This ancient roman amphitheater is surely the most important monument in Verona. Located in the historic center of the city and overlooking Piazza Bra, it was originally placed by the romans on the limits of the '"urbe" beyond the roman walls. Built during the 1st century A.D., between the end of Augustus' and Claudius' empires, it was entirely composed of pink and white marble limestone from Valpolicella. With its 25,000 seats, the Arena is today the most important and well-preserved amphitheater in the world. Unfortunately the outer ring was partly destroyed by an earthquake during the 12th century, and only a small portion, called "ala"(wing), is still visible. However, the inner ring is almost intact. Used by the romans for fights between gladiators, it then became a stage for shows and games during the medieval time. Since 1913 the Arena became famous for staging opera performances, and still today it represents the most famous open air amphitheater in the world.

Piazza Bra, meaning "large square", owes its name to the considerable extension (6000 square meters) and is the largest square in Verona. Located in the old town next to the arena, is famous for having hosted since the mid-12th century a large market of wood, hay and cattle from which was born, in 1897, the most prestigious global equestrian industry fair, Fieracavalli.
Piazza Bra, however, started to be considered as a real square only during the 16th century, when the architect Michele Sanmicheli completed the construction of Palazzo degli Honorij. This building was placed on the western side of the square, and it offers a perfect view of the Arena.
At the center of the square, beautiful gardens and the fountain of the Alps offer rest and refreshment during the warmer seasons, especially now that the square is equipped with wi-fi coverage (you may request the access code in the public library, located at 43, Via Cappello). The piazza is surrounded by beautiful buildings, which include the entrance gates and their famous clock built in the late 14th century by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, the Museo Lapidario Maffeiano, the palace of Gran Guardia (which hosts exhibitions and events) and Palazzo Barbieri, Verona's city hall.

Juliet's house is surely one of the top tourist attractions in Verona. The house was built in the 13th century, and soon became famous thanks to the tragedy written by Luigi Da Porto in 1524, and later immortal thanks to W. Shakespeare. Casa Capuleti was opened only in the early decades of the Twentieth century when Antonio Aneva, director of Verona's museums, decided to promote the legend. It features Juliet's balcony, probably the most photographed in the world, and the bronze statue of Juliet (by the sculptor Nereo Costantini) placed in the courtyard of the house.
Clearly, since the story is world-known as a "tragedy", you cannot exempt from visiting the tomb of Juliet, which only a few hundred meters away. The tomb is located in Verona in a former convent of Capuchin friars and dates back to the 13th century. Even though there are no real clues, this was always known as the place where juliet was buried and still now it represents an extremely fascinating monument.

Piazza delle Erbe is developed over the roman hole and it is the most ancient square in Verona. Lately it has become a fashionable meeting point for tourist and locals, due to the presence of many typical bars and restaurants. This charming public square, situated strategically in the heart of the old city, represented in the past a political and economic center for the city.It used to host a large food market, now replaced by souvenir stalls, but its old time atmosphere is still intact thanks to the old style wooden stalls and their large white umbrellas.

The Lamberti tower, with its 84 meters, is the highest building in the city and surely offers the best city view. Its construction began in 1172. In May 1403 a lightning damaged the top of the tower and only later, in 1448, the restoration began. The top of the tower can be easily reached on a lift, but it is also possible to walk all the way up to the top (370 stairs). In 1295 two large bells have been installed. The smallest, so called Marangona (which means "carpenter" in the local dialect) was used to send out fire alerts and sounded every hour. The greatest, so called Rengo, was used to assemble the members of the council and the citizens in the case of a war. The first tower was smaller than the present one, you may notice the different building materials on the outer walls. The large clock on the top of the tower was added in 1779.

