Bologna in 48 hours

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We have launched a new blog: come find our best advice on Bologna in our updated and improved post on what to do in Bologna in 2 days.

Bologna was a very personal trip for me (Giulia), having spent 1 and a half years there during university: it was an amazing experience and I couldn't wait to show everything to Darek. This was the perfect occasion to rediscover Bologna with the eyes of a traveller and my memories in my heart. So here is our practical guide to enjoy Bologna to the fullest in a couple of days!

BOLOGNA 101

The capital of the Region of Emilia-Romagna, Bologna is a city of some 375000 people, located in the southern part of northern Italy, close to the Appennini mountains. The way it was described in the Middle Ages is still valid: "la dotta" - the learned one, because of the University that was established there in 1088, the oldest in the Western world; "la grassa" - the fat one, a very wealthy town with lots of meat in its typical dishes; "la rossa" - the red one, always leaning to the left side of politics, but also almost completely built with red bricks or painted in the tones of orange and red, and lately also the home of some excellent "red" Ferrari, Ducati, Lamborghini and Maserati.

How to get there: Ryanair, Wizzair and plenty of other airlines fly to Bologna airport, and the BLQ bus takes you straight to the city centre in 30 minutes for 6 euros (although a cab ride could be even cheaper for 2 people or more).

Where to stay: Everything you need to see, except for the Sanctuary of San Luca, is inside the old city walls, so make sure you book your accommodation there: everything will be within walking distance, saving you time and money for public transport. Airbnb provides plenty of choice, and if you search accurately you can find some incredible flats inside ancient buildings! The bus network (there is no metro) is well-organized and efficient, but the only ride you may need is around the walls with bus 33. Buy tickets at the Tobacco shops.

When to visit: Any time of the year is good to visit Bologna: Christmas lights make it magic, the porticoes protect you from the rain and keep you cool from the heat, there's plenty of festivals to keep you entertained. Keep in mind that it can snow a lot in the winter and it can be melting hot in the summer!

More info: The info point is in Piazza Maggiore square, under the porticoes opposite the basilica of San Petronio. The usual closing day of museums is Monday and small shops close for lunch from 12.30 to 15.00. There is a public wifi network, but it's not very reliable; many bars and restaurants have one, otherwise it's very cheap and simple to buy an Italian sim card with data on it.

BOLOGNA IN 48 HOURS - Top things to do and see

The feeling that Bologna transmits is accessibility: the porticoes provide plenty of space for pedestrians, the alleys cut between the trafficked main roads, bars and cafés await you with tables in the streets, but most of all, the warm tones of orange, red and yellow of almost every building make you feel at home and welcome. Some may feel claustrophobic, with the porticoes blocking the view of the sky; instead, we felt like we were walking inside a majestic ancient building the size of a city!

Lovely porticoes in Bologna

Basilica of San Petronio

The app Giracittá Bologna, a great purchase for only 5 euros (for iPhone), guided us around the city and provided plenty of interesting stories and information. Just remember to take your earphones and a power bank with you ;)

Start your first day in the heart of the city, Piazza Maggiore. The main sight is the unique gothic Basilica of San Petronio, the largest Church build in bricks in the whole world; opposite, the Palazzo del Podestá and behind it the larger Palazzo Re Enzo (government buildings); on the long side, the Town Hall, the city library Sala Borsa and the fountain of Neptune. Most of the history of Bologna, of its values and philosophy, is palpable here. Nowadays, solitary citizens with something to complain about fire up debates just by climbing on a chair and starting a speech; during the summer, the Cinema Festival "Il Cinema Ritrovato" (The rediscovered cinema" shows old movies on a huge screen, filling the square for magical summer nights.

Take your time to visit the interior of the Basilica: not only the outer facade is incomplete, also the interior decorations were stopped halfway, making it a remarkable sight. Our favourite feature: a tiny hole in the roof on the left side that lets one single sunbeam through once a year to illuminate a long, thin, metallic mark inlaid in the paving , a meridian line calculated and designed by astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini.

The Neptune under restoration

The city hall and the Sala Borsa library are welcoming and accessible places where you can wander around for a bit, exploring the contrast between the Medieval and Renaissance structures, the modern usage of the spaces and the occasional art exhibition.

When we visited, the fountain of Neptune was not visible because of restoration works. Luckily, we asked for information at the info point (under the porticoes nearby) and got ourselves a great tour with a bilingual guide. We were able to enter the working area and slowly climb up the scaffolding, look at the restorers cleaning and fixing the imposing statue of Neptune, learn lots of details about the relationships between Church and city, artists and lords, beauty and functionality. As magnificent as it is unveiled, this was definitely a much more intimate experience.

Take via Rizzoli to the two towers of Bologna, Garisenda and degli Asinelli, built in the 1100s, and don't be scared of how much Garisenda Tower is leaning. Imagine that more than 100 towers were present in the Middle ages! The view from the top is an unmissable sight, and climbing up the 498 steps inside it is an experience itself. Oh, the iconic Italian red roof tiles! They make the scenery so beautiful and harmonious, in contrast with the green rolling hills behind. Definitely my favourite city landscape in the world (to me, Giulia)!

