Archive for 'Veneto'

How does a restaurant become a playground? That sounds like the beginning to a riddle or a joke. In fact, it's something that actually happened. Ai Pioppi was opened as a food stand in Battaglia, in the region of Veneto. Armed with some jugs of wine and sausages, a man named Bruno set out to establish a business in 1969 that has become something he could never have imagined. The stand first became a family restaurant and then, after an encounter with a blacksmith that lead to Bruno learning to weld, a very unique playground was born. Established as something extra to draw customers to his restaurant, it has developed into an entity with a life of its own. If you want to visit this astonishing place for yourself, find a holiday rental in Veneto and stop by.

Across the Venetian Lagoon, past the Dolomites and beyond the towers of Venice, distinct conical hills are visible. Called the Euganean Hills, they are 81 long-dead volcanoes clustered together, above rolling green farmlands dotted with little monasteries and grand Palladian villas. At their centre is the beautiful village of Arquà Petrarca, Padua. Named for the great Italian poet Francesco Petrarch, after his death, it was also where he retired and one can only imagine how inspiring such spectacularly beautiful surrounds could have only been to the poet.

If you want to follow the same literary pilgrimage as countless others (Lord Byron among them), find a holiday rental in Padua and make the journey to Petrarch's final resting place.

Venice is a city steeped in fascinating history but sometimes all that history can be overwhelming or unending and you need a little bit of a break from it or to absorb it in a different way. It's easier to learn or take in information if it's in a fun way, which is why it might be a good idea to do the ghost tour of Venice, rather than a regular guided tour. Taking place at night and on foot, it's a fantastic way to get a real feel of the layout and atmosphere of the city while learning and being thrilled at the same time!

The Villa Manin at Passariano in Codroipo, Friuli Venezia Giulia is a Venetian villa with a fascinating history that now houses a gallery and regularly hosts exhibitions, events and, even holds concerts on the grounds. It was built in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries for the Manin family, from whom it takes its name. Between the stunning grounds which surround, the history, the iconic architecture, the extensive collections and once-off exhibitions, range of events and concerts, its somewhere where you'll never be stuck for things to do. Why not find a villa with pool in Friuli Venezia Giulia and visit for yourself?

Verona in Veneto in the north-east of Italy, is one of the most charming towns in the country, renowned for its beauty, ties to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and its summer opera season. A short distance from Lake Garda and full of shops and restaurants and with a historic medieval town centre, it is absolutely packed full of things to see and do. The town has Roman origins and was an important part of the empire and the remains of the period dot the landscape with the biggest impact being made by the Arena. Now the Arena houses the operas each summer that the town has become known for, drawing crowds of up to 14,000 each year from all over the world.