Piazza dei Signori, also known as Piazza Dante for the presence, right in its center, of three meters high marble monument of Dante Alighieri, erected in the 1865 to celebrate the 600 years anniversary since the birth of the poet. The square, of medieval origin, is surrounded by important palaces and buildings of the Scaligeri, lords of Verona. These palaces hosted the political and administrative offices, some of which are still present. During the recent years, it has become an important meeting point for the veronese students, that often meet here in the evening to share experiences and ideas.
Close to the square, next to the church of Santa Maria Antica, you can find the spectacular Arche Scaligere. These wonderful gothic tombs were built for the Scaligeri family, especially for Cangrande I, Mastino II and Cansignorio. They are surrounded by iron gates, and feature marble statues.
Not far from the Arche, along a little medieval road, you will find the house of Romeo Montecchi.

Castelvecchio, initially called Castle of Saint Martino in Aquaro, and its beautiful fortified bridge, represent one of the more impressive expressions of the Scaligeri lordship in Verona. It was built between 1354 and 1357 thanks to Cangrande II della Scala, who wanted to build a fortress to protect the city from external attacks and have a ready escape hatch. The bridge, in fact, projected the castle to the other side of the river Adige, representing an easy access to Tirolo - northern Italy.The castle, after the fall of the Scaligeri, was used as a warehouse by the venetian army, and later on became a center for the Serenissima military academy. After the venetian times, the castle was controlled by the french and austrian, who used it as a simple deposit.Finally, in 1923, a radical restoration started, and the military deposit left space to the old renaissance elements. The exterior and the towers were also restored. In 1928 the Castelvecchio museum was open. The museum is still functioning with a permanent exhibition of arts and archeological reports.In 1943, it was used as a base to declare the birth of the Republic of Salò, and to conduct the trial that condemn to a sentence of death various fascist reactors (including the famous Galeazzo Ciano). During the war the building was hardly damaged and remained empty for ten years, until 1957, when the new director Licisco Magagnato with the help of architect Carlo Scarpa started a radical restoration which brought back to life the main entrance gate as well as other important elements.

This amazing theatre, built at the late 1st Century B.C., is considered nowadays one of the most important roman theatres in the north of Italy, and according to unofficial sources, might be the oldest roman theatre still in use in the entire world. Unfortunately, as many other monuments, also the roman theatre was badly damaged during the Middle Age due to heartquakes and floodings and later on residential homes were built around the site. The restoration of the site was started in 1834 and was completed in 1844. It was entirely financed by Andrea Monca, a rich merchant who had a strong passion for archaeological sites and arts. Thanks to him, we can still admire the beauty of this wonderful piece of history. Today a large part of the theatre is still visible and hosts performances, concerts and ballets.

Not far from the Roman Theatre, the easyest way to cross River Adige and visit the centre of Verona is the Ponte Pietra. Built during the 1st century B.C., the Marmoreus (this was his latin name) is the only existing roman bridge in the town. It stands next to the ruins of roman aqueduct, and it offers a magnificent view of the town and its river. During the second world war, on the 24th of April 1945, the german army destroyed the Ponte Pietra, along with the other bridges. Even thought in this occasion the bridge was badly damaged, it was later reconstructed with the same materials and stones, recuperated from the waters of the River Adige. Ponte Pietra has now become one of the main attractions of the City.

St. Pietro's Castle is a very charming and suggestive attraction. It offers an astonishing view of the city and its panorama is truly unique. Build in 1300 during the Viscount age, was connected to the City Walls only in 1450. Nearly 400 years later, in 1801, the army of Napoleon demolished a larg part of the building, which later became an Austrian Fort. Part of the Viscount and Medieval Walls are still visible from the castle terrace. The same St. Pietro was due to the presence of a little Church. Part of the castle is now used as a restaurant and lounge bar. The fabolous staircase that leads to the Castle offers a beautiful view of the Roman Theatre ad of the centre of Verona.

S. Maria Maggiore Matricolare Chatedral, known as "Duomo di Verona" was built in 1117 just after and heartquake destroyed two early Christian churches. It was consecrated by Pope Urbano III in 1187. During the years, the structure and decorations have been modified various times. Very impressive the external gate, the marble facade nad the steeple, 75 meters high. Despite its small size, the steeple is often mentioned as one of the best in the world. The main bell weights 4566 kg and it is 190 cm wide.

