Holiday apartment in Verolavecchia – history and discoveries

Holiday apartment in Verolavecchia between history and cycling experiences

Verolavecchia is interesting for travellers who want to choose their holiday apartment based on the experiences they would like to shape their holiday. Churches, historical evidence of rural everyday life and a cycling tour give the area different facets. When choosing a holiday apartment in Verolavecchia, you can therefore first consider whether cultural discoveries, tangible history or an active stage should be the main focus.

A cycling tour to Monticelli d’Oglio

One specific option for an active day is the Quinzano d'Oglio–Regona cycling tour. It is 28.2 kilometres long, classified as moderate to easy and can be ridden with a city bike. The route leads to Monticelli d'Oglio, a hamlet of Verolavecchia. The combination of route length, difficulty rating and bicycle type makes it easier to plan your trip personally if you would like to combine your choice of holiday apartment with a cycling tour.

Churches, paintings and historic buildings

History can be seen in a striking detail of Verolavecchia’s Torre civica: until 1907, the tower served as the municipality’s bell tower, and today only the hands of its clock are visible. The church of San Rocco was built from 1514 onwards following a vow made by the people of Verolavecchia after the plague of 1512–13. There may already have been a small wayside shrine chapel in 1512. San Rocco also houses the painting “Madonna con Bambino, l’Angelo custode, e i santi Antonio da Padova, Luigi IX, e Bernardino da Siena” by Francesco Maffei.

The new parish church of Santi Pietro e Paolo is also part of the town’s architectural history: construction work began in 1753. In the countryside between Verolavecchia and Verolanuova, in the Scorzarolo area, lies the Madonna delle Cave chapel. It was originally dedicated to San Firmo and was probably built by the Dominicans living in Scorzarolo. The Madonna delle Cave festival takes place every year at Easter and includes a mass as well as stalls selling sweets and toys.

Traces of earlier use in Scorzarolo and Monticelli

The former Dominican monastery in Scorzarolo was founded in 1483 and remained fully operational until the Napoleonic confiscations in 1797. Today, only a few traces of it remain. The Castello di Monticelli already existed in the 10th century, adding to the historical references around Monticelli d'Oglio.

Only the stone foundations of the “pestadóra da ris” remain today; it is not certain whether this was its original position. The six openings in the stone blocks served as containers into which the rice was placed for hulling. The basins of La moja del lino were supplied with water via the nearby river or ditch, with the flow regulated by inlet and outlet sluices. La ghiacciaia is a brick structure located around four metres underground, with a circular floor plan and an ogival covering. As a historical “refrigerator”, it was filled with snow or ice in winter to keep food cool during the summer.

Discover more places

For further travel planning, you can also discover Vestone, Cologne, Clusane, Collebeato, Pregasio, Ghedi, Serle and Drugolo.

To the higher-level travel overview: Brescia.