Cheap Vicenza Hotels
What to see by car: Vicenza
    
Driving in and around Vicenza is quite easy except in the city centre pedestrian
areas. However, there are numerous car parks from which it is possible to reach
the various zones of interest. You should know that only residents may park
in the parking spaces within yellow lines; in those within blue lines visitors
may park if but must pay.
The territory that makes up the province preserves an extraordinary treasure:
hundreds of villas that mark centuries of Venetian culture. Residences designed
by Andrea Palladio are to be found dotted across the countryside: Villa Godi
Malinverni, Villa Vamarana Bressan, Villa Da Porto Predrotti, Villa Caldogno
and many others.
The Venetian-Gothic buildings of the 15th century are also interesting. Giambattista
Tiepolo was responsible for three cycles of sublime frescoes: those in Villa
Loschi-Motterle (1734), the Montecchio cycle in the house designed by Giorgio
Massari (1743), and those in Villa Valmarana dei Nani (1757).
Not far from Vicenza is Bassano del Grappa, a flourishing economic and cultural
centre on the River Brenta. The houses and edifices, often frescoed on the outside
walls, remind the visitor of the city's traditional role as a place of trade
and production. The city acted for centuries as an intermediary between Venice
and the world of Germanic empires. Bassano del Grappa's Wooden Bridge is the
symbol of the city. The structure, rebuilt after WWII, was conceived by Andrea
Palladio.
To the north of Vicenza lie Marostica and Nove: the cities of cherries, chess
and ceramics. The production of ceramics is an art that has been present for
centuries in Bassano and Nove. At Marostica (25 kms north of Vicenza) it is
possible to find some of the most famous Italian cherries. The walled medieval
town has a black-and-white checkerboard pattern in its square, Piazza Castello.
Once a year in September the town holds a living chess match: citizens dress
in 15th century costume and become chess pieces. Legend has it that the first
such game was held by one of the town's noblemen to help determine which of
two suitors should win his daughter's hand in marriage.
And, to the northwest of Vicenza is Recoaro Terme, a well known spa that has
been a centre for relaxing and therapeutic holidays from the time of the Serenissima
Republic of Venice. The curative powers of the waters are of particular value
for treating digestive and urinary problems, difficulties due to iron deficiency,
as well as liver conditions.
Other places worth visiting include: Schio which one of the most important
sites of industrial archaeology in Italy, and Lonigo which was chosen by the
Pisani family as their home and is full of architectural masterpieces.
Venice and Verona are on either side of Vicenza, and you can reach them in
just 30 minutes by car. If you're looking for sights farther afield, Vicenza
is just 50kms from Padua, 35kms from Bassano del Grappa, 60kms from Treviso
and 80kms from Belluno.
Selection of hotels in this region:
Boscolo Hotel De La Ville | | Quality Inn Viest | |
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full list of hotels and online booking
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