Without a doubt, arriving in Venice qualifies as one of the most riveting parts of any trip to Italy. No matter how you arrive-by plane, train or car-you have to cross the watery boundary separating you from the famous island. Approaching Venice's shores by water is more than just romantic; it's excellent preparation for exploring the rest of the Veneto region. Seven provinces make up this northeastern area, each with their own geography, architecture and feel. But for hundreds of years, the massive and powerful Republic of Venice eclipsed them all. In the 12th century, La Serenissima ("The Serene Republic"-Venice's nickname) muscled its way to the top of the Mediterranean power structure, and soon became one of the richest states in history. Trade with the Byzantine Empire and the rest of Asia brought Venice unfathomable wealth and transformed the city into one of the cultural centers of Europe. The opulent, Byzantine-influenced church of San Marco is just one of Venice's unique aesthetic and historical treasures. The rest of the Veneto region fans out from the capital in a logical fashion, often following key waterways inland. Padua lies in the flatlands west of Venice, connected by the River Brenta. The city houses one of the Veneto's most important works of art, a fresco cycle painted by Giotto nearly 700 years ago in the Scrovegni Chapel. Padua was also the birthplace of painter Andrea Mantegna, who became an important player on the Veneto's 15th century intellectual scene.

Many of Venice's richer merchants followed the Brenta inland from the Venetian Lagoon, attracted by cooler, drier climates and by the masterful building projects of Andrea Palladio, an architect from Vicenza. Palladio formulated a new type of residential architecture in the form of lofty private mansions based squarely on ancient Greek and Roman models. His most famous works-Villa Barbaro in Maser, Villa Pisani in Strà and Villa Emo in Fanzolo di Vedelago-resemble neoclassical temples with colonnades, boxy floor plans and high ceilings. West of Vicenza is Verona, home to the young lovers Romeo and Juliet (at least according to Shakespeare) and a well-preserved ancient Roman arena, which hosts a summer opera festival. The building looks like a shorter version of Rome's Colosseum, with two tiers of arches along its exterior walls and open-air seating. North of Venice, the region transforms into flat agricultural land and rugged mountains. Treviso and the towns around it are set on a flat plain that extends north from Venice for a good 40 miles or so, then rises abruptly at the foothills of the Dolomites. The picturesque town of Asolo provides an elevated view of this dramatic contrast in terrain. To the south, flat plains sink under a thin layer of fog; to the north, dark green hills huddle in groups. As the mountains stretch north, they rise high enough to attract skiers to towns such as Cortina d'Ampezzo in the northern province of Belluno.

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