Ville storiche - Visit Cavaion

Historic villas

Corte Torcolo

Corte Torcolo is a 16th-century rural courtyard at the foot of the town. Carefully restored in the 1990s, it now serves as the cultural heart of Cavaion Veronese. Today, the complex includes the E. Turri community hall, the G. Polanschi public library, and the Arena Torcolo Theater, a large open-air amphitheater that hosts summer performances of theater, music, and dance. The courtyard also houses the San Michele Pro Loco association, the headquarters of the Garda DOP Olive Oil Protection Consortium, the Amici del Teatro Cavaionese cultural association, a privately operated wine shop, and an underground space known as Sala Volto.

The E. Turri hall is one of the official venues for civil wedding ceremonies, while the public library contains the town’s council chamber. Corte Torcolo is named after the large wine press that once stood here for grape crushing. Although the complex has undergone several changes over the centuries, including the addition of the entrance arch dated 1676, it has preserved the original structure of the courtyard. The enclosed farmyard, bordered by a traditional stone wall, still opens through an elegant arch made of local stone.

Within the complex stands a traditional farmhouse beside a portego, a covered passageway centered around a striking stone well. The courtyard features a 16th-century palace that was later altered and expanded, recognizable for its distinctive stone entrance portal. Its façade preserves historic window openings, now missing their original pediments, along with a row of stone brackets that once supported an elegant balcony running the length of the building.

Villa Cordevigo

It stands in the ancient locality of Cordevigo, once a Roman settlement, perhaps originally a rural villa-farm. It enjoys a fortunate position, surrounded by green hills of olive groves and vineyards. Access is through a shaded avenue of cypresses and a monumental gate topped with statues.

The villa was rebuilt in the 18th century in elegant yet understated forms on the site of a previous 15th–16th century residence. It consists of a three-story central building whose façade features a fine 16th-century portal, flanked by two lower side wings: on the left were elegant stables and arcades, where a silk mill operated in the 19th century, while on the right were the cellars and storage rooms.

A Baroque-style pediment bearing a coat of arms stands along the roofline at the center of the façade. Today, all these spaces have been converted into prestigious accommodations, as the villa has become a five-star hotel.

Behind the palace lies a park with a natural spring and centuries-old trees (including majestic horse chestnuts, yews, and poplars), the result of the 19th-century transformation of the agricultural brolo into a romantic English-style garden. The estate also includes the small Church of San Martino, a chapel rebuilt in 1543 and a true reliquary of saints (described in the chapter dedicated to churches).

Outside the gate stand the former workers’ houses, where a portico supported by fine stone columns can be seen, clearly reused from earlier constructions. Similar columns are also found at the secondary entrance to the small courtyard.

Civic Tower and Villa Trabucchi

The complex stands in the center of the town and is characterized by the massive crenellated tower of medieval origin, flanked by the nineteenth-century villa. The tower represents one of the earliest nuclei around which the local community gradually developed. It was built in 899 by concession of Berengar I to defend the settlement from Hungarian raids and, after various historical events, became the town hall in 1260. In 1399 the tower was fortified by the mercenary captain Jacopo Dal Verme and later by the Venetian Republic, which added a patrol walkway. At that time the tower had three floors and was connected by a movable bridge to a nearby building that has since disappeared; a guard paid by the townspeople was entrusted with watching over it. It was restored in 1885, after the damage inflicted by the French and the Austrians at the end of the eighteenth century, and became an integral part of Villa Trabucchi.

Today the tower appears crenellated, with four floors connected by an internal staircase and with balconies and windows on the various levels. On the ground floor, an arched passage links the entrance courtyard to the courtyard in front of the villa, which is bordered by a high wall with nine small niches overlooking the park, rich in majestic centuries-old cedar trees.
Villa Trabucchi is a three-story building whose façade features lintel-framed openings on the ground floor and arched windows on the upper floors, and is crowned by a large triangular pediment. Its architectural and decorative elements reflect the eclectic and Neo-Gothic taste widespread at the end of the nineteenth century.

Once a year, in summer, the property opens its doors for an evocative concert within the “Agosto a Cavaion” program, welcoming more than 200 guests.

Villa Bonazzo

Villa Bonazzo stands in a panoramic position halfway along Via Belvedere and was built in the early 18th century in a restrained neoclassical style. Slender and elegant in its simplicity, the façade is articulated by four Ionic pilasters that bring rhythm and balance to the structure. A series of symmetrical windows and a balcony bring light into the spacious rooms across all three floors.
A marble parapet runs along the roofline, supporting four small statues representing the seasons. A small garden lies in front of the villa, and set into the fence facing the road is a memorial plaque commemorating the execution of four young soldiers on March 27, 1945, who were tried here for desertion.

Villa Ravignani-Ruggeri

Villa Ravignani Ruggeri stands west of the Piazzola and is an elegant residence whose original core dates back to the 16th century, later modified over the following centuries, with its most recent renovation completed in 1923. The three-story building blends classical elements with neo-medieval motifs. The ground floor features rusticated plasterwork, while above the cornice the façade is crowned by a balustrade punctuated with obelisks. The main residence is flanked on the east by a small tower topped with Ghibelline battlements, while a second tower on the west echoes the decorative language of the façade.

On the first floor, a central hall opens onto a balcony overlooking the front courtyard, while on the opposite side, a doorway leads to the garden rising behind the building. The courtyard contains a well and the former stables, and alongside stands a greenhouse orangery embellished with four statues representing the seasons and bearing the inscription: “If today is not clear, tomorrow will be — and if it is not, it will clear again.” The villa has recently undergone restoration.

Villa Trombetta

Villa Trombetta is an imposing residence set on the highest western slopes of Monte San Michele, a modest-scale work that nonetheless conveys a striking sense of nobility. Built on the foundations of a much larger 15th-century structure, the present palace rises over three stories and is crowned by walls topped with Ghibelline battlements. Inside, the villa features a magnificent staircase in red marble and several rooms decorated with floral frescoes and fine painted details. The original entrance was reached through a distinctive cypress-lined avenue, where the guest quarters once stood.

Today, access is gained directly from a terrace bordered by a balustrade. In front of the villa, the terraced slopes open onto a beautiful park planted with towering pine trees. The entire estate has been recently restored.