Driving from Aquileia to Bologna - Ferrara to stop?

Once I’ve entered the toll Highway system I don’t like to exit it unless I’m at my final destination, so generally my lunch stops at a “stazione di servizio” (service area) at a restaurant of the the Autogrill or Chef Express chain. Ferrara is certainly a place to consider for a visit, but you should not make it a lunch rest stop per se but a destination in your itinerary of its own right, because it won’t be just a quick pit stop along the way that takes a few minutes from your trip, but a detour that will delay your arrival to Bologna by several hours between driving from the toll highway to the city center, parking, and walking to see some of the several beautiful sights that Ferrara has to offer.

Below are the parking lots that are closest to the sights in city center:

Parcheggio Multipiano Borgoricco (multistory)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/aCzy6MCztpJZWdbQ8?g_st=ic

Parcheggio San Guglielmo:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/At5g75Jkey863d8g6?g_st=ic

In both cases you would exit the toll Highway at the FERRARA NORD exit and drive about 15 min or 20 min from the toll gate to the city center.

Save the locations in your navigator app.

If I had to pick one quick thing to see in Ferrara (which as Roberto says has days worth of sites and strolling), I'd go see the Palazzo Schifanoia frescoes. They cover the walls in a huge room and are fantastic in every sense of the word. No huge interest in art is needed to enjoy these paintings! https://smarthistory.org/sala-dei-mesi-at-palazzo-schifanoia/

I Tri Scalin was recommended by my husband’s cooking class for traditional food and also Trattoria da Noemi --- we liked both of them a lot. Make a reservation for lunch, just to be safe.

Then do return to Ferrara in the future --- that's actually what we did, first a quick day trip, then years later we were back for a 4-night stay which still wasn't enough.