Santa Maria – Cycling Routes, Cultural Heritage and Rural Landscapes

Santa Maria combines a rural village with cultural monuments and paths along the Bacchiglione. Santa Maria di Veggiano lies in an agricultural landscape, where remarkable rustic buildings help shape its character. If you are looking for a holiday apartment in Santa Maria, you will find a setting for many different kinds of holiday days: discoveries along the river and paths can be combined with sacred art, historic buildings and regional landscape themes.

Cycling, River Paths and Rural Landscapes

The Ciclovia del Bacchiglione follows the Bacchiglione River from Santa Maria di Veggiano to the border with the Province of Vicenza and onward to Codevigo near the lagoons of Chioggia and Venice. For travel planning, this connection opens up a wide-ranging view of the landscape without reducing Santa Maria to a single excursion destination.

The “5 cycle tours: from Lake Garda to Venice” cycling route also reaches the village of Santa Maria di Veggiano by following the Bacchiglione. Those interested in hiking will find a differently oriented connection in stage W04 of the Cammino Veneto delle abbazie e dei santuari: near Santa Maria di Veggiano, it runs along the unpaved embankment of the Bacchiglione and follows it to Longare. The cycling route and hiking stage therefore represent different ways of incorporating the river landscape into your daily plans.

Holiday Apartment in Santa Maria Between Church, Mill and Villas

Santa Maria di Veggiano is home to the parish church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Behind its main altar hangs a painting of the Nativity of Mary by the Verona-born painter G.B. Pellizzari. Pellizzari worked in Padua during the first half of the 17th century. The church thus connects a specific place with a work of art and a classification within art history.

Santa Maria's architectural heritage also includes the Oratorio di Santa Eurosia, a subsidiary oratory. The Vecchio Mulino is the surviving part of the old mill of Selvarese, whose origins date back to the 11th century. The Vecchio Mulino can be reached via the route near Santa Maria; it is located in the Veggiano area and is surrounded by the waters of the Bacchiglione and an impressive cultivated private park.

Another distinctive building is Villa Labia Tommasini. It was built between 1800 and 1822 by the brothers Domenico and Gaetano Tommasini on an older rural building owned by the Counts Labia. The villa is a typical Palladian building with a two-storey row of loggias on the façade.

Surroundings with Palaces, Museums and Natural Features

Villa Emo Capodilista and Villa Montruglio are located near Santa Maria; both are palaces. Villa dei Vescovi, a museum, and the Museo Civico - Villa Comunale Roberto Bassi Rathgeb, also a museum, are likewise located in the surrounding area. These places expand the cultural setting beyond the parish church, the oratory and the mill.

The landscape also offers several points of interest. Monte della Madonna is a mountain near Santa Maria. In the wider regional area, Monte Venda is a mountain and Arco Vallaresso is a natural arch. Parco San Daniele is a park near Santa Maria. The range therefore extends from agricultural village landscapes and river paths to mountains, a natural arch and a park.

Choose a Holiday Apartment in Santa Maria Based on Your Travel Interests

When choosing a holiday apartment or holiday home, you can use your preferred daily activities as your guide. The Ciclovia del Bacchiglione, the cycling route from Lake Garda to Venice and stage W04 each place different emphasis on the river. The church, oratory, Vecchio Mulino and Villa Labia Tommasini put art, architecture and history at the centre. Palaces, museums, mountains, Arco Vallaresso and Parco San Daniele add further cultural and landscape themes to this selection.

More Places for Your Travel Planning

If you would like to extend your travel planning beyond Santa Maria, also discover Sant'angelo Di Piove Di Sacco, Montegrotto Terme, Megliadino San Vitale, Fornace Laterizi, Cadoneghe, Boara Pisani, Masi and Pontelongo.

For the higher-level travel overview: Padua.