A Verona evening around the concert

The Portoni della Bra

The Portoni della Bra are the two-arched gate in Verona's city wall beside Corso Porta Nuova, and the palace stands just outside them. A gate here is first mentioned in 1257, and the arches were added between the late 14th and early 16th centuries. The clock between the arches was a gift from Count Antonio Nogarola, installed in 1871 and inaugurated on 2 June 1872. The Pentagona tower rises on the right side. The Pentagona tower is where the old bell sounds the hours. It is a good first landmark on the walk to the concert.

Piazza Bra and the Liston

Piazza Bra is the largest public square in Verona. The name comes from braida, a word of Lombardic root meaning wide. The Liston, a paved promenade along the square, was begun in 1770 by the podestà Alvise Mocenigo, and the palaces around the square were built over the following centuries. Palazzo Barbieri, begun in 1836, closes the eastern side and is now the municipal headquarters. Construction of the Accademia Filarmonica's headquarters on the square began in the early 17th century. In Roman times this ground lay outside the walls, until the amphitheatre was built here in the first century.

Read next: Opera in Verona: Filarmonico to Arena

The Arena

The Verona Arena is a Roman amphitheatre, one of the best-preserved to survive, and its state of preservation owes much to restoration that began in the 16th century. It was probably completed around AD 30, though historians disagree about when it was built. In summer it hosts the opera festival that began in 1913, and through the rest of the year it serves as a concert venue. Dance and classical concerts have been staged there as well. Even if you are not buying a ticket, a look at its stone arches from the square is worth the stop.

Juliet's House and the Shakespeare trail

Three of Shakespeare's plays are set in Verona: Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew and The Two Gentlemen of Verona. The Casa di Giulietta, a medieval house associated with the Cappello family, became a museum in the 1930s, when its courtyard balcony was added, and its link to Shakespeare's Capulets developed later. It is unknown whether Shakespeare ever visited Verona. Many visitors come for the story anyway, so allow time for the crowds if you add it to your evening. Other places around the city are named for the play too, including the House of Juliet and the Tomb of Romeo.

A UNESCO city

In November 2000 Verona was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO because of its urban structure and architecture. The palace of 1934 is a later addition to that setting, and its stone front is a reminder that the city kept building through the 20th century. A concert there is one more way to spend an evening inside a city that has been a stage for centuries.

Who this isn't for

Treat this as a sketch rather than a full itinerary. It gives no restaurant names, no opening hours and no walking times, because those change and are best checked the day before. If you want a complete day plan, use the booking calendar to fix the concert first and plan around it. The concert is the one fixed point; everything on this page is a short walk or a short wait around it, and none of it needs a ticket except the concert itself. If you want to see inside the Arena, check its own site for visiting arrangements before you go.

Read next: Verona opera concert: how to book