Star crossed lovers
Immortalised by Shakespeare in the first line of his play, Verona is home to the most famous lovers in history - and now the city is hoping to cash in on the star crossed lovers and become a ‘wedding capital,' rivaling the world's top ‘tying the knot' spots...
"Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona, where we lay our scene, from ancient grudge break to new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean."
Whether Romeo and Juliet ever really existed or were simply a figment of Shakespeare's imagination is the subject of passionate debate.
But that shadow of doubt hasn't stopped millions of tourists flocking to the house where Juliet was meant to have lived and enjoying a kiss on the famous balcony, from which Juliet delivered her most famous line, ‘Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?'
‘Juliet's Balcony' is located on the second floor of the14th-Century Casa di Giulietta (home of Juliet) in Verona, and is popularly believed to have once been the home of the Capulet family.
The dell Capello family owned the house on Via Capello for a many years and it is the similarity of their name that spurned the popular belief that this was the house of the Capulets in Shakespeare's play.
The dell Capello's coat-of-arms can still be seen on the keystone of the inner archway in the courtyard.
Fitting for what is meant to be the most romantic day of your life, the Verona Tourist Board is now offering couples the chance to tie the knot on the balcony.
Italian soccer player Luca Ceccarelli will kick off the city's ‘Wed Me In Verona' scheme when he marries his girlfriend at the scene of Romeo and Juliet's most romantic encounter on Monday.
Verona Tourism Councillor Daniele Polato said that it would be a ‘fitting start' to the scheme, which is designed to boost tourism in the downturn.
"We'll be offering tourist packages, the whole shebang, just like Las Vegas does. It's a way of using the city's artistic heritage to help the local economy in these tough times."
The privilege of getting hitched where Juliet was famously wooed by Romeo in Shakespeare's play will not come cheap.
The ‘Wed Me In Verona' marriage license alone will cost Verona residents £535, people living within the city catchment area £625, European Union citizens £714 and non-EU couples £893.
This compares to the £45 required for a civil marriage certificate in Italy.
'"It costs extra because the administrative costs are higher," according to Polato. Allegedly, once the project is fully up and running, the proceeds will go to the town hall and other organisations.
Not far from the house you can visit La Tomba di Giulietta, or Juliet's Tomb. The heroine's final resting place can be found in the San Francesco al Corso cloister on Via del Pontiere.