Christmas in Bologna (Suggestions?)

What are your interests? Are you considering day trips?

Yes, both city and nearby day trips

We are interested in restaurants, markets, museums, quirky and unique things particular to the city of Bologna. Also, small villages and towns of interest in the outside area.

You'd do well to use the search bar to really drill down on Bologna restaurants (the choices are nearly endless) and day trips to nearby towns.

I think that the Santuario Madonna di San Luca is worth visit. The church is beautiful and there are great views of the surrounding countryside. You can walk or take the "train". Basilica Santuario Santo Stefano is very interesting with an amazing amount of history. The Basilica of San Domenico is impressive, containing St Dominic's sepulchral ark which has 3 statuettes by a young Michelangelo.

A day trip to see the mosaics in Ravenna is a must-do in my book. They are stunning. We've not been but Parma, Modena and Ferrara get mentioned a lot here.

This a very cursory post but I hope it will give you some ideas for more research.

It's an hour and a half's drive from Bologna, but Portico di Romagna is a small town in the mountains that is made spectacular in December when the whole town participates in creating imaginative or beautiful or just plain wacky nativity scenes throughout the town. We spent several nights in this town a few years ago and plan to take our grandchildren there next December. I recommend going on a weekday --- it's a popular weekend destination for Italians. I do not know how long these "presepi" are left up after Christmas, but I would think through December. The small town itself and its old bridge are well worth exploring, too. The hotel has good food.

Here's some Google images of past presepi: https://www.google.com/search?q=portico+di+romagna+presepi&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS507US521&sxsrf=ALiCzsZnihxatfiekLUbaZT8EoHA3xNtVg:1670532892375&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjavor98-r7AhXakokEHeUUB-gQ_AUoAXoECAMQAw&biw=1244&bih=582&dpr=2

Thanks Phrank, for the cathedral recommendations. My wife and I always enjoy the beauty of Italy's cathedrals. We'll visit several of them.

The suggestion of visiting Portico di Romagna is a welcome one Nancy. It is not an idea that we would have come up with but it's just the kind of thing that my wife and I would find fun and relaxing. Thanks to both of you.

We were in Bologna 2 months ago, and I’m not certain what special Christmastime things there will be to see and do. The Archaeological Museum had just begun a special Painters of Pompeii exhibit, which will still be open while you’re there. It features lots of paintings and murals that adorned houses in Pompeii, with good explanations of the 4 periods of painting styles discovered in the ruins of the ancient city. It seems there might’ve been a select few artists that were hired by affluent Pompeiians, and their work was found in houses throughout the city. Very worthwhile, but confirm the days and hours the museum is open. Lockers are provided for bags and small backpacks.

The walk up to the San Luca santuario was worthwhile, along a sheltered portico the whole way, with a view over the city and hillsides at the end. Leave the city at the surviving Porta Saragozza gate, on the west-southwest edge of the now-demolished old city walls, then keep walking west. The church has a large St. Luke statue on the outside to greet you when you reach the top. It’s a long incline, interspersed with lots of stair steps. When I went in the late afternoon in October, it was getting pretty dark by the time I got back down to the Porta Saragossa, around 6:00 PM. With the days being shorter in late December, plan accordingly. I tripped on an uneven paving stone in the dim light coming back down, and didn’t wind up completely falling down, but it was a close call.

Another available climb, this one all inside, but again with some darkish spots along the staircase, is the Asinelli tower, the (much) taller of the two leaning towers from Medieval times. The view at the top over the historic center of the old town is spectacular. Reserved times for entering and climbing the tower were needed in the summer and fall - not sure what the December entry demand and policies will entail.

The tourist information office at the north edge of Piazza Maggiore downtown did walking tours, in a combination of Italian/English. With your Italian, you’d get a lot more out of them than we did, with us only speaking English. The Italian part of each tour was the bigger share.

Here's the really nice old hotel where we stayed in Portico di Romagna: https://www.vecchioconvento.it/en/

We went on a truffle hunt with their dog (and a puppy learning how to do it) because our dog is the same breed --- it was a little late in the year (December 19th) for truffles but a couple little ones were found and the expedition was fun.

An hour and 20 minutes from Bologna is the castle of Torrechiara near Parma with great views and painted rooms: https://www.google.com/search?q=torrechiara+castle+interior&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS507US521&sxsrf=ALiCzsZvPQHJIMEGzm6EG5vtFDkezxcZDQ:1670537211735&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiKsduIhOv7AhUsj4kEHb5nAzQQ_AUoAXoECAMQAw&biw=1244&bih=582&dpr=2