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The Best of Bologna (Italy)

The unique sights of beautiful Bologna

The Best of Bologna (Italy)

Some people (including Spanky) will shoot me for saying this – but I was actually more impressed with Bologna than I was with Verona. It might not have as many points of interest as Verona but the sights in Bologna are unique and you won’t find anything similar anywhere else in Italy.

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Porticos

One of the first things that stand out in Bologna are the porticos. You might think that they were built as shelter from rain or sun. No. Bologna had a huge population increase in the Middle Ages and porticos started being built to increase the amount of living space on upper floors. Whereas many Italian cities banned porticos, in Bologna they became compulsory and regulated by precise laws. There are over 40km of porticos in the city and they make Bologna a very walkable kind of place. While you’ll see other cities with porticos in Italy, you won’t find any place that even comes close to Bologna.

 

Porticos. The unique sights of beautiful Bologna

The best porticos in Bologna. The unique sights of beautiful Bologna
Porticos in Bologna

 


 

 

Basilica de Santo Stefano

Bologna has some impressive churches including the Basilica de San Pietro, the main Cathedral in Bologna (I’ll have photos of that later). But it is the oldest church in Bologna, the Basilica de Santo Stefano (built in 430 AD) that is really memorable. Known as Sette Chiese in Italian (“Seven Churches”) it is actually a complex of churches, crypts, and tombs. It is like stepping into a Medieval stone maze.  It is hard to capture the atmosphere in photos but here are a few:

 

Basilica de Santo Stefano, Bologna
The very unassuming entrance to Basilica de Santo Stefano on the right.

 

Basilica de Santo Stefano, Bologna
Entering the Basilica, you step into the Church of the Crucifix, the largest of the buildings.

 

Basilica de Santo Stefano, Bologna. The unique sights of Bologna
Continuing through passageways, you come across different chapels, crypts and courtyards. A compilation of photos of Santo Stefano.

 

Italy has incredible churches everywhere. But we’ve never encountered a church like this, which makes Bologna really unique. More here on Santo Stefano.

 


 

 

 The Leaning Towers

The Leaning Towers of Bologna

 

In the 12th century Bologna had over 100 towers. Today 20 remain, the best known of them being the Torre Garisenda (on the left. 48m with a 13m lean) and the incredible Torree degli Asinelli (97.2m, with a 1.3m lean – the highest leaning tower in Italy). You can climb the 498 steps up the Torree degli Asinelli which I of course did:

 

climbing Torree degli Asinelli, Bologna
View looking down while climbing

 

views from Torree degli Asinelli, Bologna

Views of Bologna
Views over Bologna from the top.

 

Torree degli Asinelli, Bologna.
A last view down the street at the Torree degli Asinelli. Is it just me or is that incredible??

 

One of the things I love about Italy are towers and we’ve seen other places with lots of towers. San Gimignano comes to mind. But what really stands out about the Torree degli Asinelli in particular is it’s height. And imagine, it’s almost a 1000 years old (built in 1109). That’s pretty crazy.

Anyway, the above are the 3 really unique things about Bologna that will always come to mind when hearing someone mention “Bologna”.

But there’s more.

 


Tours to take in Bologna

 

 

 

Other sights in Bologna

Piazza Maggiore and Piazza del Nettuno

Piazza Maggiore and Piazza del Nettuno, Bologna

 

In the center of the historic city (everything is close by and easily walkable) is the main plaza (Piazza Maggiore). You’ll see the huge Basilica of St. Petronius (maybe not the prettiest of Bologna’s churches but easily the biggest) on one side. The Tourist Information office is directly opposite (they’ll give you a free map). Just next to Piazza Maggiore is Piazza del Nettuno which features a famous Neptune fountain created in the 16th century. You’ll see lots of magnificent buildings on these two squares.

 

Basilica of St. Petronius, Bologna

Piazza del Nettuno, Bologna

 

Basilica of St. Petronius (Duomo)

The Basilica of St. Petronius is within a 2 minute walk of the above and is simply gorgeous. It’s only because Santo Stefano is so unique that it takes a backseat in my books, but really it is an incredible Basilica.

