Make a mental list of the things people love about Italy: The world’s most beloved cuisine, direct from the source; thousands of years of history, visible at every turn; a sense of savoring life, epitomized by long lunches, sunset drinks in the piazza, and romantic evening strolls.
But when you add to the mix the overwhelming crowds of Italy’s most popular destinations, well, that love affair starts to cool a bit.
Enter Bologna. This northern city is something of an anomaly in Italy: It's a big city (the country's seventh largest) with a robust economy, a well-preserved city center, a history dating back at least 5,000 years, a plethora of celebrated culinary and cultural scenes and… wait for it… none of the stifling crowds you'll find in Rome, Florence or Venice. For connoisseurs of Italy ready for a vacation that's more about experiencing a place than ticking items off a list, Bologna is the Italian city to break for.
Bologna may be undersung, but I’m here to shout it from the rooftops (and I have lived in Italy for almost two decades): it’s brimming with food, culture, history, and plenty of options for a luxurious trip. Yet there’s none of the pressures of must-sees and must-dos, meaning it’s the perfect city for a relaxing few days. Here’s what you need to know to plan a visit.
What to See:
You can easily spend a few days in Bologna just being in the city, and enjoying the manageable pace of a thriving Italian city with a young, educated population — and one that’s not been pushed out to the suburbs in the name of tourism.
The most ready features of Bologna are its miles of porticoes, or covered ambulatories, which, since the Middle Ages, have protected locals from the elements. There are 30 miles of them in total, concentrated in the centro and spanning centuries of architectural styles. Since 2021, they’ve even been a collective UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The city is full of medieval monuments, including the markedly leaning Due Torri, or two towers, which pierce its otherwise low-slung horizon. Built in the 1100s, they, along with the porticoes, are symbols of the city. We always wander over to Piazza Santo Stefano, a pedestrian square known for its Sette Chiesi, or the remains of seven ancient churches, the earliest of which is a Roman temple from the 1st century CE.
Back on the main square, Piazza Maggiore, admire the famous Fountain of Neptune, then be sure to visit the vault of the Palazzo del Podestà — but bring a friend, so you can try out the whispering wall. Just quietly whisper into one corner of the stone vault, and your companion on the opposite corner will hear you loud and clear.
Outside the perimeter of the city lay different kinds of monuments — to the thrilling legacy of supercar and motorcycle manufacturing that’s given the area another nickname — the Motor Valley. Racing and fast car fans can visit the museums of Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Maserati, all set between Bologna and Modena, and the latter two offering assembly line tours. The Ducati Museum, home base for the legendary motorcycle maker, is just outside Bologna. Tour operator Bologna Experiences can get you to the museums and factories and also offers supercar driving experiences in Ferraris and Lamborghinis.
Where to Eat:
Bologna is nicknamed la grassa, or “the fat one,” in honor of its seat at the center of Italy’s breadbasket, the Emilia Romagna region. Between the cured meats and cheeses of nearby Parma, balsamic vinegar from Modena, handmade pasta like tortellini and tagliatelle, namesake Bolognese sauce (simply ragu on most menus), with a sparkling red Lambrusco to wash it all down, it’s easy to enjoy a great meal in Bologna.
Start an evening out the Italian way — with pre-dinner drinks and snacks. Via Pescherie Vecchie (literally the street of the old fishmongers) is Bologna’s aperitivo central, brimming with clinking glasses of Aperol Spritzes and Negronis and bountiful charcuterie platters served with small tigelle flatbreads. As anywhere in Italy, we always follow the Italians to find the best spot, and ZeroCinquantino has never let us down.
Also in Bologna’s historic center, Mercato delle Erbe is a covered market and lunch stop by day, where the region’s best produce and artisanal foodstuffs are snatched up by local chefs, hungry students, and home cooks. By evening, it’s a lively dinner spot and one where everyone in your party can choose what they want from dozens of food stalls.
For a more elegant experience, book in advance for I Portici, which is (surprisingly, really) the only Michelin-starred restaurant in the city center. From the setting and the service to the presentation and, of course, the food itself, everything about a meal here is gorgeous. Costs are head-scratchingly reasonable as well.
Thriftiness is not on the menu at Massimo Bottura’s three-Michelin-starred Osteria Francescana, located 50 minutes away in Modena. But experiencing Bottura’s creative culinary wizardry is a pilgrimage for foodies, and worth the effort — and very, very advanced reservations — for those for whom bucket list gourmet dining is a vacation priority.
Where to Stay:
I like to think of Bologna as a case of quality over quantity, and that’s certainly true for its accommodation options, as casual B&Bs and cozy guesthouses and rentals are more common than luxury hotels. A standout is Grand Hotel Majestic già Baglioni, the city’s only grand dame, set in an 18th-century palace steps from the main square. Rooms and suites are ornate, service is polished, and common areas are filled with antiques and memorabilia from the hotel’s storied past — including remnants of a 2nd-century BCE Roman road in the basement level.
The history is also rife at 4-star Hotel Corona d’Oro, which occupies a porticoed building from the 1300s. I’m also a fan of Hotel Porta San Mamolo, an easy 15-minute walk from the center of town, for its quiet location and beautiful courtyard garden.
How To Get There and Get Around:
Bologna Guglielmo Marconi Airport (BLQ) is located just outside the city, and receives flights from within Europe and the U.K., including on Ryanair, British Airways, and EasyJet. Otherwise, Milan Malpensa is the closest international airport and is about three hours away by train or car.
From central Rome, Bologna Centrale Station is reachable by high-speed train in little more than two hours.
If you’re based in the city center and plan to spend your time there, you can do your sightseeing on foot and get by without a rental car. If you do arrive by car, be sure to get directions from your hotel in advance of entering the historic core. While much of the center is off-limits to traffic, your hotel will be able to register your license plate number, so you don’t come home to a traffic ticket.
The Best Time to Go:
Although Bologna never sees the summer crowds that flock to Italy’s better-known destinations, it does get very hot in July and August — another good reason people stay under those porticoes. For the best combination of good weather and low crowds, we like spring and fall for a visit, though rainstorms are not uncommon. Winters are cold and rainy, but the city still goes about its daily business.