Verona, good central place to stay or skip it?

We loved Verona this past July but it is not for everyone. No Instagrammers toting their halo lights through town like Venice. There are plenty of day trips, especially if you are into wine. Just staying in Verona, I feel two days would be more than enough.

Since you mention you are not interested in Milan, Verona might be good. However, Lake Como or even Garda may be better for a whole week of trip options. Look into Varenna in particular as you can use it as a ferry base for lakeside exploring as well as a rail hub.

Lucca is also well situated with plenty of day trips.

We liked Verona a lot. We stayed there 3 nights with a day trip to Lake Garda.

Here's a link to explore what many others in this forum have written about Verona.

https://search.ricksteves.com/?button=&filter=Travel+Forum&query=Verona&utf8=%E2%9C%93

btw: Verona was my favorite second-tier destination during our recent trip through northern Italy.

Verona is a lively city with a picturesque historic center, several museums and some nice, old churches. I had only 3 nights there in 2024 due to the Schengen limit and other plans. It wasn't enough for me, but I'm a slow traveler.

I would not want to spend a week in a small town on Lake Como. The lake is very pretty, with some nice villas and gardens to visit, but I reached my limit after 4 nights (not much more than 3 full days) there. What I enjoyed most was walking the southern half of the Lake Como Greenway. If I had been staying longer, I'd have needed to take multiple day trips to the city of Como for some museums or perhaps head to Switzerland.

I'd recommend checking travel time on the Trenitalia website to be sure your ideas for potential day trips from Verona (or other base) are reasonable by your standards. There are options to the north, south, east and west of Verona, but I'd want to consider the required travel time in addition to the desirability of the destinations.

I've posted about Verona several times so you might check the forum for more background.

Verona is a great walking town - the center is nearly traffic free and buildings with faded murals and painted details lurk in unlikely corners. There are cafes with outdoor seating everywhere in Verona whenever you decide to want to sit and/or spritz.

The an intact Roman Arena and Theater which are still used for events with music and opera being a big part of the city's summer schedule including concerts and opera. The Theater includes the Archeological Museum which is small but also gives you access to the rambling remains of old religious sites there. If you like modern art check out the small Palazzo Maffei Casa Museo which mixes ancient and modern art, a palazzo and rooftop tour all into one place overlooking piazza Erbe and is underadvertised. I think Piazza Erbe (looking past the market stands) is one of the prettiest piazzas in Italy. Verona has the 'elegant decay' feeling with faded murals on medieval buildings that the Veneto does so well.

Al Grottino - Osteria e Sbecoleria is a great hole in the wall place off Piazza Erbe for a drink and cicchetti. Cafe Monte Baldo nearby also has great cicchetti and more serious food if you want that. Right near the cafe there is Arcivio a super small, super hip cocktail bar. There is no lack of good restaurants in Verona but read the menu carefully at the older places because the cuisine can be very "traditional".

Day trips from Verona by train at under an hour include Vicenza, Padua/ova, Brescia, Mantua/ova, Bologna, southern Lake Garda and further Venice, Trento, and Florence.

Have a great trip,
=Tod

Lisa, Verona is a popular city and mentioned on the forum often for a trip in the northern part of Italy. It’s a beautiful city and very tourist friendly. I was there again for the third time in September. Check out the Roman Arena on-line to see if there are any events when you’re planning to go. It can drive up the price of lodging, but it’s a lot of fun to go to an event in it. Last trip’s event was a Zucchero concert.

Some day trips from Verona by train are Padova, Vicenza and Mantova. I didn’t mention Venice because Venice is such a special experience when staying there in the evenings and mornings before the day tourists arrive.

I will attach my recent trip report in case you want the name of the cooking class, etc. During a previous stay, Idid a city bike tour, and those are a great way to learn about the city and see the sites.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-solo-mother-daughter-in-north-italy

Verona was my favourite city in Italy, and I've said so in my trip report and in responses to questions on these forums. (Note: I don't have a huge basis for comparison. I also stayed in Rome, Orvieto, Florence, and Venice.)

I didn't take day trips from Verona, so I can't comment on that, but I thought it was charming, interesting, and manageable (in term of crowds, etc.).

Thanks so much for these very descriptive and helpful replies. Also, the gracious direction in searching the forum for previous reports of which I obviously didn't know how to find :)

I generally see Verona as second or third trip to Italy kind of place after Florence, Rome, Venice etc. Honestly, I only went for the first time because a friend got a place there and I was pleasantly surprised. Because my connection I'm spent weeks there altogether so if people are interested I share some information about it. I think it is overlooked but it lacks any real blockbuster sights compared to other Italian cities.

You're probably a little early for serious lake visiting but if you want to explore further up the east side of Lake Garda you can take a bus from the train station since the train only serves the lower part of the lake with Peschiera del Garda being like 12 minutes away by train.

If you like Roman ruins don't miss Brescia, for food do Bologna.

Have a great trip,
=Tod

Maybe it would be a good spot to settle for a week while doing day trips to the lake region or just staying in Verona. Is that a good idea or a bad idea? Does anyone have any advice on this?

I stayed three nights in Verona and liked it, didn’t take any day trips, so it was just Verona. I have nothing against Verona, but I think if you stay a week in Verona and do day trips, you’ll shortchange some destinations. For example, some of the day trip suggestions like Padua and Bologna deserve more than a day trip, so you’ll shortchange them by spending so much time in Verona. I would stay in two locations, so it’s not like, you’re moving everyday.