Cremona is a city in the Italian region of Lombardy, famous for its creators of stringed instruments, especially Antonio Stradivari. Even today, this small city is home to a number of small violin-making workshops. It is also the birthplace of the late Renaissance/early Baroque composer Claudio Monteverdi, whose opera L'Orfeo is the oldest opera that is still regularly performed today.

Get in

Trains run regularly from Milan to Cremona, and typically take about one hour. The Cremona train station, which is to the north of the city's main attractions, is close to the city's bus station. Walking from the train station to the Duomo will take you about 10 minutes.

See

• Museo del Violino (Formerly Museo Stradivariano), Palazzo dell’Arte, Piazza Marconi 5, ☏ +39 0372407770, marketing@museodelviolino.org. Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 - 18:00; Closed Mondays. To see an intriguing collection of stringed instrument-making tools (including wooden forms and paper models) from the former workshop of Antonio Stradivarius, visit this museum, housed in the city's civic museum. The museum also houses a collection of stringed instruments crafted by Stradivarius and other Cremona luthiers. €10; €7 for students and over 65; guided tours: €50 (max 25 people) or €30 (under 15 people).