From here there are two choices, two circles that form an 8 with the Towers in the middle.

View from Asinelli Tower,
Piazza Maggiore on the left

First (map), facing the Towers, to the right, walk down Via Santo Stefano to Saint Stephen's square with its unique Basilica with 7 interconnected churches and cloisters of different ages and styles; after the church, turn right on Via Farini, the clean and tidy fashion street with a cluster of high-end boutiques in the Galleria Cavour; turn right onto Piazza Galvani, where you can admire the unfinished Basilica San Petronio  from the back, and when you reach the main square, turn again right to Via Clavature. Together with the parallel Via degli Orefici and Via Pescherie Vecchie, and the cross street Via Drapperie, this small cluster of alleys is a lovely combination of small grocery stores with produce in the open, family-run delis selling cold cuts and hand-made pasta, and of course coffee houses. A church that goes unnoticed is Oratorio di Santa Maria della Vita (Oratory of Saint Mary of Life), a must-visit because of the Compianto (3 euros ticket, well spent), a set of statues that compose a very intense and theatrical scene of Mary, John, Mary Magdalene and other characters in shock and grief over Jesus' body. A true secret masterpiece of craftsmanship of human emotions: the movement, energy and emotion that they portray was revolutionary in the 15th century and is still shocking today - just think of how rigid and stony-faced (no pun intended :P ) is any other statue that comes to mind from those times. Down the street and to the left, or back on the main street Via Rizzoli, you will find again the Two Towers.

Second (map), facing the Towers, to the left, take the tiny alley next to the bookstore, Via de Giudei, literally Jews' Alley. The triangular maze in front of you, between Via Oberdan to the left, Via Zamboni to the right and until Via Marsala that connects the two, is the former Jewish ghetto of the 16th century, now a quiet and charming area of artisan workshops, tall buildings pressed up against each other, narrow alleys, and a special combination of Jewish and Christian history. The Synagogue is instead located in Via de Gombruti 9. 

In Via Marsala or Via delle Moline, take the right to reach Via Zamboni and the University District - Literature, Law, Economics and many more. The heart of it is Piazza Verdi, a clash of high-end citizens attending the Opera at the Teatro Comunale (the City Theatre) and broke students, sitting on the ground in the middle of the square, drinking beer and smoking joints. Established in 1088, originally in the Archiginnasio buildings by Piazza Maggiore, this is the oldest university in the Western world! It is such a feeling to walk down this street, poking inside the buildings, and imagine the amount of knowledge that has been transmitted throughout the centuries. You may have to focus a little to perceive the centuries behind us: as a modern university,  all walls are painted with graffiti, the occasional protest takes place, and you will receive offers for weed and bicycles. Museum geeks: check out the science and natural Museum of Palazzo Poggi!

Walk back up Via Zamboni to get back to the Two Towers.

Secret Venice in Bologna

MORE IN THE CITY CENTRE:

On your second day, find the urban explorer in you discovering the seven secrets of Bologna. I (Giulia) love to play with the whispering walls, however the Hidden Canal  is absolutely charming. Even more enchanting is the view from the balcony of Opera Caffé e Tulipani coffee house, perfect for a short break. The funniest secret is, without doubt, the virility of Neptune's statue in Piazza Maggiore ;)

EXTRA: the Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca

Mark off from your bucket list "Walking under the longest porticoes in the world" by starting from Porta Saragozza and hiking all the way up the hill to the Church of San Luca, for some 3 kms, under 666 arches (weird, uh?). As the legend goes, students walk on their knees to ask for help to pass their exams, or after passing them thanks to some miraculous intervention.

The porticoes to San Luca

We have to admit that it was a bit demanding for us, but still worth it; as you climb, the beautiful panorama of the surrounding hills becomes visible, we felt admiration for all the family names etched in the stone who donated to restore the porticoes, and the sense of accomplishment on the top was very pleasant! A bus can take you down but it's not very frequent; we were lucky enough to find a couple of ladies who gave us a hitch back to the edge of the centre. It took us a whole afternoon - an hour from Porta Saragozza to the top - and a nap to recover afterwards.

Get lost in Bologna

The city of hidden details. You will wish you had another couple of eyes, to catch the street art on the walls (unfortunately there's also a lot of random graffiti), to admire the frescoed ceilings through the windows of private flats, and to recognize arches and columns and windows that don't match, after centuries of renovating and adapting them to new inhabitants. Take your time to lose your way, turn random corners, look at centuries-old wooden gates, iron rings where horses used to be tied to, stone letter boxes, curtains that lost their colour to years of sun... And then stop by for a quick coffee, pop inside the design stores, sniff the cold cuts and aged cheese in the delis, find frescoes hidden inside bars. We loved the southern part of the city centre: Via del Pratello and the Cathedral of San Francesco, Via Saragozza and Porta Saragozza (the street and the gate).
But most of all... eat and drink! Another post about Bologna's culinary delights will come soon!

How did you like Bologna? Is there anything unmissable that we didn't mention? Leave us a comment :)