 

Basilica of St. Petronius, Bologna

Basilica of St. Petronius. The unique sights of beautiful Bologna, Italy

Basilica of St. Petronius. The unique sights of beautiful Bologna, Italy
Above: Basilica of St. Petronius, inside and out

 


 

 

San Domenico

San Domenico. The unique sights of beautiful Bologna, Italy

 

Another incredible church. Simple looking from the outside, the interior is gorgeous. Saint Dominic’s remains lie in a marble tomb inside the church.

 

San Domenico. The unique sights of beautiful Bologna, Italy

 

A few more scenes around Bologna

 

portico at the University of Bologna
portico at the University of Bologna.

 

Portico and Italian sports car. Bologna
Little red sportscar along with more porticos

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Via dell’Indipendenza, Bologna
Via dell’Indipendenza, main avenue leading from the train station to the center of town (an easy 15 min walk).

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Via dell’Indipendenza, Bologna, Italy
Statue along Via dell’Indipendenza

.

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Practical Information

– The Tourist Office has a good website where you can find great maps and itinerary ideas.
– Bologna is an easy city to visit in a day. Sites of interest are all within a small area and easily walkable. We spent 5 hours, including an hour for lunch, and covered all the highlights.
– We used Padova (Padua) as our base in the region and it took 90 min to get to Bologna (which is about halfway between Venice and Rome when taking the train between the two cities).

Bologna doesn’t get many foreign tourists and that’s shame. I wonder if it’s because of the name, for many it just conjures up visions of cheap lunch meat and/or a type of spaghetti sauce. 

Accommodation. Here are a few suggestions for a couple of nights in Bologna: Albergo Garisenda (historic little hotel right in the center. Very affordable), Cavalieri’s Grand (very modern, clean rooms right in the center. Good value), Hotel Al Cappello Rosso (this is a luxury option for special occasions. Funky boutique hotel).

Flights. Bologna’s Guglielmo Marconi Airport (code: BLQ) has flights from/to all over Europe. 

 

Have you been to Bologna?

 


 

 

Related: A Local’s Travel Guide to Italy

Related: Why Vernazza is the best town in the Cinque Terre

Related: Italian City Rumble! Venice, Rome or Bologna – which should you Visit?

 

Ps. If you find our blog helpful, please consider using our links to book your flights, hotels, tours, and car rentals. Have a look at our Travel Resources page.

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Filed Under: EUROPE, ITALY

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Laia

    May 6, 2016 at 4:32 pm

    This post came at the right time, I might go to Bologna next month to visit friends. And I had no idea it was this beautiful! Nor that it had so many kilometres of porticos… I’ll definitely like walking there 🙂
    Haha you made me smile at the end when you say that Bologna conjures cheap meat and spaghetti sauce… but I think it’s a sad truth. Which makes me think… how was the food there?

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 8, 2016 at 1:03 pm

      Thank you Laia. Actually Bologna is supposed to be renown for its good food. We only had lunch there so that’s not much, but what we did have was very good.

      Reply
  2. Hung Thai

    May 5, 2016 at 11:46 pm

    You’re right! Porticos are everywhere – and how GRAND they are! Thanks for the quick history lesson by the way. I think a lot of us are thankful that these were built. I can’t believe they were banned in other cities though. Why? Was it an architectural style that they just didn’t like or was there something else – perhaps because they weren’t “Italian”?

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 8, 2016 at 1:37 pm

      Hi Hung, I think it was a safety issue because they would be made of wood and couldn’t withstand natural disasters. So they legalized it on the basis that they be constructed of brick or stone.

      Reply
  3. Mark Bennetts

    May 4, 2016 at 7:49 am

    Blimey, that’s one hell of a church/tower. I bet passing people on that narrow staircase was a bit of a pain??

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 4, 2016 at 10:49 am

      Yes, that was the downside. I suggest people don’t do it on a Saturday.

