Padua

Through villages, villas and castles

Surrounded by the beautiful Euganean Hills, the province of Padua is an area to explore. A city of art and science, the lively capital is a must-see for anyone visiting Veneto. Your tour must include the Scrovegni Chapel, a treasure trove of some of the most beautiful frescoes in Italy. Also worth a visit are the Basilica di Sant'Antonio, the Palazzo della Ragione and Palazzo del Bo, which houses the fascinating Teatro Anatomico and the chair of Galileo Galilei. You cannot leave Padua without walking around Piazza delle Erbe and Prato della Valle, a vast square surrounded by canals and a double row of statues.

Not far from the city is the Euganean Hills Regional Park, an area of over a hundred green hills of volcanic origin.

The Paduan landscape is dotted with villages, such as the medieval Arquà Petrarca, which welcomed the poet in the last years of his life. Also villas and castles, including the Renaissance Villa dei Vescovi in Luvigliano di Torreglia, Villa Barbarigo in Valsanzibio and the Catajo Castle in Battaglia Terme.

There is no shortage of walled cities, such as Monselice and Este with their respective fortresses. But above all the medieval Cittadella, with its elliptical walls, and Montagnana, with no less than 24 watchtowers.

For psycho-physical refreshment, everyone goes to the Terme Euganee, one of the oldest thermal spas in Europe. The centres of Abano Terme and Montegrotto date back to the 6th century BC, as evidenced by archaeological finds and excavations, and the beneficial and therapeutic properties of their underground waters make them a popular tourist destination.