Train Florence to Bologna

Check at www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en and you'll see that advance booking can save up to some EUR 10 single journey, depending on the time of day. That's the price of flexibility.

Lots of trains in both directions, therefore no chance of a train being sold out even if you buy the ticket at the station 5 minutes before departure. The full price is 25€ each way in standard class on a Frecciarossa (2nd class on Frecciargento). If you prepurchase online, as mentioned above, you can save by buying at the Economy or Supereconomy fare. However those discounted fares come with strings attached (not refundable, not changeable, or changeable for a higher fee in the case of Economy fare), so it depends on whether you value savings more than flexibility.

What we do is go to the train station the day BEFORE we want to travel and check the schedule and purchase our ticket for the travel day. That way we aren't rushed at the station buying a ticket from a kiosk, or worse, having to stand in line at a ticket counter.

It sure is easy to walk back to the station with ticket in hand, go to the board to see which binario to use, validate the ticket and get on the train.

My son and I traveled from Bologna to Florence and back in a day so he could see Florence. It wasn't expensive, and I'm not sure it's worth the expense to book a fast train. But if you are traveling with a group of people, it would be good to have the time of the train, and the tickets in hand the day before. A few minutes at the end of your day at the train station in Florence seems to me to be worth it as you will be in charge of others.

Florence to Bologna is pretty much exclusively high speed trains, making the trip in about 35 minutes. I do see an IC train that does it in the morning in 1 hour 40 minutes, but doesn't save a whole lot. You still might be able to find Economy Tickets a day or two beforehand. There is also a 2 for 1 deal on Saturdays, but you must buy before midnight the day before at the latest.

Ok. Thanks... I thought I was reading it right.

If the saving was a lot I would plan, but with the weather in Feb., I will decide at the last minute.

Anything I should not miss in Bologna? From a photographers point of view?
Also, lunch place that is not too pricey?

Taking photos: Climb to the top of the torre for 3Euro and get a great 380 panorama of Bologna and the surrounding hillsides.

You should take a photo of the statue of Neptune from the Stone of Shame (Pietra della Vergogna).

If you are going in February, that Trenitalia deal also has 2 for 1 specials all week from Feb 8 to Feb 14. Its the Valentine Special.

In February we had quite a lot of snow in Bologna. Perhaps you will get some moody snowy shots.

There is the covered pilgrimage walk up the hill.... the Pellegrinaggio a San Luca. Quite unique in its appearance.

Terry,

That route is fairly short, so I'm not sure how much you'd save buying advance tickets. As I recall, Italo also travels on that route so you could compare their prices with Trenitalia.

I was in Bologna in September, so details are still somewhat fresh in my mind. A few thoughts.....

• The station in Bologna has been under construction for the last few years. It's now huge and goes several levels underground, so it will take a few minutes to get to/from your trains. Not all the Escalators were working when I was there in September.
• Photo op's - I found both the interior and exterior of the Basilica of San Petronio to be good. The many Porticos around the city are also good, especially if the lighting is favourable with some shadows. Wandering around the small streets also provides lots of interesting photo op's.
• Lunch place that is not too pricey..... if you don't mind a somewhat "informal" atmosphere, I'd recommend Osteria dell' Orsa (I especially enjoyed the Tagliatelle al Ragu, which they're well known for). You may have to sit at a bench with a bunch of students, but I don't mind that sort of thing. If you do decide to enjoy a splurge, you might try Ristorante Donatello for a fine hot meal (I believe they're open from 12K-22K on weekdays). You could also try Trattoria dal Biasanott (their prices seemed "mid range" to me).

I'll second the recommendation to climb the tower. What was most memorable was not the view across, but the view down. Bologna has an intact medieval street plan, and from the high vantage point, the "bicycle wheel with spokes" layout was very evident.

Fast trains now run on a new high speed line almost entirely in tunnels, so much straighter that the mountain line precedently in use. I find high speed trains very expensive for such a short stretch; but cheaper alternatives are reduced to a few Intercity (IC) using the old line, and to a few regional trains that mostly require a change in Prato; both take much more time than the fast train. - Timetables seem to be studied to force you to use fast trains anyway.

I loved the cloisters at the Basilica di San Domenico. Go on a sunny day, Bologna is so colorful. The tour of the old University was interesting and photos were allowed.

Get in shape, the Asinelli tower has 498 steps. . . so I was told and no I didn't do it.

Maybe Florence will have another chocolate fair for Valentine's Day. It was so popular when I was there that they held it over for a few days more.