Italy earthquake update request

The absence of info on Ferrara and Ravenna re the earthquake confirms that the damage there (if any) was minimal and shouldn't affect your plans. Have a great time.

I believe the earthquake was to the northwest of Bologna and I think Ferrara is northeast of Bologna. I have not heard of damage in Ferrara.

I wouldn't be so sure. This article from Chinese news says many historic sites are closed in Ferrara: http://english.people.com.cn/90777/7833172.html Do you have a hotel reservation in Ferrara? If so, you could email the hotel and ask about the current situation. It is possible buildings have been closed for post-earthquake inspection and will reopen fairly quickly. Or, they could be damaged and closed for a long time.

On CNN.com I saw a photo of the dome inside St. Anthony's in Padua has a big crack in it......but it did not say if the Basilica is closed or not. It is a beautiful church and really a focal point in Padua (Padova).
I hope they can repair it.

I had been planning to put through a reservation at Hotel de Prati - I emailed them but have not received a response, which does make me a bit uncomfortable. I don't whether to take this as a lapse in hotel public relations or an ominous sign that there is a lot of damage.

Or here's a radical old-fashioned idea: you could call them up and ask!

Lucy Please post if you get a response from them. If you haven't, I'll call them tomorrow when the day shift would be on and see if they have any damage. Its very easy for me to call Italy.

I spoke to your Hotel which is open and was undamaged in the past 2 major earthquakes. The lady did say, very sadly, that many monuments in the city were damaged and closed.

Nigel
How cool of you to check. I'm not the OP, but appreciate your persistence in getting an answer. Good to know many of the sights are closed.

Does anyone know of any problems with the trains? Although I won't be visiting the Bologna region, I will be taking trains that pass through that area.

Thanks very much Nigel for checking! I am still torn about what to do as I am sure that anything to help spur their economy would be appreciated. I will make a (tentative) reservation know that at least the lodging is in tact and hope that the historic sites open in short order. Otherwise, I think we may see a couple of small towns in Le Marches before seeing Ravenna and save Ferrara for another trip. Thanks again soooo much for calling,, Nigel. You are a gem and real asset to this Rick Steve travel blog community!

Lucy, The area was hit by another 5.1 quake late today (Sunday), centred near the town of Novi di Modena. No injuries were reported, however several buildings damaged by the previous quakes have collapsed. I haven't seen any mention at all of disruptions to transportation.

Nigel:
1. I posted this question in a second location because I got no reply to my first post, and as I am leaving next week accurate information regarding any effect of the earthquake in Bologna is important to me. I apologize directly to you if I have committed some sort of "faux pas", since you seem to think this was "unfair" to others. I'm clueless as to what an "OP" is. 2. To be clear: I would like anyone with current information to let me know if Bologna suffered any damage. 3. To answer your comment: no, I am not looking for blind opinions on whether or not to go, only informed ones from anyone with experience as regards the state of affairs in the area where I will be. The NYtimes did mention that Bologna was evacuated, and this is what raised some alarm. I will call the hotel, as you so "kindly" did for the other person. 5. I was looking for other suggestions, perhaps the lake region, to go as an alternative, a place also somewht food-ie in nature.

I posted in another section; I'm scheduled to be in Bologna for 5 days June 21wondering if I should head elsewhere, as I'm coming from the Swiss Alps. I'd want to stay north, and away from Venice or Milan. No car, presently, would like to avoid driving, spend time eating.

Judith, First - this question has been posted in multiple areas. That's not fair on the contributors and may tend to confuse OP. next - what exactly do you want us to say, Judith? I hope you don't take this as rude but none of us here could possibly know. If we say, "go ahead, go" and you get injured or killed or miss what it is you want to see because it falls down or is so unstable that it can't be visited - then what? If we say, "no, don't go", and you don't based on what strangers here said, and you later find out that people did go and they saw what you had wanted to see - then what? How can we possibly know which will happen? Earthquakes are big deals. Big earthquakes cause big damage and continue to have thousands of large and small aftershocks for a long time. How can we know if the larger earthquakes are actually earthquakes or fore-shocks of even bigger ones? We can't until history written long afterwards tells us so. Or, it could all be done and dusted. If you want back-up for whichever decision you want to make please tell us which that is so that some (not me) can say it to you.