Euganean Hills

The Euganean Hills are the eroded remains of submarine volcanic activity around thirty-five million years ago, and they stand as a group of rounded and conical hills on an otherwise flat plain, visible from a long way off. Rainwater falling on the pre-alpine mountains travels underground for decades and emerges here at around eighty-seven degrees, carrying minerals; Abano and Montegrotto have used it since Roman times and the thermal mud matured in the spring water is a regulated product. The hills are a regional park with Mediterranean scrub on south slopes and chestnut woods on north ones, and vineyards throughout.

Background

The hills rise 300 to 600 m above the Padovan-Venetian plain, a few km to the south of Padua, with Monte Venda the highest at 603 metres. Volcanic activity built them in two phases, about 43 million years ago in the Eocene and around 35 million years ago in the Oligocene. Their name dates only from between the 13th and 16th centuries and recalls the Euganei, a people who lived here before the Veneti. In 1989 they became the first Regional Park in Veneto, taking in 81 hills and fifteen municipalities, and in 2024 they became part of UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves. Petrarch spent his last years at Arquà, which added 'Petrarca' to its name in 1868.

Source: Wikipedia, "Euganean Hills"

Highlights

• The volcanic cones - rounded hills rising from a flat plain.
• The hot springs - water emerging at around 87 degrees at Abano.
• The thermal mud - a matured product regulated by local standards.
• The mixed slopes - Mediterranean scrub facing south, chestnut north.

When to go

April to October for walking; the spas operate year-round and are busiest in autumn and winter. Summer on the plain is humid.

Things to know

Abano and Montegrotto are large modern spa towns geared to package stays rather than casual visits. The hills need a car. Trails are signposted unevenly.

Nearby

Arquà Petrarca sits among them; Padua lies northeast.

Key facts