Two castles face each other on the twin hills above Montecchio Maggiore, and their names travel far beyond Veneto: Romeo's and Juliet's. Watching these Scaliger strongholds from his villa nearby, Renaissance nobleman Luigi da Porto set here the novella of the two Veronese lovers that would eventually reach Shakespeare's desk.
Below the hills, this Vicenza-province town of 23,315 residents works in mechanics and tanning along the Chiampo valley, with Venetian villas stitching history to industry. Climb to the castles at sunset, when the Lessini ridge turns red, and Da Porto's choice of setting explains itself.
The Montecchio Maggiore guide
Near Montecchio Maggiore
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
