COLLI EUGANEI

That of the Euganean Hills is a territory that includes a group of hills of volcanic origin formed about 35 million years ago. The area, administratively belonging to the Province of Padua, is located in the southeast of the provincial territory, includes fifteen municipalities with extraordinary historical-environmental resources, and combines the well-established thermal tourism tradition with the more recent widespread reception of smaller towns. The area has an extension of about 22,000 square kilometers, within which there are precisely fifteen municipalities, each of several thousand inhabitants, which combine the environmental value with the suggestions of medieval fortifications, ancient stone villages, Venetian villas, historic gardens, hermitages and monasteries, surrounded by valuable vineyards; the territory also includes an area of great geo-morphological interest: the Euganean Hills Regional Park (18,694 hectares) established in 1989 by the Veneto Region. The resident population in this area slightly exceeds 100,000. We can identify four types of tourism in the Euganean Hills area, namely:

Thermal Tourism: characterized by the combination of thermal baths and mud cures, which can be enjoyed at hotels equipped with wellness centers, whose visitors come mainly from Italy, Germany and Austria, followed by smaller percentages from almost all European countries and China and India.

Cultural-historical Tourism: the territory has a rich offer in the artistic and historical sphere, with Venetian villas, gardens and architecture, medieval villages, walled cities, castles, places of faith, literary routes and places, and archaeological sites: itineraries of common interest to tourists of varied backgrounds and origins.

Tourism in contact with nature: hiking enthusiasts visit and walk several trails that wind along the Euganean Hills Regional Park, trails marked and regulated by the CAI of Padua. In addition, the geological features of the area attract geologists and school groups interested in the discovery and study of volcanic rocks and fossils that can still be found in the Euganean Hills.

Food and wine tourism: the Euganean Hills guarantee a good range of quality food and wine products and an extensive network of operators able to offer services that meet demand. The Euganean Hills Wine Route plays an important role in guaranteeing the quality of the wine and food tourism product: in fact, the Euganean Hills Wine Route was established for this purpose, whose itinerary includes visits to numerous wineries. In addition, the area is particularly suitable for the cultivation of Cabernet and Merlot grapes to create a blend of Bordeaux wine characterized by the minerality of the volcanic soil; of Controlled and Guaranteed Denomination of Origin is the sparkling wine Fior d'Arancio D.O.C.G produced in the territories belonging to the area under consideration. A few extra-hotel facilities are present, inserted in the context of the winery, and a few agritourisms offering hospitality; however, the overnight stay in this type of tourist facility is of negligible significance in numerical terms.

-environment and physical geography The territory of the Euganean Hills is predominantly hilly, with a characteristic gently undulating aspect and perfectly conical reliefs denoting its volcanic origin. To offer an overview from a geological point of view, the formation of the Euganean Hills began 150 million years ago with the first sedimentary deposits, when the area was still submerged by the sea, and then underwent two eruptive phases, one 43 million years ago (which gave rise to basaltic lavas) and one 35 million years ago (acidic and viscous magmas). The eruptions occurred in a submarine environment. The hilly landscape presents different types of territory: there are cultivated areas (mainly vineyards and olive groves), natural and forested areas, especially within the Regional Park, urbanized areas, with small villages, and finally there is the area rich in hot springs where there are facilities for cures with thermal waters and mud; the territory thus includes the area, of great geo-morphological and naturalistic interest, of the View of the Euganean Hills landscape as seen from the Vignalta winery. Photo by Giorgio Fragiacomo Euganean Hills Regional Park (with an area of 18,694 hectares) established in 1989 by regional law by the Veneto Region.

Bibliografia

Rabbiosi chiara, Il territorio messo in scena, Turismo, consumi, luoghi. Ed. Mimesis, Milano-Udine 2018. Vallerani Francesco, Tra Colli Euganei e Laguna veneta. Dal Museo della Navigazione al turismo sostenibile, Regione Veneto 2013. Silvio Piccardi, Il Paesaggio Culturale. Pàtron Editore, Bologna 1986

Sitografia

http://www.collieuganei.it

http://www.parcocollieuganei.com

http://www.stadadelvinocollieuganei.it

https://www.regione.veneto.it/web/turismo/dmp

https://www.regione.veneto.it/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=bcdf61c4- a49b-4cc2-8e2b-1a642bee4d74&groupId=10813

https://www.regione.veneto.it/documents/10813/3032224/D.M.P. +Terme+e+Colli+Euganei_Piano+di+Start+up/223049c2-d55f-4685-b117-e5b0b9c832d1