2 Days in Verona: The Arena, Old Town and San Zeno

Verona’s Arena, medieval squares and churches fit into two full sightseeing days, with time to sit down for meals and return to your accommodation before the evening. Keep the old town and river together, then give Castelvecchio and San Zeno a separate day. The Cathedral and Giardino Giusti are additions rather than essentials.

Your base and first morning

Stay needed

Two full sightseeing days

Centre-day start

Verona Arena

Western-day start

Castelvecchio Museum

Convenient bases

Città Antica; Veronetta across the Adige

Tuesday–Friday start

Centre day first; western day second

Saturday–Sunday stay

Western day first; centre day second

First reservation decision

Juliet’s House timed entry

Two days are enough for the Arena, medieval centre, Castelvecchio, San Zeno and the river outlook, alongside Sant’Anastasia, San Fermo and the archaeological collection. An arrival afternoon and departure morning do not give you the same scope: preserve the central squares and choose fewer interiors rather than rushing both routes.

Città Antica stretches north-east from the Arena towards Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza dei Signori. Staying between Piazza Bra and those medieval squares puts the first morning within walking reach and makes returning for an accommodation rest practical. Veronetta lies on the eastern bank of the Adige, opposite the historic-centre cluster, so from there, cross the river before heading to the Arena.

The order above avoids putting either museum day on Monday. Starting the western day with Castelvecchio also leaves San Zeno until its later seasonal access has begun. Sunday belongs to the centre route on a weekend stay, so its church visit falls after lunch rather than before Sunday tourist access.

Wear comfortable shoes with grip for the hill’s stairs and uneven paving. Carry drinking water and sun protection, and keep the accommodation rests when it is hot. Decide whether Juliet’s House matters to you before arranging the other paid visits: its reservation determines a fixed point in the first morning.

Tickets, reservations and Verona Card

Visit or option	Adult price	With Verona Card	Booking fee	Reservation
Arena	€12	Included; Gate 5 priority	—	Optional; online or Piazza Bra
Juliet’s House route	€12	Included	—	See warning below
Sant’Anastasia	€4	Included	None	Not required
Roman Theatre and Museum	€9	Included	€0.45 online only	Optional; online or entrance
Castelvecchio	€9	Included	—	Optional; online recommended
San Zeno	€4	Included	None	Not required; entrance purchase
San Fermo	€4	Included	None	Not required; entrance purchase
Giardino Giusti, optional	€14	€9	—	Individuals: not required
Seven main visits: singles	€54	—	Optional fees extra	—
48-hour card, admissions only	€32	Seven main visits	—	—
48-hour card with ATV urban transport	€38	Seven main visits + buses	—	—

The admissions-only card saves €22 per adult across the seven main visits. Both card versions activate on first use and expire 48 hours later. For the transport version, first use can also be on a bus. Each included monument permits one entry. Removing several paid interiors can make single tickets the better choice: add the retained rows before choosing. The optional Cathedral is a separate itinerary decision.

Giardino Giusti is an extra purchase, not an included card visit. Groups of more than 10 must reserve by email. Ordinary church tickets are bought at the first church visited, and San Fermo does not offer advance purchases.

The Arena’s daytime access is limited during the Opera Festival. An opera evening is a separate commitment from a daytime amphitheatre visit, not something the sightseeing pass adds to your route.

Day 1: the Arena, old town and river

The Arena’s Roman seating, Piazza delle Erbe’s frescoed houses and Castel San Pietro’s river view make this a day of open-air landmarks and interiors, ending with dinner around Via Sottoriva.

At the Arena, follow the elliptical structure through its arcades and tiered seating, noticing the surviving outer ring. Optional Porta Borsari adds a two-storey white-limestone façade with arched portals and window rows.

Juliet’s House is the Shakespeare-associated stop on Via Cappello. Keep your reserved slot if you take the optional gateway detour.

Piazza dei Signori gathers the Palazzo della Ragione, Palazzo del Podestà and Loggia del Consiglio. Nearby, the Scaliger Tombs show Gothic canopies and equestrian statues from public space. At lunch around Piazza delle Erbe, look for the Mazzanti Houses’ frescoes, Madonna Verona fountain and Palazzo Maffei.

Sant’Anastasia rewards a close look at Pisanello’s St George and the Princess, frescoed chapels and hunchbacked holy-water stoups. The optional Cathedral complex adds San Giovanni in Fonte’s octagonal font, carved from one marble block.

