One would easily drive by. Don't do that, just park your car and climb the stairs to the church. Enjoy the sight seeing in and out the church. And don't leave without a visit to the shop where their home made honey, candy and teas are sold. Support this community!
It's an impressive building, in a gorgeous countryside setting. Gardens are very nice, they have many plants and flowers and herbs and the smell is very good. During the Vespers you can sit in church and hear the friars singing: very relaxing. The guide (a friar) is a lovely man. The abbey is better from the outside but the sweetness of the guide makes the visit worth it. Shop is very good: many teas, infusions, herbs and local honey (friars'bees). There is a fountain outside the abbey near the wall of the parking lot: that water is really cold and good to drink (today was a super hot summer day, 30degrees in the shadows-and the water was cold). Entry is free but you can leave an offer for the abbey (you don't have to as nobody checks, but I think you should). Visit is less than one hour. Toilet is filthy (people are filthy); there is a bar.
Ieri pomeriggio abbiamo visitato l'abbazia con la speciale guida di un frate che gratuitamente vi porta ad un assaggio del loro mondo monastico e di alcuni ambienti in cui vivono. Merita, e' molto bello e vicino alla ns padova , l'erborisyeria dei frati poi e' ricca di tante cose da loro prodotte e che meritano una sosta. Purtroppo devo dire che tornando alla ns auto nel parcheggio sterrato esterno l'abbiamo trovata forzata x tentato furto, peccato, una pallina in meno all'abbazia che non ne ha colpa, ma ci siamo proprio rovinati la bella domenica. Andate comunque dai frati a visitare questo luogo mistico
Situated in the plain underneath a hill it is a gem of a place with a great tranquility. Having ridden there by bike it was a delightful afternoon.
Avevo visitato l'abbazzia tempo fa e ci sono ritornata con la scuola a Febbraio. E' stato bello, molto meglio dell'ultima volta. Le nostre guide (monaci dell'abbazzia) sono stati bravissimi a spiegare e a far capire la storia. Abbiamo guardato anche la stanza piena di spezie,filtri per il te' e caramelle. Poi anche la stanza dove restaurano i vecchi libri. Consiglio di visitarla!
Diversamente da quanto letto in altre recensioni, quando sono andata io era possibile visitare liberamente solo la chiesa mentre per tutto il giro interno al monastero bisogna attenersi agli orari in cui partono le visite guidate da un monaco che durano 40minuti e che non richiedono un biglietto a pagamento ma si può lasciare un contributo nella cassettina all'ingresso.Visita interessante, bellissimo il refettorio e i chiostri.Peccato non aver visto anche dove coltivano le spezie e tutto il ben di dio che viene venduto nella loro bellissima ed un pò cara erboristeria e le celle dove dormono.Consiglio comunque a tutti una visita.L'ingresso non è segnalato e i navigatori fanno fare una strada sterrata che però non permette poi di raggiungere il parcheggio; l'entrata è sulla destra.
It is very quiet..big and it is all the monumental semplicity of a religious and natural church and abbey.
This Abbey is a must do visit . Its a tranquil place of beauty and peace. It has a complicated history of closures , re-openings and near destruction over many hundreds of years of its history. Thankfully it is doing well today , the Benedictine monks are delightful and full of pride in their home. They make all sorts of wonderful things out of herbs , oils and pottery. The tour ,run by a "don't mess with me and you better pay attention" kind of tour guide brother , ( i think he might have German origins , but he means well ) it is a well informed tour and great insight into how the monks live today and how they survived in times past. He does an exceptional job of the tour of the Abbey . The gardens are wonderful , the statuary amazing the experience holy.
if you have time, a car and there's a sunny morning, then go there. Lovely monks, simple and beautiful country landscape.
We stopped here after visiting Petrarch's house a few miles away. Beautiful abbey, but unfortunately most of it had to be rebuilt in the 1800s after Napoleon and later the House of Savoy did a lot of damage to it. If you only speak a little Italian pick up an English brochure and you can follow along if your guide speaks no English. Very interesting and super peaceful. I would be climbing the walls in 2 days, but I am not taking the same journey as the religious men who stay there. Nice shop selling lots of agriculture based products from the Abbey. Check the schedule before you go as it only open for tours on a limited schedule.