Mantegna's Camera degli Sposi, the squares and Leon Battista Alberti's Sant'Andrea in the morning, Giulio Romano's Palazzo Te in the afternoon.
Mantua, surrounded by three lakes formed by the River Mincio, was the city of the Gonzaga family for almost four centuries, one of the richest courts of the Renaissance; since 2008 it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with Sabbioneta. In the morning the Ducal Palace with Andrea Mantegna's Camera degli Sposi, then the squares in the centre and the Basilica of Sant'Andrea. After lunch Palazzo Te, the Gonzaga party villa, with the Sala dei Giganti.
When to goAll year round (the Ducal Palace is closed on Mondays)
The plan from Bologna
Leave Bologna for Mantua, the Ducal Palace and the squares1 h 30 driving, 118 km
Mantua, the Ducal Palace and the squares3 h 05 of visits: Ducal Palace and the Camera degli Sposi, Piazza Sordello and Piazza delle Erbe, Basilica of Sant'Andrea
Lunch in Mantua1 h 00 of visits: in the centre: pumpkin tortelli, risotto alla pilota, pike in sauce, and to finish the sbrisolona cake.
Drive on to Palazzo Te10 min driving, 4 km
Palazzo Te1 h 25 of visits: Palazzo Te and the Sala dei Giganti
Drive back to Bologna1 h 35 driving, 114 km
Back in Bologna
Times are a guide: driving times are worked out without traffic, then come the visits and ten minutes at every stop to park. In summer towards the coast and at rush hour allow extra time.
What you will see
1Mantua, the Ducal Palace and the squares
Ducal Palace and the Camera degli Sposi 100 min
The Gonzaga palace is a city within a city: palaces, courtyards, gardens and hundreds of rooms built between the 14th and 17th centuries. The most famous room is in the Castello di San Giorgio: the Camera degli Sposi, which Andrea Mantegna painted between 1465 and 1474 for Marquis Ludovico Gonzaga. On the walls is the family with the court, dogs and horses; on the ceiling a false oculus open to the sky, with ladies and putti looking down: one of the first perspective 'tricks' in painting.
Closed on Mondays. The Camera degli Sposi is visited in short shifts: book your time slot.
Piazza Sordello and Piazza delle Erbe 25 min
Piazza Sordello, long and wide in front of the Ducal Palace, has the cathedral and the palaces of the Bonacolsi, the lords before the Gonzaga. A little further on is Piazza delle Erbe, the heart of the market, with the Torre dell'Orologio from 1473, which also marks the phases of the moon, the Palazzo della Ragione and the Rotonda di San Lorenzo, a small round church from the 11th century, the oldest in the city.
Free; the Rotonda has free admission.
Basilica of Sant'Andrea 25 min
It was designed by Leon Battista Alberti and begun in 1472 to house the relic of the Most Precious Blood of Christ, which according to tradition was brought to Mantua by the soldier Longinus. The façade is a Roman triumphal arch, the single nave has a great coffered vault. In the first chapel on the left is Andrea Mantegna's tomb.
Free admission.
2Palazzo Te
Palazzo Te and the Sala dei Giganti 75 min
Federico II Gonzaga had it built between 1525 and 1535 by Giulio Romano, a pupil of Raphael, as a villa for parties and love affairs, away from the court. Every room is painted: the Sala dei Cavalli with his favourite steeds, the Sala di Amore e Psiche and above all the Sala dei Giganti, where walls and ceiling are a single fresco of giants crushed by boulders hurled by Jupiter. Anyone entering has the impression that the room is collapsing.
Admission charge. Check Monday opening times before you leave.
Tips
On Mondays the Ducal Palace is closed: on that day another trip is better.
From spring to autumn, boat trips leave from the lake: an hour that can replace the squares.
If you want the complete UNESCO tour you can add Sabbioneta, the Gonzaga 'ideal city', 40 minutes away: but it makes for a long day.
The same trip from other towns
How long it takes from each town, the drive back included. Tap a town to see the plan from there.
Almost every old town has a limited traffic zone (ZTL) with cameras: park outside and walk in. The fine reaches your home, abroad too. ZTL and car parks town by town
This trip with a driver
Romagna Transfer picks you up at your hotel, drops you in front of every stop and brings you back: no parking, no ZTL, and the wine is yours to enjoy.
Trips written by our editors from the facts of our monument pages and the official sites. Opening days and hours change: the note under every place tells you what to check before you leave. No prices: you find them on the museums' sites.