Sant’Anastasia season	Monday–Friday	Saturday	Sunday / public holiday
1 March–31 October	09:30–18:30	09:30–18:00	13:00–18:00
1 November–28 February	10:00–17:00	09:30–18:00*	13:00–17:30

Ponte Pietra’s contrasting white stone and red brick reveal different building periods. Across the river, the Roman Theatre and Archaeological Museum bring ancient Verona into focus through portraits, inscriptions and funerary monuments.

After resting, climb to Piazzale Castel San Pietro for late-day light across the Adige, Ponte Pietra and historic centre. The ascent has steep stairs and uneven cobbles: this is not a level stroll. Descend for dinner around Via Sottoriva, where trattorias and restaurants continue into the neighbouring lanes.

Day 2: Castelvecchio, San Zeno and San Fermo

From the previous day’s old-town lanes, turn west for Castelvecchio’s Cangrande statue and San Zeno’s Mantegna altarpiece, then return through Corso Cavour for a day of art and church interiors, ending near Porta Borsari.

Castelvecchio pairs paintings by Mantegna, Bellini and Veronese with Cangrande’s equestrian statue. Carlo Scarpa’s galleries and displays are part of the attraction, shaping how you encounter the sculpture. The optional Castelvecchio Bridge adds a fortified passage, crenellated towers and the Scaligers’ escape route across the Adige.

At San Zeno, compare the bronze door panels’ biblical scenes and varied workmanship before looking at Mantegna’s Madonna and Child enthroned with saints. Return towards the centre for lunch around Corso Cavour.

San Zeno season	Monday–Friday	Saturday	Sunday / religious holiday
1 March–31 October	09:00–18:00	09:00–18:00	13:00–18:30
1 November–28 February	10:00–17:00	09:30–17:30*	13:00–17:30

San Fermo offers two churches in one admission: a wooden ship’s-keel ceiling with painted panels above, and Romanesque columns and capitals below. Stairs connect the levels. Optional Porta Leoni then adds a street-side look at the Roman gate’s façade and courtyard remains.

San Fermo season	Monday–Friday	Saturday	Sunday / public holiday
1 March–31 October	09:30–18:00	09:30–18:00	13:00–18:00
1 November–28 February	10:00–17:00	10:00–17:30*	13:00–17:30

Across the Adige, optional Giardino Giusti combines geometric planting, terraces, fountains and statues. Its upper paths are steep and stepped, with uneven stone and gravelly slopes, so stay in the formal garden if the climb is too demanding.

Giardino Giusti opens daily, and its summer hours are 09:00–19:00.

After resting, pause in Piazza Bra to take in the Arena’s broad setting. Continue to the restaurants and wine bars around Corso Porta Borsari. Risotto all’Amarone is rice cooked with Amarone wine and broth, then finished creamy with butter and cheese.

Late starts, early departures and bad weather

• Late centre-day start: remove optional Porta Borsari and the Cathedral first, but keep the archaeological collection before the accommodation rest.
• Shortened western day: remove the optional castle bridge, Porta Leoni and Giardino Giusti before cutting the main interiors.
• Arrival afternoon only: enjoy Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza dei Signori rather than squeezing both sightseeing days into one.
• Early departure: give up the garden and second evening, but preserve a seated meal between visits.
• Rain: favour Castelvecchio, the archaeological collection and church interiors over the exposed viewpoints and garden paths.
• Heat: keep the accommodation rests and cut the exposed Castel San Pietro and upper garden climbs.
• Short winter daylight: omit the Cathedral, take the hilltop pause directly after the archaeological museum, then return to your accommodation before dinner.

If arrival and departure leave just one full sightseeing day, use the one-day Verona walking itinerary for a prioritised route rather than merging these two days. Recalculate the paid visits when making that cut: the card choice changes with the interiors you retain.

The Arena’s recurring summer opera programme typically runs from June to September. Replace the planned evening pause and dinner sequence with the performance evening, arranging your meal around it rather than adding an opera after an already full day.

Sources & fact-checking

Checks against the sources below cover: opening hours, services, and fares and charges. Route times and distances were calculated from geolocated stops.

• Chiese Vive — opening hours
• Museo Archeologico al Teatro Romano
• Visita il Museo
• Associazione Chiese Vive — opening hours
• Museo di Castelvecchio – Visita il Museo
• Giardino Giusti — opening hours
• Chiese Vive (Chiese Verona) — opening hours
• Associazione Chiese Vive — service
• Entrance tickets
• Richiedere la VeronaCard
• Verona Civic Museums, Municipality of Verona — fares and charges
• Fondazione Arena di Verona — service
• Ingresso e Biglietti
• Chiese Vive — service
• VeronaCard si rinnova: dal 1° settembre la card turistica diventa digitale
• Verona Tourist Office – IAT Verona — service