Verona is a city filled with romance, culture and history. It‘s the perfect hub for traveling around northern Italy, but Verona and the Veneto region it resides in can be a great holiday all on its own. There are plenty of interesting and beautiful sites to see, things to eat and wines to taste.
Veronality
If you‘re the kind of person who loves taking classes and guided city tours then you have to look into the experiences that Veronality has to offer. They‘re a small tour and experience company that serves the Verona area. They have everything from cooking classes to wine tours to guided city tours. There‘s an experience for everyone‘s individual tastes. And they keep their tours and classes small so they‘re actually enjoyable.
We had our kids along on our recent trip to Verona so we decided to take a kid-friendly gelato making class. It was fantastic! Not only did we make the BEST chocolate gelato we‘ve had in our lives but we also learned how to make peach sorbeto and tiramisu.
The class was fun for both the adults and the kids and we were all stuffed with delicious homemade treats by the end.
We also decided to go on a walking tour of Verona. We opted to do the walking tour over the bike tour since we had the kids with us. It was a two-hour tour through the historical city center. It was so great to hear about the history of the city from our guide and view the city at different points in its history from the maps that she provided. We all learned a lot about the city.
Our favorite parts were the Arch of Gavi, the Arena and Juliet‘s balcony. The kids really enjoyed it, too.
Wine Tasting in Valpolicella
Our Italy trip would not have been complete without a day of wine tasting. If you‘re wine lovers like us, then you have to take some time to taste the amazing wine in Valpolicella. We made two winery stops but there are plenty more to choose from if you‘d prefer to take a longer wine- tasting day.
The first tour we took was at Villa Mosconi Bertani, a historic vineyard, winery and villa dating back to the 16th century. First we took a tour of the gorgeous villa and grounds. Then we toured the winery and learned how the famous Amarone wine of the region is made. Lastly we sat down for a guided tasting of the Bertani wines. They didn‘t even mind that our kids were along with us the whole time, including during the wine tasting.
Next we drove over to the Tommasi wine shop in Valpolicella. Tommasi is an Italian winemaking powerhouse, with wineries and labels all over Italy. But it is also still family owned and it shows in their brilliant customer service. We were thrilled to have been able to taste their wines and to tour their cellars.
The wine was amazing and we took plenty home with us. Make sure you see the Magnifica barrel in the cellar. It holds the Guinness World Record for largest oak wine barrel … 44,000 bottles of wine!
Ristorante Borgo Antico
After our tasting at Tommasi we were very ready for lunch. Our host at Tommasi called ahead for us to Ristorante Borgo Antico, the restaurant at Villa Quaranta, the Tommasi Wine Hotel and Spa in Ospedaletto di Pescantina. The restaurant is beautiful and boasts a 2019 Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence. The host and waiters greeted us and showed us to our table even though the lunch hour was finishing up.
The food was amazing. Certainly the best meal we had during our week in Northern Italy. Our favorite part of the meal was the ricotta cheese dumplings with brown butter and black truffles. We have never eaten anything like it. The dumplings were creamy and delicate and the black truffles provided a wonderful compliment to the dish. We also ordered Chateaubriand and tiramisu.
Lake Garda
If you truly want to make your Verona vacation feel like a vacation, you have to make a day trip to Lake Garda. This amazing lake is the largest in Italy and it is surrounded by picturesque mountains. The water is crystal clear and it was the perfect temperature on the very hot day we visited.
We decided to swim at the Parco Baia delle Sirene. It‘s a family friendly beach that charges admission due to the great amenities. We went later in the day so we only paid a few Euros to enter. The beach features a playground, restroom facilities, cafes, table tennis and lounge chairs on the beach. There are floating docks in the lake close to the shore that are great for jumping off into the cool water.
Even though there were lots of families with kids that were also plenty of groups of adults enjoying the beach too. We played and swam at the beach for a few hours and enjoyed a delicious gelato before heading out.
These are just a few of the places and activities that the Verona area has to offer. There are plenty more amazing things to see and do. And you can also add more cities to your trip such as Venice, Vicenza and Bologna.
About the author:
Lauren Bordeaux is a freelance writer and Instagram micro-blogger.
You can find her on Instagram at @minivan_memoirs where she posts about expat life, family travel and worldschooling.
She and her family are from the United States and are currently loving expat life in Vienna, Austria.
You can more of Lauren’s posts here.
