Risotto alla Milanese rice, saffron, beef marrow and butter, creamy and soft
Rice, saffron, beef marrow and butter: Milan's golden dish, tied by legend to a glassmaker of the Duomo in 1574.
Read more →Mantua borders eight provinces and only two are Lombard, Cremona and Brescia. The rest lie in Veneto (Verona, Rovigo) or Emilia-Romagna (Ferrara, Modena, Reggio Emilia, Parma), which explains this south-eastern corner of the region better than anything else: 64 municipalities of flat country that faces the Po rather than Milan, with food and speech that belong as much to the river valley as to Lombardy.
Almost everything worth the trip is in the city of Mantua itself, and the density is unusual for a place of its size: the Ducal Palace with the Castle of San Giorgio attached to it, the basilica of Sant'Andrea, the compact Teatro Bibiena. Beyond the capital you move between plain towns such as Suzzara and Viadana, while Castiglione delle Stiviere sits at the far end of the province, up against the Brescia border, with a history of its own.
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Our editors' ranking: the area's most important places, drawn from the individual town guides. See the national rankings →
1 ⛪ Churches & sanctuaries basilica di Sant'Andrea 📍 Mantua The largest church in Mantua, a Renaissance masterpiece designed by Leon Battista Alberti.
2 🏰 Castles & palaces castello di San Giorgio 📍 Mantua Gonzaga fortress in Mantua, famous for the Camera degli Sposi frescoes painted by Andrea Mantegna.
3 ⛪ Churches & sanctuaries chiesa della Madonna del Terremoto 📍 Mantua Small 1754 Baroque church in Mantua's Piazza Canossa, built in gratitude after the 1693 earthquake. Straight-line distances from the town centre. Tap a point to open its page.
Rice, saffron, beef marrow and butter: Milan's golden dish, tied by legend to a glassmaker of the Duomo in 1574.
Read more →White and yellow flour, almonds, butter and sugar, broken by hand: sbrisolona is Mantova's cake, already served at the Gonzaga court.
Read more →🛶 Lakes 6 🏛️ UNESCO heritage 4 🏘️ Villages 3 🏔️ Mountains 3 🍷 Food & wine 2 ♨️ Spa towns 2
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📅 Every year, on 18 October
On 18 October Castel Goffredo celebrates Saint Luke, declared the town's patron in 1725; the Fiera di San Luca, established in 1457 by Alessandro Gonzaga, is still held today.
📅 Every year, on 22 October
On 22 October Borgo Mantovano celebrates its patron Saint John Paul II; the municipality brings together hamlets with their own patrons, such as Saint Albert in Revere and Saint Michael the Archangel in Villa Poma.
📅 Every year, on 6 December
Solferino celebrates Saint Nicholas of Bari on 6 December. The town is known for the 1859 battle, which inspired the founding of the Red Cross.
📅 Every year, on 26 December
On 26 December Casalmoro celebrates its patron Saint Stephen; the town's most cherished festival, however, is the Madonna del Dosso on 21 November, with dawn Mass and firecrackers.