Vigevano Hotels - Lombardy

One of Europe's largest castles and a stunning piazza: these two sites are more than enough to guarantee a steady flow of visitors to Vigevano. This town, in the heart of Lombardy's Lomellina and just a few kilometers from Pavia, owes both its fame and regal appearance to Ludovico Sforza. It was Ludovico, also known as Il Moro, who chose Vigevano as his summer residence and transformed it, with the aid of artists of the calibre of Leonardo da Vinci and Bramante, in renaissance town par excellence.

Having completed the tour of the castle, visitors find themselves in the Piazza Ducale, commissioned by Ludovico il Moro so as to provide a magnificent forecourt to his castello. The piazza is closed on one side by the 17th century façade of the cathedral which, with its concave form, appears almost to embrace the piazza.

The Cathedral's Treasury Museum, located in the sacristy, contains a fascinating collection of ancient tapestries, illuminated codes, and paintings by the Vigevano-born Bernardino Ferrari. The town's other museum, the Museo della Calzatura, tells the tale of Vigevano's ancient shoe making tradition (the town is still known for its footwear-manufacturing industry and hosts an annual International Shoe Fair and Market). Less than four kilometers from the town, lies Ludovico il Moro's hunting lodge, the Sforzesca: one of the finest examples of late 15th century rural architecture.