Bologna

Bologna's tourism website is very helpful. We spent five nights in Bologna, using one day for a day trip to Parma. We would happily return!

Regarding your planning being difficult - what are you wanting to see or do? And which month are you planning to be there? Bologna wasn’t one of my favorites, so I won’t comment on it. But, I’ve been to numerous cities in northern Italy that I could recommend, depending on your interests.

Thanks so much. We love art and history. So far I'm planning Siena, Padua, Ravenna, Verona, Bologna, Genoa, Verenna and Milan. We have 27 days From the beginning of May to the beginning of June for this portion of our trip.

Loving art and history I suggest to do all the four UNESCO cities of Emilia-Romagna as day trips from Bologna: Ravenna, Ferrara, Modena. I recommend even a tour by car (or booking a tour) to visit some of the several fortress and castles spread everywhere in the Region (Vignola, Dozza, San Leo, Vigoleno, Torrechiara, Castell'Arquato, Fontanellato....).
Being an art lover I suggest to have a look about the Ceramic museum of Faenza, the Malatestiana Library of Cesena, the Estense Gallery in Modena, the Pilotta museum in Parma.
Part of our history are even the supercar producers: Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati and even Ducati motorbikes. Museums or factory visits are often included in a tour by tourists. Is of course part of our history a wide selection of foods, including Traditional Balsamic Vinegar, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, Parma's prosciutto: visit a producer could be a way to know a little bit about its history.

I'm not sure what your interests are but it you are interested in science, 3 fascinating things to do are;
https://sma.unibo.it/en/the-university-museum-network/specola-museum-of-astronomy/specola-museum-of-astronomy
https://sma.unibo.it/en/the-university-museum-network/luigi-cattaneo-anatomical-wax-collection/luigi-cattaneo-anatomical-wax-collection
http://www.archiginnasio.it/theatre.htm

And then...there's the food. And, sitting in the piazza enjoying a glass of wine....and walking through the streets. It's a beautiful city.

Thank you all so much! This is very helpful information.

Wow, you have a nice amount of time to enjoy this area!

Siena is a wonderful stop and so much history that’s still very much a part of their culture. If you aren’t having a guide, be sure to read up on Siena, their Palio, etc. Their cathedral is gorgeous, and the Campo (piazza) & nearby area are where you will want to be in the evening as people socialize.

Padua could be a day trip from Verona, and I would also recommend going to Mantova from Verona. It’s less than an hour by train. Look up “Mantova Gonzaga” to see some of the fantastic options of art & history to see there. I love to spend a lot of time enjoying historical palazzos, art, etc. and I saw so much there! I had to stop and take a gelato break! Mantova also has three adjacent piazzas that were wonderful in the evening, so you might even consider an overnight or two there.

The mosaics in Ravenna are magnificent! And I think Ravenna itself is charming. One ticket gets you into seven (I think) locations. I recommend getting there as they open and heading to Mausoleum of Galla Placidia & next door to San Vitale Basilica to savor the best with less people standing in them. Be sure to stop into their museum, also, to see how the mosaics were made. I think it was only about 4€.

Varenna will be nice & relaxing - hopefully great weather on the lake for you!

Ricky gave you a lot of great advice!

Have a wonderful time!

Honestly, just strolling through the city for half a day is wonderful. So much to see. A beautiful place.

Thank you all again so much! This is really helpful information. As I mentioned, this is so much different than planning a trip centered around the big three. I also agree that it probably is a good think that Steves hasn't publicized this region a lot.

Thanks again!

We're planning two days in Bologna, but our time is short. The first day we're using to explore the city itself and the second one we've booked a full day tour with Italian Days. It covers the making of Parmigiano Reggiano, Modena balsamic vinegar and parma ham, including a small breakfast and a full 3 course lunch. It offers tastings of all three products and a tour of each facility. It's not cheap by any means, but the reviews are great and we're looking at it as a once in a lifetime food experience.

Enjoy!

PQ

The Italiandays tour is fun. It’s an early start, but you see some fascinating places and the food is really good.

Recommend the Pinotecca Nazionale in Bologna. Excellent art collection. We spent 2 weeks in Bologna last fall and want to return again.

I was just in Bologna this past Saturday. I mostly did food-related things -- i.e., go to a lively Saturday farmer's market (Mercato Ritrovato) with free cooking demonstrations, music, and picnic tables, wander amongst the food shops and eat really good pasta in the Quadrilatero. It's also a UNESCO creative city for music with supposedly an interesting music museum and I imagine good live music. There were good quality buskers all over the place. Downtown was though very crowded, although mostly with Italians. Thanks to all the students, it has a kind of bohemian and edgy vibe. I really wanted to visit the anatomical theater in the Archiginnasio, but didn't have advance reservations. If that interests you, you might need to book online.

Nobody mentioned Parma which is also a great food and music city (Verdi Festival), although much smaller and more sophisticated (and cleaner) than Bologna. It's a UNESCO creative city of gastronomy. I was there mid-week so it was quiet. It felt very stylish yet still friendly and unpretentious.

I recently spent 4 nights in Bologna in a conveniently located VRBO apartment. It was an easy walk to the train for day trips, such as to Ravenna. I enjoyed the markets in Bologna, walks through the oldest sections of the city just to admire the architecture, and the food. There are plenty of museums and historic buildings to explore. I found Bologna to be less "touristy" than some of the more "popular" Italian cities.