La Funicolare | Verona East Side: Lo Skyline di Verona

Duration: 1 hour (approximately)

Lenght: 1 kilometre

Difficulty: easy

Points of interest of the itinerary: Funicular of Castel San Pietro | Castel San Pietro | Archeological Museum

A unique itinerary that takes as a reference point the Funicular of Castel San Pietro to lead you to discover Veronetta area and the true jewels of the culture, history and architecture of our city. An urban trekking path that runs along the magnificent walls of Verona and allows you to admire the city of Verona with its precious gems.

The Funicular is located near Ponte Pietra, between the Roman Theatre and the Church of Santo Stefano. It was inaugurated in 1941 and the operation was initially divided into 11 daily rides. The service of the funicular was suspended in 1944 due to the Second World War. After years of abandonment, in 1975 the funicular station became the host of Teatro Laboratorio, an avant-garde theatre company founded by Ezio Maria Caserta. Reopened in June 2017, the new funicular is designed as an inclined lift, with a back and forth system and a 25-passenger cabin. The 159-metre track takes 90 seconds at a maximum speed of 2 m/s and can carry 800 passengers per hour. The covered difference in altitude is 55 metres with a gradine of 37%.

Starting from the Funicular of Castel San Pietro, in via Madonna del Terraglio, you will reach in just over a minute the panoramic point from which our journey begins: the terrace on the top of the hill that housed the first Roman settlements in the territory. Alternatively, you can reach the terrace by walking along the 231 steps staircase, offering its spectators a suggestive view of the beautiful Verona, with its bell towers and the architecture of the past. Splendid setting that embraces the most beautiful view of the city of love, the gentle and winding flow of the Adige river flowing under Ponte Pietra, right at the foot of the hill.

Once on the panoramic terrace we let our gaze wander at the beauty that stands out in front of us: the dome and the imposing church of San Giorgio in Braida, the historic Ponte Pietra, the churches of the historical center such as the Duomo and Sant’Anastasia, with their bell towers erected in the sky, the Torre del Gardello and the statuary Torre dei Lamberti, the bridges that branch out with the various areas of the city and, not least, the river Adige, running with his slow pace.

Behind us stands Castel San Pietro, a military building built during the Austrian domination of the city. The structure stands on a strategic area for the control of the Adige and the territory, the hill of San Pietro, as also testified by the pre-Roman finds, dating back to the Iron Age. During the Roman period, the hill changed its shape and became an extraordinary backdrop with the construction of the theatre, the Odeon and other buildings, including, it is thought, a temple on the summit. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the hill returned to its natural defensive function, controlling the city. Following the Napoleonic passage on 8 March 1801, troops destroyed the castle and the adjacent buildings, including the church and the keep. The structure was redesigned by the k. k. Genie-Direktion Verona and rebuilt between 1852 and 1858 on the previous remains of the fourteenth-century castle, the building served as an army barracks.

To get down you can take the Funicular, or use the stairs that lead to the green area between Castel San Pietro and the Roman Theatre, a park of 18,000 square meters from where you can admire the district of Santo Stefano. The Roman Theatre was built in the last quarter of the 1st century. a. C. Designed according to Greek usage, it was to be closed, on the side of the river. Falling into ruin in ancient times due to earthquakes and floods of the Adige, it was gradually abandoned and buried by other buildings, some of which still exist, such as the Church of San Siro e Libera. In 1834 Andrea Monga, a wealthy merchant from Verona, bought part of the houses built in the area to carry out excavations, which led to the recovery of considerable remains. Today, the theatre and the adjacent buildings house the Archaeological Museum, which exhibits mainly Roman materials found in the Verona area.

You can find the information material for your visit at the Tourist Office located in via degli Alpini, 9.

The project is conceived and promoted by the Municipality of Verona and Associazione Quartiere Attivo in collaboration with AGEC and the Tourist Office of Verona.