Arena di Verona Opera Festival

Arena di Verona Opera Festival takes place Jun 12 - Sep 12, 2026 in Verona, Italy. The dress code is No strict code: stalls patrons dress elegantly, stone-step audiences are casual; bring a cushion and a light layer. Typical cost ranges from 150 to 800 EUR per person.

Arena di Verona Opera Festival in Verona, Italy
Photograph by Claconvr, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia.

Grand-scale opera inside a first-century Roman amphitheatre holding thousands under the open sky, where colossal Aida sets and candlelit dusk rituals have drawn crowds for over a century. It is the world's largest open-air opera venue and the most atmospheric way to hear Verdi. Cheap stone-step seats keep it accessible to everyone.

When
Jun 12 - Sep 12, 2026
Where
Verona, Italy
Dress code
No strict code: stalls patrons dress elegantly, stone-step audiences are casual; bring a cushion and a light layer
Cost
Typical cost ranges from 150 to 800 EUR per person.
Weather
28 - 33C days, warm dry evenings; opera starts after sunset around 9pm
When to book
Big-name nights sell out by spring; unnumbered stone steps usually available closer in - book hotels for Jul - Aug early
Getting there
VRN (Verona Villafranca), 15 min to the Arena
Where to stay
Due Torri Hotel, Palazzo Victoria, Hotel Milano & SPA
Official site
https://www.arena.it/en/

How to attend

Tickets sell year-round at arena.it and the box office; the cheapest are unnumbered gradinata stone steps, while numbered stalls and poltronissime run far higher. Arrive early for a good step and rent a cushion. Verona Porta Nuova station is on the Milan - Venice line, a short walk from the Arena.

Buy tickets

Insider tip

Claim gradinata steps early with a rented cushion and picnic, and stay within walking distance of the Arena - performances routinely end after midnight.

Get inside Arena di Verona Opera Festival

Booking matters here: big-name nights sell out by spring; unnumbered stone steps usually available closer in - book hotels for Jul - Aug early. Members track that window, what it really costs, and 573 more events across the season.

Free while in beta. One email when your invitation is ready, nothing else.