Lugo di Vicenza
Lugo di Vicenza is a small municipality in the Vicenza foothills, nestled between the last slopes of the Asiago Plateau and the As...
Updated 12 July 2026
The story
The story of Lugo di Vicenza
Villa Godi Malinverni, Palladio's First Villa
In the hamlet of Lonedo stands Villa Godi Malinverni, recognized as the first villa designed by Andrea Palladio, built between 1537 and 1542 for Count Gerolamo Godi, one of the most influential noblemen of sixteenth-century Vicenza. Inside, fresco cycles by Giovanni Battista Zelotti, Battista del Moro and Gualtiero Padovano decorate the Hall of Olympus and other rooms with mythological and allegorical scenes. Since 1962 the property has belonged to the Malinverni family, who restored it and now house within it a paleontological museum of international standing, with fish fossils and hundreds of plant species. The centuries-old park completes the visit.
The Vicenza Foothills and Their Hilly Landscape
Lugo di Vicenza lies in the hilly belt that separates the Vicenza plain from the Asiago Plateau, a landscape of gentle slopes, woods and small vineyards running alongside the Astico stream valley. The hills offer panoramic viewpoints stretching from the Prealps to the plain below, and the area still retains a largely rural character, with farmhouses, vine rows and small cultivated plots. It is a landscape that changes with the seasons, deep green in spring, golden in autumn, well suited to walking and cycling away from the traffic of better-known valleys. For those who love a slower pace, this is one of the most authentic corners of the province of Vicenza.
Between Breganze and Thiene: Gateway to Foothill Wines
Lugo di Vicenza borders the Breganze area, known for the Breganze DOC wine denomination and grape varieties such as Vespaiolo, and lies close to Thiene, a reference town for services and connections in the northern Vicenza area. This position makes the municipality a convenient starting point for food and wine itineraries among wineries, farms and agriturismi of the foothills, without the tourist pressure of Veneto's more famous areas. Visitors staying in Lugo can easily reach both the vineyard hills and the nearby towns within minutes, while still enjoying the calm of a village of a few thousand inhabitants, where life follows the rhythm of the countryside.
Trails, Nature and Outdoor Life
The municipal territory, split between the main village and the hamlet of Lonedo, is well suited to walks along the hillside trails and the Astico valley, with routes suitable for both casual walkers and mountain bike enthusiasts. Small panoramic rest points allow views over the contrast between the Vicenza Prealps and the plain below, especially striking on clear days. The proximity of Villa Godi Malinverni makes it natural to combine the cultural visit with a walk through the surrounding greenery, in a setting that favours quality of experience over quantity of attractions.
A Village to Live In, Not Just to Visit
Beyond the draw of Villa Godi Malinverni, Lugo di Vicenza remains a small municipality, with an economy tied to agriculture, small local businesses and everyday services. It is not a mass-tourism destination, and precisely for this reason it keeps a genuine atmosphere: village festivals, weekly markets and the life of local associations shape the calendar more than visitor numbers do. It is the kind of place where a visitor who comes for the Palladian villa often ends up staying a little longer, appreciating the calm of a corner of the Vicenza foothills still largely off the main circuits.
Experiences not to miss
- Visit Villa Godi Malinverni and its paleontological museum
- Walk through the villa's historic park
- Panoramic hike along the hills toward the Astico valley
- Wine tasting in the nearby Breganze DOC area
- Cycling tour along the trails of the Vicenza foothills
To see
