Holiday apartment in Castel Dʼario: Fortress, rice-growing tradition and art

Castel d'Ario combines the water-rich surroundings of the Po Valley with a clearly recognizable rice-growing tradition: Vialone Nano rice is cultivated in the surrounding area, and the town is included in the Strada del Riso, the rice route. Since 1969, the Bigolada has been organized by the Pro Loco. If you are looking for a holiday apartment in Castel d'Ario, you can base your choice of location on these themes and weigh history, art, local cuisine and landscape against one another. A holiday home can also be viewed in this context as accommodation for a travel plan in which you get to know not just a single building, but the character of the town.

Fortress with an irregular layout

The Castello e Rocca di Castel d'Ario consists of a single walled district with an irregular polygonal layout. Its shape follows the former courses of the Molinella waterway to the south and the Essere to the north, before they were straightened at the end of the 15th century. The piano nobile is decorated with coats of arms of the Scaliger family. The polygonal layout and the Scaliger coats of arms belong to different parts of the same fortress complex. The inner keep also includes a fifth tower: Torre della Fame.

Church, former convent and ceramics

The religious and artistic themes are also specifically interconnected. The Parrocchia dell’Assunzione della Beata Vergine Maria was designed by Gerolamo dal Pozzo di Villagrossa; its apse contains three altarpieces by Giandomenico Cignaroli. The EX CONVENTO DOMENICANO “CONDOMINIO IL CONVENTINO” was commissioned in 1614 by Count Paolo Emilio Gonzaga of the Gonzaga di Novellara family and designed by Antonio Maria Viani. Terra Crea – Sartori is considered the first museum in the Province of Mantua dedicated to ceramic art. The Terra Crea – Sartori collection comprised more than 100 ceramic plates, created by artists using various techniques and sources of inspiration and attached to the walls.

Tazio Nuvolari and an accessible monument

Tazio Nuvolari was born in Castel d'Ario. The Monumento a Tazio Nuvolari is dedicated to the racing car and motorcycle driver Tazio Nuvolari, is freely accessible from the road and has no architectural barriers.

Rice-growing tradition and local festivals

Riso alla Pilota De.C.O. was presented in May 2010 as part of the Festa del Risotto and recognized through a specific resolution of the municipal council. Together with the Strada del Riso and the Bigolada, organized by the Pro Loco since 1969, this dish provides another point of reference for the local rice culture. When choosing your accommodation, you can therefore consider whether to focus your trip more on the fortress and art or on culinary traditions and events.

More destinations for your planning

For further planning, you can also include Revere, Castiglione Delle Stiviere, Villastrada, Rodigo, Correggioverde, Marcaria, Casalmoro and Solferino in your plans.

For the higher-level travel overview: Mantua.