona was very helpful for your short visit to this beautiful city.
Thanks for this. I will be using it to plan a day in Verona. We are taking the train from Venice after a cruise and looking for a day trip. I think this is the one!
Kathleen…Verona is a great day trip from Venice. You will love it!
It’s about 20 minutes walk from the train station to the Roman Arena which is right in Piazza Bra. Make sure you also go left from there to see Castelvecchio and River Adige. Let me know how it went!
Thanks! We go in October but I will let you know!
thanks for this – I used your guide as a template for a wonderful afternoon in Verona. We took in most of your sights and loved it.
Great to hear my article on Verona was helpful to you!