Camping Tredue

A day out (or several) in Venice is supremely doable from here, an hour by car or boat. Take the vaporetto (boat meets bus) up the Grand Canal, sip an (expensive) espresso in slowly-sinking St Mark's Square and peruse a palatial palazzo or two. Boat trips to Pellestrina island make a pleasant way to cool off and get present-buying; Murano is famed for glass and Burano for its fine lace. After the merchants of Venice, try the city of star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet: Verona (an hour and 40 minutes' drive) is smaller than Venice and easier to get round for obvious reasons. This UNESCO World Heritage Site city has stacks to see and do: you could channel your artistic side by attending an opera at the ancient amphitheatre of the Arena; amble around the many other Roman highlights of the city including the Ponte di Pietra or the Gavi arch, or be a bit more modern with a look at Verona's medieval architecture. Cycling types should look out for the local leg of the Giro d'Italia if they're in town in May or June. Don't forget your wild side while here either: the national park of the Po delta half an hour away is a cracking wetland wilderness of pines and orchids studded with water lilies; watch carefully and you could see a glossy ibis catching an eel or a deer foraging in the reeds.