Day trip from Venice to Verona by train

Is a day trip from Venice to Verona worth it?

Yes, if you are ready for a morning start and an evening return. Direct regional trains run from Venezia Santa Lucia to Verona Porta Nuova all day, so getting there needs no planning beyond the ticket. The price is time: up to five hours on the train in total, which is why the day only pays off if you use the whole of it.

What you get in return is a different Italy. Venice is a city on water; Verona is a Roman and medieval city on a river, with an amphitheatre still standing in its main square, a Roman bridge and gate, the tombs of the Scaliger lords and a compact centre you cross entirely on foot. Food is part of the draw too: risotto all'Amarone, thick bigoli pasta and Valpolicella wines from the hills nearby, usually for less than you pay in Venice.

Who this day trip suits

• First-time visitors to northern Italy who want to see Roman and medieval Italy next to Venetian Venice
• Walkers who enjoy a compact historic centre where squares, churches and the river are a few minutes apart
• Readers of Romeo and Juliet, as long as they take the balcony as a story and not as history
• Travellers who like Italy for its food, its squares and its small details as much as for its big monuments
• Budget travellers, since eating and drinking in Verona generally costs less than in Venice

Go if you can leave Venice in the morning and want a full day in a walkable Roman and medieval city; if you only have a few days in Venice or prefer a shorter ride, Padua or Treviso suit you better.

Other day trips from Venice

• Padua25 to 49 minPadua is about half an hour by train instead of up to two and a half, so you get a full day in town without the early start; pick it if Giotto's Scrovegni Chapel and the Basilica of Saint Anthony appeal more than Verona's Roman arena.
• Treviso37 minOutbound: 37 min
• Vicenza46 minVicenza takes about three quarters of an hour by train and is all about Palladio, with the Teatro Olimpico, the Basilica Palladiana and Villa La Rotonda; choose it if architecture matters more to you than Shakespeare and Roman ruins.

Venice to Verona day trip itinerary: one day from train to train

Day plan for: Tue–Fri

The day hangs on the morning train out and the evening train back; in between, the walking tour leads you through Verona in its own order from the Arena to Castelvecchio, with lunch in the middle of the old town.

1. Morning08:18 – 09:30

   Take the direct Frecciarossa from Venezia Santa Lucia shortly after eight, arriving at Verona Porta Nuova around half past nine, on a ticket booked for this specific train, since a regional ticket is not valid on it. Walk up to Piazza Bra, have a coffee and be at the Arena around ten.

   This train has you in Verona at half past nine without a change, and the walk from the station is the easiest way into the centre.

2. Tour10:00 – 12:45

   Open the tour in the browser at Piazza Bra. The AI Tour Guide greets you in front of the Arena, tells you its story, asks what interests you and leads you past San Fermo Maggiore to Juliet's House, then up Torre dei Lamberti for the view over the old town, and on to Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza dei Signori.

   Juliet's House is busiest later in the day, and the morning is the time to see it with a booked ticket; the tower stands right beside Piazza delle Erbe, so the climb fits before lunch. The Arena and San Fermo are seen from outside on the way.

   1. 1Piazza Bra & Arena di Verona
   2. 2San Fermo Maggiore Church
   3. 3Casa di Giulietta (Juliet's House)
   4. 4Torre dei Lamberti
   5. 5Piazza delle Erbe
   6. 6Piazza dei Signori

   Start the Verona tour

3. Lunch12:45 – 13:45

   Lunch after Piazza dei Signori and before the Scaliger Tombs, in the lanes around Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza dei Signori. Try risotto all'Amarone, bigoli or a glass of Valpolicella.

   The two squares sit right next to each other, so you eat in the centre without leaving the route, and the afternoon walk starts a few steps away.

4. Afternoon13:45 – 18:30

   The guide picks up at the Scaliger Tombs, which you see from the street, and continues past Sant'Anastasia to Ponte Pietra, across the river to the Teatro Romano, where you go inside the Roman theatre and its archaeological museum, back to the Duomo, through Porta Borsari and finally to Castelvecchio. Aim to reach Castelvecchio around half past four.

   Castelvecchio stops admitting visitors well before it closes, so arriving in good time lets you see its collection without hurry; after the tour there is still room for a slower detour or an aperitivo before you head for the station.

   1. 7Arche Scaligere (Scaliger Tombs)
   2. 8Basilica di Sant'Anastasia
   3. 9Ponte Pietra
   4. 10Teatro Romano & Museo Archeologico
   5. 11Duomo di Verona (Cathedral)
   6. 12Porta Borsari (Roman Gate)
   7. 13Castelvecchio Museum
5. Return18:30 – 20:52

   Leave Castelvecchio by half past six at the latest, walk back to Porta Nuova and catch the direct train shortly before half past seven, arriving at Venezia Santa Lucia shortly before nine.

   The walk back to the station takes about 25 minutes, and a quarter of an hour on the platform keeps a missed train off the table.

Arrival to return departure: 9 h 52 min. Time for your visit: about 8.5 h.

Arrival 09:30, tour start 10:00: 30 min to walk to the start.