L'aspetto attuale della basilica di San Zeno, capolavoro romanico per eccellenza, è il risultato di numerosi interventi e rifacimenti. Incominciati nel IV secolo D.C., quando una piccola chiesetta fu eretta vicino al cimitero che custodiva il sepolcro di San Zeno (patrono di Verona), essi si conclusero nel 1398 quando gli architetti Giovanni e Nicolò da Ferrara ultimarono il progetto in chiave gotica. Durante questo lunghissimo periodo la leggenda vuole che la chiesa sopravvivesse alla devastante piena del fiume Adige del 589, quando l'inondazione si fermò a ridosso delle sue porte risparmiando i fedeli presenti al suo interno. Venne poi abbattuta nel IX secolo per essere in seguito subito ricostruita per volere del vescovo Ritaldi e di Re Pipino d'Italia su progetto dell'Arcidiacono Pacifico. Purtroppo anche questo edificio non durò a lungo e venne distrutto all'inizio del x secolo dagli Ungari. Nel 967 il vescovo Raterio, anche grazie ai fondi ottenuti dall'imperatore tedesco Ottone I, diede il via ad un terzo tentativo di ricostruzione grazie al quale la basilica assunse l'immagine che possiamo ammirare ai giorni nostri. Passarono solo pochi anni però e la chiesa venne nuovamente danneggiata: questa volta la natura fece ciò che non era riuscita a fare parecchi anni prima ed il terribile terremoto del 3 gennaio 1117 danneggiò notevolmente la struttura. La facciata rappresenta uno dei più eccellenti esempi di stile romanico: il rosone circolare, detto anche Ruota della fortuna, è decorato da sei statue che raffigurano le alterne vicende umane; due possenti leoni marmorei alla base del protiro impediscono l'ingresso alle anime empie; le formelle bronzee che decorano il portale ed i dettagliatissime bassorilievi a lato dello stesso raffigurano soggetti e vicende tratti dal Nuovo e Antico Testamento; il frontone disegna dall'esterno la navata centrale. L'interno della basilica, con una pianta a tre navate, si sviluppa in verticale su tre distinti livelli: la Cripta, dove è custodito il corpo del santo patrono che dà il nome alla chiesa; la parte centrale, detta anche "chiesa plebana", caratterizzata da un soffitto ligneo sorretto da un alternarsi di colonne con capitelli corinzi e dai motivi zoomorfi; il Presbiterio, con il battistero ottagonale , la statua di San Zeno in marmo rosso e la pala di Andrea Mantegna, considerato un capolavoro della pittura del Rinascimento italiano.

La basilica di Santa Anastasia, che prende il nome da un edificio religioso preesistente, è la più grande chiesa presente a Verona e certamente il più importante monumento religioso gotico presente in città. Sono ancora ignoti i commissionari di tale opera risalente al 1290 e la cui costruzione perdurò per quasi due secoli sino alla consacrazione vera e propria avvenuta nel 1471. La posizione strategica vicino a Piazza dei Signori ed il sostentamento economico da parte della stessa Signoria Scaligera lasciano intendere che l'edificio fosse stato progettato come chiesa ufficiale della loro corte. Ad avvalorare questa tesi i documenti che testimoniano il fatto che Alberto I, Cangrande e Cansignorio, alla loro morte, lasciarono in eredità cospicue ricchezze in favore della basilica. Elemento di spicco di questo capolavoro è senz'altro il magnifico portale ornato da pitture e sculture che valorizza la facciata incompiuta e costruita prevalentemente in cotto. A sinistra della chiesa, situata sopra un arco (porta d'accesso all'attuale conservatorio musicale), è possibile ammirare l'arca sepolcrale dove giace Guglielmo da Castelbarco. Questo monumento è antesignano delle Arche Scaligere. Da non perdere, all'interno della basilica con pianta a croce latina, le statue dei gobbi che sorreggono le due acquasantiere, il monumento a Cortesia Serego e la Cappella Pellegrini contenente il famosissimo affresco di Antonio Pisano (detto Pisanello): San Giorgio e la Principessa.