Mantua with children: what to do and see as a family

Golden Suites Italy editorial team · Updated on 27 October 2026 · 3 min read

Mantua is small, flat and surrounded by water: for a family it is an easy city. Under-18s get into the Ducal Palace free of charge, there is an open-air science museum on the lake and a boat trip among the lotus flowers wins over even the youngest. Here are the ideas we give the families we host.

The Parco della Scienza (Science Park)

Along the Middle Lake, on viale Mincio, and on the Lungolago dell'Arlecchino are the exhibits of the Parco della Scienza (Science Park): an open-air museum where you play with the echo tube, the kaleidoscope, the pulleys, the anti-gravity mirror, the “wireless telephone”, the panpipe organ and the gyroscope. It is free and open every day from dawn to dusk, a few minutes' walk from the centre.

By boat among the lotus flowers

An hour on the lakes, with herons, swans and, in summer, lotus flowers, is the experience children remember most. The tour boats leave from near San Giorgio Castle. Everything is in the guide to boat trips on the Mantua lakes.

By bike around the lakes

The walking and cycling loop around the Middle Lake is flat and away from cars: with children it takes an hour, with a stop on the Campo Canoa meadow. Read about the lakes circuit on foot and by bike.

The Gonzaga palaces for young visitors

• Ducal Palace: under-18s go in free. The Camera degli Sposi, with the figures looking down from the ceiling, is a big hit with children. See the guide to the Ducal Palace.
• Palazzo Te: free up to age 11, and the family ticket costs €45 for two adults and three young people. In the Sala dei Giganti the ceiling seems to be collapsing: it is the favourite room of the youngest visitors.

The Segni festival

In autumn, usually between October and November, Mantua hosts the Segni New Generations Festival, an international festival of theatre and the arts for audiences from one to 18 years old, with performances in various places around the city. The dates of each edition are published on the festival's website.

Day trips for families

• The Sigurtà Garden Park, at Valeggio sul Mincio, about half an hour away: large gardens to explore on foot, by bike or on the little train.
• Lake Garda, about 45 minutes away, with the beaches and theme parks of the southern shore.
• Grazie di Curtatone, with the crocodile hanging in the sanctuary and, at Ferragosto, the madonnari drawing on the square.

More destinations are in day trips from Mantua.

Practical tips

• In summer there are mosquitoes near the lakes: bring repellent and plan outings for the morning and at sunset.
• A pushchair is fine in the centre and on the lakes loop; inside the palaces there are stairs and long routes.
• Staying in an apartment: with a kitchen and more than one room it is easier to follow the children's rhythms. Our homes are in the centre or a few minutes' walk away.