      Reply
  4. Gilda Baxter

    May 3, 2016 at 7:17 pm

    Bologna looks amazing, a very stylish city. The porticos are truly beautiful, I love the strong colors and frescoes. I think the name suits this city perfectly. I love the name ” Bologna”, but I guess it is because I have a VERY special reason to love it so much….

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 4, 2016 at 5:06 am

      Thanks Gilda, we thought the same of the porticos, they really are unique. Hmm, you’re making me curious about your special fondness for the name! 🙂

      Reply
      • Gilda Baxter

        May 10, 2016 at 8:21 pm

        The reason for my fondness is because Bologna is in my blood…literally, my paternal grandfather was born there, he was a Bolognese…my maiden surname, spelt just like that cheap spaghetti sauce you mentioned above ( do I hear you laughing?) .

        Reply
        • Frank (bbqboy)

          May 11, 2016 at 5:30 am

          Actually being named after spaghetti sauce not so bad, it’s the cheap lunch meat that I wouldn’t want to be associated with 🙂
          So I guess you’ve never been there Gilda?

          Reply
  5. Andrew

    May 3, 2016 at 8:43 am

    they just get better and better. Those towers – the leaning towers – they look brilliant. and there’s TWO! 🙂

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 3, 2016 at 9:40 am

      Thanks Andy! Yes, pretty cool 🙂

      Reply
  6. Paula

    May 3, 2016 at 5:59 am

    I drove past Bologna due to time restrictions… doh! Kick’n myself in butt right now. I really had no idea it’s so enchanting Frank… goes to show that slow travel pays off. You deserved a beer after your climb up/down, that’s a lot of steps…but yes, incredible view!

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 3, 2016 at 6:36 am

      Thanks Paula! Actually the thing to have here is a Spritz which we kind of got hooked on 🙂

      Reply
  7. Tanja (the Red phone box travels)

    May 2, 2016 at 7:44 pm

    I looove it! the porticos are great as a shelter from rain or sun! Bologna’s my favourite Italian city!

    Reply
  8. Tripologia

    May 2, 2016 at 6:41 pm

    Bologna is very interesting city, I think they don’t get many foreign tourists because of high competition. When you are located between Venice and Florence it’s very hard to attract tourists. 🙂 Same problem have many other beautyful Italian cities.

    I’m glad that you climbed to Asinelli tower, that was one of Bologna highlight for me.

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 2, 2016 at 6:57 pm

      Very true Tripologia! Yes, I enjoyed it too – the only thing is that it was around noon on a Saturday so lots of people…I would really recommend choosing a better time. But otherwise totally worth it.

      Reply
  9. soumi

    May 2, 2016 at 5:11 pm

    Wow …! So much history ..so much to explore..very beautiful images Frank.!

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 2, 2016 at 5:26 pm

      Thank you so much Soumi! Oh, I almost forgot – how is your Germany/Austria trip plans coming along? Have you come back or are you going in the near future? Let me know sometime how the different destinations worked for you, if you loved some/ were disappointed by others etc. Hope you enjoyed.

      Reply
  10. Kemkem

    May 2, 2016 at 4:55 pm

    No, he is from Lazio, Rome 🙂

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 2, 2016 at 4:57 pm

      Is that where the lazy Italians come from? 🙂 HAHAHA.
      Ok, just kidding.

      Reply
  11. Kemkem

    May 2, 2016 at 4:17 pm

    Bologna looks awesome. I can’t wait to visit it. Federico speaks fondly of it. He says it does get pretty packed in the summer though, which unfortunately is when we plan on being there. I had no idea about the leaning tower. The view from the top is awesome. You’re right, we loved San Gimignano and the towers, not to mention the wild boar 🙂 . The porticos are so freaking beautiful. Love them. Great images as usual Frank!

    Reply
    • Frank (bbqboy)

      May 2, 2016 at 4:41 pm

      Thanks Kemkem! Yes, I’m told Bologna gets lots of Italian visitors but few foreigners. Is Federico originally from Bologna? Yes, I was surprised and really liked the place.

      Reply

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