Verona from above: terraces over the Arena, towers and the hill of San Pietro

On the roof of the Hotel Milano, in a lane behind the amphitheatre. The terrace is small and the reason is obvious the moment you sit down: the arches of the Arena are right there, at eye level. Drinks cost more than elsewhere in Verona and reviews of the service are mixed; you come for the view, at sunset or on an opera night.

An unassuming door on Via Ponte Pietra and, behind it, a terrace hanging over the Adige with the oldest bridge of Verona in front and the hill of San Pietro above. Wine, simple food, no ceremony: the kind of place Veronese people take a friend to. Open every day from 9:00 to 2:00 according to the bar.

On the hill of San Pietro, next to the castle. The restaurant calls its terrace "the most beautiful view of Verona", and from here the claim is hard to argue with: the Adige, the bridges, the towers and the red roofs. The kitchen works with local produce. Take the funicular from Ponte Pietra and book the terrace for sunset.

The square in front of the castle, above the Roman theatre. The view is free; only the funicular from Ponte Pietra has a ticket, and the staircase beside it costs nothing but breath. It is at its best around sunset and, for the same reason, at its most crowded.

The tallest tower of the old town calls itself "the highest drawing room in Verona". You go up by 289 steps along the inner wall or by a transparent lift, and come out over the market square with a view all round: roofs, bell towers, the hills. Completed in its present height in 1463.

The Due Torri is the historic five-star hotel of the old town. In the warm season it opens its panoramic terrace with a grill restaurant: three hundred square metres, by the hotel's description, a few steps from the church of Sant'Anastasia. Less known than the Arena rooftops and calmer for it.

Across the Adige from the centre, in Veronetta: cypress avenues, a maze and a garden that climbs the hill behind the palace. It is the calm alternative to the busy viewpoints. Open all year except 25 December; 10:00-18:00 in winter and 9:00-19:00 in summer, according to the garden.