Scrovegni Chapel; Padua, Italy

[Liv4cruzin]

A friend & I are disembarking Oceania's Regatta in Venice this May. We have 2 days there onboard ship & 3 nights post cruise booked on our own. I'm interested in trying to see the Scravegni Chapel in Padua while I'm in the area. There is an Oceania shore excursion that visits Padua/Pisani; but the tour appears to only make stops at St. Antonio Church, the University & Villa Pisani. According to the D-K Eyewitness Guide, the Scravegni seems to be the most important attraction in Padua; & why this ship's tour skips it is a puzzle to me. For those of you who are familiar w/ the area........ would the ship's tour be a disappointment? OR is it REALLY worth the trouble for 2 (50+) women to try to arrange a day trip to Scravegni on our own while staying over in VEN? OR BETTER YET.... has anyone taken this Oceania excursion & can confirm that they really DO NOT visit Scravegni?

 

PS: I'll also be posting this over on the Oceania Boards

[Castronu]

Hi! I read your posting with great interest. I am fortunate enough to have been to Italy many times... and if someone told me I could go back only one more time in my life, I would go to the Scrovegni Chapel. It is just as moving, just as breathtaking, as seeing the Sistine Chapel.

 

The ship tour probably doesn't go there because it is not an easy place for a group to visit. In fact, one even has to reserve a ticket in order to go (more on that below).

 

So I would say absolutely forego the ship's tour and go over to Padova on your own. As I recall it is only about a 45 min train ride from Venice, very inexpensive, and there are lots of train departures to choose from (and returns from Padova to Venice). Once you are there you can call a taxi and get them to take you over to the Scrovegni (it's not far).

 

In order to reserve your ticket (which as I mentioned, you *must* do in order to get in), I have found the online site, but only in Italian (see below) -- do you know Italian, or do you know anyone who speaks Italian who can explain the site to you (unfortunately I didn't see an English version).? One can do the reservation online or by phone. In any case,

go to the site and click on the little box where it says "galleria immagini" (at top right, under the illustration) -- that will take you to a slide tour of the most famous scenes in the Cathedral. Here is the site:

 

http://www.cappelladegliscrovegni.it/pagina.asp?ind=info.asp

 

Really, I cannot say enough about the Scrovegni -- it is an overwhelming experience, not to be missed by anyone interested in early Italian culture and art history, nor by anyone who is the slightest bit interested in Christianity. One entire wall is a huge Last Judgment, completed about 200 yrs before Michelangelo did the Sistine Chapel.

 

I'd be glad to call for you, or go online, to get more info for you ..... let me know if I can help in any way.

 

Best Wishes, David

[Liv4cruzin]

Well, that's quite an endorsement. The beauty in the photos that I've seen moved me. Now, I can't wait to experience it in person. I did a google search & found a site in English. I read on the boards that you have to make a reservation 72 hrs. ahead. So, thanks for your offer of help; I can handle the arrangements myself. I'll consult the train schedules & figure out a workable timetable for our day.

 

Thanks for your response & for confirming my feelings that this was a place not to be missed.

[Normandie-BCN]

Another visit not to miss is the Canale dei Brenta which links Venice and Padova. There are boasts that do the channel visiting the palazzi mainly built by Palladio where rich venitians went to spent summer days.