Located in the Veneto region in Northern Italy, Verona is only half an hour's drive from Lake Garda, one of the country's most beautiful lakes. It is also surrounded, to the north and east, by the hilly landscapes of the famous Valpolicella and Soave wine districts.

Known by most for its Roman amphiteatre, the Arena, one of Italy's largest and the home of its annual summer opera festival, Verona also boasts one of Italy's finest Romanesque churches as well as one of the country's most beautiful Renaissance gardens.

The city's old castle, Castelvecchio, is a famous attraction in its own right too, built by the powerful della Scala family in the Middle Ages and restored in the 20th century by world-famous architect Carlo Scarpa.

Arguably, however, the reason behind Verona's thriving tourist industry has less to do with architecture or history than with literature - William Shakespeare's romantic and tragic play about the young lovers Romeo and Juliet is set in the city, and such is the power and resonance of this story that every year a stream of tourists flocks to Verona to visit the famous courtyard and balcony at Casa Giulietta (Juliet's House) on Via Cappello in the Old Town.

Nor does Shakespeare represent the only important literary link with the city. When Dante Alighieri, author of The Divine Comedy, was forced to flee his hometown Florence in the early 14th century, he was welcomed and protected by the Veronese noble lord Can Grande della Scala. Piazza dei Signori, where Can Grande's palace stood, is sometimes called Piazza Dante, and there is a statue of the famous poet on this square.

Verona is a lively city with the Old Town, framed by the River Adige to the north, east and west, as the picturesque centre for cultural activities, tourism, shopping and nightlife. You will find most of the best restaurants here too. For its inland location Verona has surprisingly good fish and seafood restaurants, but at the heart of the Veronese culinary tradition are hearty dishes with boiled meat as an essential ingredient - some of which include horse meat.