Roman Arena

Top choice in Verona


Built of pink-tinged marble in the 1st century AD, Verona's Roman amphitheatre survived a 12th-century earthquake to become the city’s legendary open-air opera house, with seating for 30,000 people. You can visit the arena year-round, though it’s at its best during the summer opera festival. In winter months, concerts are held at the Teatro Filarmonico. From October to May, admission is €1 on the first Sunday of the month.

The eighth-biggest amphitheatre in the Roman Empire and predating the Colosseum in Rome, nothing of the incredible inside is visible from outside. Pass through the dingy ancient corridors, wide enough to drive a gladiator's chariot, to re-emerge into the massive, sunlit stone arena, at least 50 levels of seating rising from the mammoth, oval showground. Note the amphitheatre is completely open so this is not a great place to visit in the rain.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Verona attractions

1. Synagogue

0.25 MILES

Located in what was once the Jewish Ghetto, this neoclassical synagogue was designed by Giacomo Franco and Ettore Fagiuoli and completed in 1864. It's not…

2. Chiesa di San Fermo

0.28 MILES

At the river end of Via Leoni, Chiesa di San Fermo is actually two churches in one: Franciscan monks raised the 13th-century Gothic church right over an…

3. Casa di Giulietta

0.28 MILES

Juliet's house is a spectacle, but not for the reasons you might imagine – entering the courtyard off Via Cappello, you are greeted by a young…

4. Piazza delle Erbe

0.3 MILES

Originally a Roman forum, Piazza delle Erbe is ringed with buzzing cafes and some of Verona’s most sumptuous buildings, including the elegantly baroque…

5. Museo di Castelvecchio

0.31 MILES

Bristling with fishtail battlements along the river Adige, Castelvecchio was built in the 1350s by Cangrande II. Severely damaged by Napoleon and WWII…

6. Galleria d'Arte Moderna Achille Forti

0.33 MILES

In the shadow of the Torre dei Lamberti, the Romanesque Palazzo della Ragione is home to Verona's jewel-box Gallery of Modern Art. Reached via the Gothic…

7. Torre dei Lamberti

0.33 MILES

One of Verona's most popular attractions, this 84m-high watchtower provides panoramic views of Verona and nearby mountains. Begun in the 12th century and…

8. Palazzo Maffei

0.34 MILES

Flanking the northern end of vibrant Piazza delle Erbe is Palazzo Maffei, an elegantly baroque creation now home to numerous offices and businesses.

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "italy/the-veneto/verona/attractions/roman-arena/a/poi-sig/424953/360030",
      "destination": "Verona",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "Italy",
      "city": "Verona",
      "position": "superzone"
    }