Autumn is a beautiful season to discover the colors of the stately gardens located in the numerous and prestigious villas scattered in the northern area of the province of Padova. An area worth knowing, located between the Brenta valley and the urban settlements present since Roman times, in which the main arteries of this territory were traced.
To fully experience these beauties, we propose a seven-stage route that starts from the Padova Ovest junction of the A4 motorway, going towards Limena and from here to Vaccarino to visit the sixteenth-century Villa Trieste-De Benedetti: here you will immediately notice the unmistakable hand of Giuseppe Jappelli, great nineteenth-century urban planner and garden designer to whom many of the wonders of the Padova area refer to. His intent for this villa was to give great prominence to water as a metaphor for life and to insert symbols linked to mythology. Inside the parks you can discover curiosities such as a Chinese pagoda, a Greek temple and references to the Templars.
From here you can move to the so called Piazzola sul Brenta, where Villa Contarini is located: a majestic palace built on the remains of an ancient castle, which opens to its own park as if it were a huge theater stage. It has always been a favorite place for theatrical performances and concerts, where the 45 hectares of greenery offer beautiful views of lakes, fish ponds and the perimeter avenues that in this season take on shades of a thousand colors.
Were you fascinated but you don't want to stop? The time has come to cross the Brenta to visit in series, the villas Wollemberg in Loreggia, Cornaro in Piombino Dese and Ca 'Marcello in Levada. They are all located a few kilometers away from each other: the first has a nineteenth-century style with a look at the classic as well as a beautiful Italian garden, very popular in the wedding sector; instead there is the hand of Andrea Palladio at Villa Cornaro, a Unesco World Heritage Site, as can be seen from the imposing facade; finally, Ca 'Marcello boasts a large park of eight hectares with a fish pond, low hedges to delimit the paths and elegant statues.
Resuming the journey towards the west, you cannot miss two other wonderful historic houses. In the center of Castelfranco Veneto it is worth a walk inside Villa Parco Bolasco, owned by the University of Padova and very rich in tree species: from Himalayan cedar to American persimmon, all immersed in a context full of statues, ponds and a wonderful horse riding arena signed by the French artist Marc Guignon. And in order to end in style, you can end your trip out of town at Villa Cappello in Galliera Veneta: the park was restored in 2006 and offers a rich biodiversity and quiet paths where you can stroll and enjoy the last beautiful days before the arrival of cold temperatures. A nice tip to take advantage of even for a weekend, so you can visit every place with due attention and be able to start the week again with the right amount of relaxation!
A land to discover:
Food and wine: The recipes based on “radicchio di Castelfranco” and a slice of “fregolotta” as dessert.
History: Venetian and Austrian nobility and their residences in the area.
Territory: The Brenta Valley, its villas and enchanted gardens.
