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Trentino-South Tyrol · Trento

Trento

The Alpine capital on the Adige, where the Council that reshaped the Catholic Church met in a castle still standing above the city.

Best time
Apr–Oct
By car
41 min from Bolzano
By train
Station in the comune
Population
118,046

Known for

  • COUNCIL OF TRENT

    Twenty-five sessions held in the Duomo and the Buonconsiglio between 1545 and 1563, formulating the Catholic response to the Protestant Reformation.

  • BUONCONSIGLIO

    Residence of the prince-bishops from 1255 to 1803, with the Torre Aquila frescoes of the months as the most famous secular cycle of Gothic Italy.

  • MUSE

    Renzo Piano's natural science museum, opened 2013, with a jagged six-storey roofline echoing the Dolomites on the south edge of the city.

When to visit

Best · Apr–Oct

  • J9°
  • F13°
  • M15°
  • A18°
  • M22°
  • J27°
  • J30°
  • A30°
  • S25°
  • O20°
  • N13°
  • D9°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

The festa: Vigilio di Trento, 26 June

Why come

Trento sits on the Adige, the city Italy chose as the seat of one of its two northern autonomous provinces and the regional capital of Trentino-Alto Adige. Monte Bondone rises to two thousand metres directly above the western edge; the Brenta Dolomites are an hour west. Between 1545 and 1563, the Council of Trent met here in twenty-five sessions across the Duomo di San Vigilio and the Castello del Buonconsiglio, formulating the Catholic response to the Protestant Reformation and shaping the next four centuries of European Christianity.

The Duomo, begun in 1212 on the foundations of a late-Roman basilica, still stands at the centre of Piazza Duomo. The Buonconsiglio, built 1239 to 1255 as the residence of the prince-bishops, is now the city's main museum. In 2013 Renzo Piano completed MUSE, the natural science museum on the south edge of town, with a six-storey jagged roofline that imitates the Dolomites.

The Sunday letter

Trento is on our list. Its letter is still to come.

We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Trento comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.

Read on

Trento in our articles

How to get there

From Verona (VRN), about 1h 16m by car.

Milan (BGY) is about 2 hours away.

By car from the centre of Bolzano 41 minutes.

Driving in is restricted: there is a limited traffic zone here (ZTL Centro Storico). Check the signs and the times before you drive into the centre.

There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.

Coming from Verona, Venice or Bologna?

Coming by train into Trento? Trento is about 4 minutes away by road.

Every town within reach of Verona airport.

Trento, photo 1
Trento, photo 2

What to see

  • Castello del Buonconsiglio

    Thirteenth-century residence of the prince-bishops of Trento, host to sessions of the Council of Trent and now the city's main museum, with Gothic frescoes in the Torre Aquila.

  • Duomo di San Vigilio

    Romanesque-Gothic cathedral begun in 1212 on the remains of a late-Roman basilica, where most public sessions of the Council of Trent were held between 1545 and 1563.

  • MUSE

    Museum of natural science by Renzo Piano, opened 2013, with a 130-metre roofline that rises and falls in imitation of the Dolomites visible to the east.

  • Piazza Duomo

    Central square of the medieval city, ringed by the Casa Cazuffi-Rella with sixteenth-century painted facades, the Palazzo Pretorio and the Fontana del Nettuno.

  • Monte Bondone

    Mountain rising to 2,180 metres directly above the western edge of the city, with cable car access, ski slopes and the Viote alpine botanical garden.

  • Galleria Civica e Le Albere

    Renzo Piano residential and cultural complex around MUSE on the former Michelin factory site, with the Palazzo delle Albere as the historic anchor.

The slow-trip planner

Building a trip? Find where Trento fits in a slow Italy circuit.

Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.

Plan your trip

We recommend

Where to eat

Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.

  • Locanda MargonRistorante

    Locanda Margon holds two Gambero Rosso forks (83/100) and a place in L'Espresso's Top 300.

  • AugurioRistorante

    Augurio holds two Gambero Rosso forks (80/100).

  • Lo Scrigno del DuomoRistorante

    Lo Scrigno del Duomo carries one Gambero Rosso fork (76/100).

  • Villa MadruzzoRistorante

    Villa Madruzzo holds a Gambero Rosso listing.

Through the year

What happens here

Feasts and festivals that come back year after year. We give the month rather than the date, because the date moves and the month rarely does. Check with the source before you plan a journey around one.

Living here

  • Population 118,046
  • A local hubi
  • Pharmacy in town
  • High school within a 30-minute drive
  • Train station in the comune
  • Nearest airport Verona, 1 h 16 min drive
  • Regional capital Trento, 4 min drive

Thermal baths in town: Salus.

Common questions

What is Trento known for?
Trento is the Alpine capital on the Adige at 194 metres, where the Council that reshaped the Catholic Church met in a castle still standing above the city.
Where is Trento?
Trento is a comune in the province of Trento, in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol.
What is the nearest airport to Trento?
Verona (VRN), about 1h 16m by car.
Can you get to Trento without a car?
Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
How long is the drive from Bolzano to Trento?
About 41 minutes by car.
When is the best time to visit Trento?
Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 30 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 17 rain days.
Is there a sagra or a festival in Trento?
Yes. Trento Busker Food, Trentodoc Festival and Autumnus - I frutti della terra. September is when the first of them falls.
Which other towns are like Trento?
Terni, Lucca and Ascoli Piceno.
How many people live in Trento?
118,046 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 194 m
  • Population: 118,046
  • Surface area: 157.88 km²

These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

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