Realistically you get about eight and a half hours in Verona; if your train is late or you linger at lunch, cut the end of the tour, Porta Borsari and Castelvecchio, rather than rushing the old town.

Verona walking tour in one day

Opening hours as of 21 October 2026.

1. 
   1Stop 1

   Piazza Bra & Arena di Verona

   The Roman amphitheatre on Piazza Bra is among the best-preserved of its kind and still dominates the square it has stood on for two thousand years.

   Website

   arena.it ↗

   Price

   Seen from outside on the tour; going inside is optional and not included in this total.

   Location

   Piazza Bra & Arena di Verona on Google Maps ↗

2. 
   2Stop 2

   San Fermo Maggiore Church

   The church of Saints Fermo and Rusticus is a quieter first church on the way into the old town, away from the crowds of the squares.

   Hours

   Mon–Fri: 10:00–17:00
   Sat: 10:00–17:30
   Sun: 13:00–17:30

   Location

   San Fermo Maggiore Church on Google Maps ↗

3. 
   3Stop 3

   Casa di Giulietta (Juliet's House)

   This medieval house in Via Cappello became the home of Shakespeare's Juliet in the popular imagination, balcony included, even though the story is fiction.

   Hours

   Mon: closed
   Tue–Sun: 09:00–19:00

   Website

   casadigiulietta.comune.verona.it ↗

   Price

   €9

   Location

   Casa di Giulietta (Juliet's House) on Google Maps ↗

4. 
   4Stop 4

   Torre dei Lamberti

   The medieval tower rises right beside Piazza delle Erbe and is the place to climb if you want to see Verona from above.

   Hours

   Mon–Fri: 10:00–18:00
   Sat, Sun: 11:00–19:00

   Website

   torredeilamberti.it ↗

   Price

   €6

   Location

   Torre dei Lamberti on Google Maps ↗

5. 
   5Stop 5

   Piazza delle Erbe

   Verona's oldest square lies at the heart of the old town on the site of the Roman forum.

   Price

   Free

   Location

   Piazza delle Erbe on Google Maps ↗

6. 
   6Stop 6

   Piazza dei Signori

   Next door to Piazza delle Erbe, this square, also called Piazza Dante, was the seat of the city's rulers and feels calmer than its busy neighbour.

   Price

   Seen from outside on the tour; going inside is optional and not included in this total.

   Location

   Piazza dei Signori on Google Maps ↗

7. 
   7Stop 7

   Arche Scaligere (Scaliger Tombs)

   Five Gothic funerary monuments honour the Scaliger family, who ruled Verona from the 13th to the late 14th century.

   Hours (optional interior visit)

   Mon–Thu: closed
   Fri–Sun: 10:00–13:00, 14:00–17:00

   Website

   museodicastelvecchio.comune.verona.it ↗

   Price

   Optional entry · Arche Scaligere (Scaliger Tombs): €4.50

   Location

   Arche Scaligere (Scaliger Tombs) on Google Maps ↗

8. 
   8Stop 8

   Basilica di Sant'Anastasia

   Sant'Anastasia is one of the great churches of Verona's historic centre and a landmark on the walk down towards the river.

   Hours

   Mon–Fri: 10:00–17:00
   Sat: 09:30–18:00
   Sun: 13:00–17:30

   Location

   Basilica di Sant'Anastasia on Google Maps ↗

9. 
   9Stop 9

   Ponte Pietra

   Verona's oldest bridge over the Adige is the only one left from Roman times, blown up in the Second World War and rebuilt.

   Price

   Free

   Website

   comune.verona.it ↗

   Location

   Ponte Pietra on Google Maps ↗

10. 
    10Stop 10

    Teatro Romano & Museo Archeologico

    Above the Roman theatre, the archaeological museum occupies a former monastery on the hillside across the river.

    Hours

    Mon: closed
    Tue–Sun: 10:00–18:00

    Website

    museoarcheologico.comune.verona.it ↗

    Price

    €9

    Location

    Teatro Romano & Museo Archeologico on Google Maps ↗

11. 
    11Stop 11

    Duomo di Verona (Cathedral)

    Verona's cathedral is dedicated to Santa Maria Matricolare and stands in a quiet corner of the old town inside the river bend.

    Hours

    Mon–Fri: 10:00–17:00
    Sat: 10:00–15:30
    Sun: 13:30–17:30

    Location

    Duomo di Verona (Cathedral) on Google Maps ↗

12. 
    12Stop 12

    Porta Borsari (Roman Gate)

    This Roman city gate dates from the 1st century BC and still frames the street that leads through it.

    Price

    Free

    Website

    verona.info ↗

    Location

    Porta Borsari (Roman Gate) on Google Maps ↗

13. 
    13Stop 13

    Castelvecchio Museum

    Castelvecchio houses one of Verona's most important museums, devoted mainly to medieval and modern Italian and European art.

    Hours

    Mon: closed
    Tue–Sun: 10:00–18:00 (last admission 17:15)

    Website

    museodicastelvecchio.comune.verona.it ↗

    Price

    €9

    Location

    Castelvecchio Museum on Google Maps ↗

Getting back from Verona to Venice