Winter is over, do you want to spend a day in touch with nature?

On Sunday 26th March the Veneto Region celebrates the 2nd edition of the Regional Day of Veneto Hills, a chance to enhance and promote the rich Veneto hill heritage. Thanks to this initiative you can choose from many events taking place in the land of Lake Garda.

To discover all the planned activities visit the UNPLI Veneto web site, surely you will find the perfect solution for you!

On Sunday UNPLI Veneto will also open the second edition of the photo contest Colli Veneti in un Click to directly involve the Veneto hills community lovers.

For further information visit the contest rules.

Food and wine stands, funfair, music shows, and the traditional exhibition of agricultural machinery. The Old Fair originated as an agricultural festival and maintains the traditional day of the Great Monday Fair with the market, the exhibition of agricultural machinery, cattle, and farmyard animals in Villa Venier.

The touristic cycling loop of Terre del Custoza is about 65 km long and runs on mixed roads with low traffic, 70% of which are asphalted. The route carries lanes in both directions and allows you to explore the villages of Bussolengo, Sommacampagna, Sona and Valeggio sul Mincio. The trail is also well visible thanks to the signs indicating the cycle route.

A circular route that starts from the city of Verona and follows the beautiful path along the artificial canals to arrive at Rivoli Veronese. After reaching the town centre, it descends to Lake Garda. The itinerary is linked to the Ciclovia del Sole (The Sun Cycle Route).

A loop around the morainic hills of lower Lake Garda (Custoza, Valeggio sul Mincio, Borghetto sul Mincio), the route starts from Verona and allows you to discover the most evocative landscapes of the Lake Garda hinterland and the ancient villages.

Eighteenth-century villa, now the Town Hall

The architectural complex passed to the noblewoman E. Castellani Terzi in 1828, to whom the heraldic coat of arms on the main façade is dedicated. Her initials can also be found in the centre of the Venetian mosaic floor in the hall on the first floor.

Among the plaques, there is an inscription in honour of Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia, and his sons Vittorio Emanuele II and Ferdinando Maria, Duke of Genoa. The sovereign established his headquarters here during the first war of independence (1848). Since the 20th century, the palace has been municipal property and houses the Sommacampagna Town Hall.

Helpful information

Piazza Carlo Alberto, 1, Sommacampagna, VR, Italia

0458971356

ufficio.cultura@comune.sommacampagna.vr.it

Villa Venier, an elegant Venetian villa

Villa Venier is a representation of the heritage of the Venetian villas. The architectural complex, originally owned by the Venetian Venier family, is considered the beating heart of Sommacampagna’s cultural life. Community and exhibition halls, the municipal historical archive, a literary café, the Consorzio di Tutela del Vino Custoza, coworking spaces and training courses, all enliven this historic building.

The vast surrounding park hosts the Palco Venier summer festival, with theatre, dance, concerts and meetings with famous authors. Not only: as the largest public park in Sommacampagna, it is also the beating heart of the town. Used for picnics and for children’s games and recreation, the park is a place for gathering and socialising where you can relax and reconnect with nature.

Helpful information

Via 2 Giugno, Sommacampagna, VR, Italia

0458971356

ufficio.cultura@comune.sommacampagna.vr.it

Church of ancient origins, Luogo del Cuore of the National Trust of Italy.

Built probably around a fresco of the Virgin Mary located at a defensive tower. In the 12th century some hermits, following the example of St Francis, founded a monastery here and legend has it that the Saint passed through here. The monastery was later abandoned due to the destruction and looting that followed the wars between the Guelphs and Ghibellines.

Restored and embellished in the first half of the 18th century, the church is now privately owned and, thanks to an agreement between the owner, the municipality, the parish and the Comitato Madonna di Monte, it is officially recognised as a place of cultural and local community interest.

In 2018 it reached second place in the National Trust of Italy’s Luogo del Cuore ranking for the Veneto Region and first for the province of Verona.

Helpful information

Str. Madonna di Monte, 30-32, 37066 Sommacampagna, VR, Italia

0458971357

ufficio.cultura@comune.sommacampagna.vr.it

The parish church of Sant’Andrea, rich in precious decorations

The parish church of Sant’Andrea has numerous decorations from different periods: paintings from the Romanesque period, often in fragments or very damaged, frescoes painted between the 13th and 14th centuries, of which the large Last Judgement is the most important, or paintings in the 14th century, including those attributed to the Master of Sommacampagna. The fresco of St. Andrew (or St. Peter) dates probably back to the 16th century.

The oldest wall paintings can be dated between the 11th and 12th centuries and are stylistically similar to those of San Severo in Bardolino and other important Romanesque churches in Verona. Some fragments can be found in the apse, while in the nave there is a part of a large pictorial cycle, now almost completely disappeared, depicting the stories of the Virgin and some saints and martyrs. The style is inspired by Byzantine paintings rather than the contemporary practices of the Holy Roman Empire.

Helpful information

Via Guastalla, 2, 37066 Sommacampagna, VR, Italia

0458971356

ufficio.cultura@comune.sommacampagna.vr.it

Information: Visits by appointment

The Ossuary of Custoza stands on the Belvedere hil

The Ossuary of Custoza stands on Belvedere Hill. Inaugurated in 1879, it contains the remains of those who died in the first and third Italian independence wars (1848 and 1866 respectively).

The monument, with an octagonal base, comprises three parts: the partially raised crypt, the central body including monumental prostheses, chapel, walkable balcony and the obelisk. The work of Giacomo Franco, it was built in brick and local limestone. The balcony, reached by climbing about sixty steps, opens onto a splendid 360° panorama of the surrounding area.

The inscription at the base of the obelisk reads: PEACE/ TO THE STRONG FALLEN ON THESE FIELDS/ IN THE BATTLE/ OF 25 JULY 1848 AND 24 JUNE 1866/ ITALY 24 JUNE 1879.

Helpful information

Str. Ossario, 17, 37066 Sommacampagna, VR, Italia

3469652147

info@ossariocustoza.it

Information: Tuesday 3 p.m. - 6 p.m.; Wednesday to Sunday 9 a.m. - 12 a.m. - 3 p.m. - 6 p.m. Seasonal closure from December to mid-February

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