Sabbioneta: Ideal City, Culture and Landscape

Sabbioneta combines the rigorously planned form of a city with a rural landscape and paths through a water-rich environment. A holiday apartment in Sabbioneta thus brings two different holiday themes into focus: the ideal city created by Vespasiano Gonzaga Colonna and the fields, vineyards, orchards and deciduous forests along the Mantua–Sabbioneta cycling route.

Holiday apartment in Sabbioneta between urban planning and history

In the second half of the 16th century, Sabbioneta was created under the rule of Vespasiano Gonzaga Colonna in a single period of development. The rectangular grid layout, fortification walls, street grid, public squares and monuments make the city one of the finest examples of ideal cities in Europe.

The Palazzo Ducale is the oldest of the buildings erected by Vespasiano and was built between 1560 and 1561. On 6 December, Vespasiano’s birthday, sunlight passes through the central window of the façade into the Palazzo Ducale. The Palazzo Giardino, also known as Il Casino, was his private villa and retreat; the geometric garden laid out from 1584 onwards has a fountain, three grottoes, water features and ancient statues.

The Chiesa della Beata Vergine Incoronata was built between 1586 and 1588 as a palace chapel and pantheon for the dynasty of the Duke of Sabbioneta and contains Vespasiano’s tomb mausoleum. The Galleria degli Antichi – the Corridor Grande – was created between 1583 and 1586 to house his archaeological collection of ancient marbles, including busts, statues, inscriptions and reliefs; on the lower floor, it has 26 arcades along a length of approximately 97 metres. Other features include the permanent stage of the Teatro all’Antica, modelled on Sebastiano Serlio’s designs, and the Museum of Sacred Art, with the pendant from the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece, awarded to Vespasiano in 1585 and found in the duke’s tomb in 1988.

The synagogue is also part of the town’s complex history. It was built in 1824 according to a design by the local architect Carlo Visioli, in the same building that had previously housed a smaller prayer room.

City Walls, Arginelli and Paths through the Landscape

The city walls were built between 1556 and 1589, form an irregular hexagon and have six wedge-shaped bastions: San Nicolò, Santa Maria, San Francesco, Sant’Elmo, San Giorgio and San Giovanni. The Arginelli embankments extend for approximately 18 kilometres, surround most of the municipal area and offer viewpoints over the surrounding settlements.

The Mantua–Sabbioneta cycling route connects the two UNESCO cities via low-traffic roads and through the wetlands of Parco Oglio Sud. On the way to Sabbioneta, it passes through cultivated fields, orchards, vineyards and deciduous forests. The Cerchio d’Acqua project also conveys the history of the 12th- to 14th-century embankment system and the biodiversity of the surrounding green spaces.

Treasure Hunt, City Views and Local Tradition

“Scopri il Tesoro della Città Ideale” is a permanent treasure hunt in which adults and children discover the history, monuments and special features of Sabbioneta. The area of Porta Vittoria, which has reopened to the public, offers a unique view of the city and helps visitors understand its dimensions, urban structure and the perspective effects planned by Vespasiano. Filòs, homemade biscuits from Sabbioneta’s local tradition, are associated with the evening gatherings of former farming families. For travel arrangements, Casalmaggiore railway station is 6 kilometres from Sabbioneta; onward travel is possible by taxi or bus.

More Places for Planning Your Trip

Roncoferraro, Governolo, Buscoldo, Canneto Sull'oglio, Ponti Sul Mincio, Ostiglia, Scorzarolo and Porto Mantovano

For the higher-level travel overview: Mantua.