Things to Do in Bologna: Best Attractions & Travel Tips

Attractions in Bologna

Bologna was a powerhouse city in the Middle Ages, and as a result it has some truly remarkable corners to explore today.

The historic center is actually pretty manageable — you can take it all in at a leisurely pace between one gelato and the next. But if you’re short on time and want to hit all the highlights quickly, a guided tour is a great option.

My tip: For around 30 euros, you can have a local show you around Bologna. They’ll not only point out the most important things to see, but also give you genuine insider tips for shopping and restaurants.

Guided walking tour of downtown Bologna

Private custom tour with a Bologna local

The following highlights define Bologna’s cityscape and are absolutely not to be missed:

Piazza Maggiore

Piazza Maggiore is the central square of Bologna and the largest in the old quarter. Some of Bologna’s most important buildings are clustered here, including the Basilica di San Petronio, the city’s cathedral.

The square is surrounded by magnificent medieval buildings and monuments — and this is also where you’ll find Bologna’s famous Neptune Fountain.

According to legend, though, this beautiful square brings bad luck to Bologna’s students. Cross it through the middle as a student, and you’ll supposedly never finish your degree.

Another quirk is the arcade beneath the Palazzo del Podestà. You’ll probably notice quite a few people standing there, facing the wall and whispering into it.

The arcade is built so that if someone whispers at one column, you can hear their words clearly at the column on the opposite side. Give it a try!

Basilica di San Petronio

Right in the middle of Piazza Maggiore stands Bologna’s largest church, the Basilica di San Petronio.

At 432 feet long and nearly 200 feet wide, it’s the fifth-largest church in the world and the largest brick church of all.

From the outside, the church looks unfinished — a result of financial troubles back in the day. You can see this clearly on the facade facing the piazza, which is only halfway clad in marble.

It’s absolutely worth stepping inside too. In addition to significant paintings depicting scenes from paradise and hell, you can admire the world’s longest meridian line here.

Around midday, a circle of sunlight shines down and marks the season, the time of day, and the zodiac sign on the line. Really cool to see.

Admission to the church is free. If you want to take photos, though, you’ll need to pay a **2-euro** fee.

Torre degli Asinelli

In the Middle Ages, Bologna was absolutely packed with towers. Today only a few remain — the most famous being the two leaning towers standing side by side: the Garisenda and Asinelli towers.

The Garisenda Tower is particularly striking because of how sharply it leans. And because unusual movements were detected in the fall of 2023, the highest alert level was declared and the entire piazza was closed off.

Stabilization work is underway, and the piazza where the two towers stand will likely remain closed for several years. That said, you can still see the towers from the outside!

L'Archiginnasio

The Archiginnasio is, alongside the cathedral, one of the most important things to do in Bologna. From the street it looks rather unassuming — you could easily walk right past it — but the interior is seriously impressive.

In the 16th century, this was the seat of the University of Bologna; today the building houses the city library.

Every wall of the library halls and corridors, as well as the cloister in the inner courtyard, is completely covered with colorful paintings and coats of arms belonging to students of the era. It’s an incredible sight.

Among the library’s many books are countless ancient manuscripts, making the collection one of the most significant in Italy.

One of the two lecture halls — the magnificent Stabat Mater Hall — was the site of the world premiere of Rossini’s composition of the same name in 1842.

The centerpiece of the Archiginnasio, though, is the anatomy theater, where medical students once attended lectures. The hall, completely clad in wood, is set up in the shape of an amphitheater and features numerous statues of famous physicians. Don’t skip it.

The library can be visited for free upon presentation of ID; admission to the anatomy theater and the Stabat Mater Hall costs **3 euros**.

Canals & Finestrella di Via Piella

Did you know that Bologna has an extensive canal system hidden among its medieval alleyways, sometimes called “Little Venice”?

It stretches a full 60 kilometers and served in the Middle Ages as a transportation network and a source of drinking water.

In Via Piella, a small lane in the historic center, there’s a mysterious little window set into a wall. Through it you can catch a glimpse of the canal flowing below.

Just a few steps further, at the small bistro Opera Caffé e Tulipani — where, by the way, you can enjoy a delicious breakfast — a balcony offers another view of a hidden canal.

The San Luca Arcade

As you stroll through Bologna, you’ll definitely notice the many arcades throughout the old town. They stretch a total of 38 kilometers and are Bologna’s most iconic feature.

The longest is the Portico di San Luca — a 4-kilometer covered walkway that winds up the hill to the pilgrimage church of Chiesa San Luca. It’s also the longest arcade in the world.

The climb is long and tiring, but it’s really worth it: from the church you have a wonderful panorama over the city and the Po Valley stretching out behind it.

The walkway begins at the old city gate Porta Saragozza, about a 15-minute walk from Piazza Maggiore.

My tip: You can make it a bit easier on yourself by starting the walk from the Arco Meloncello instead. That way you skip about 1.5 kilometers of walkway that runs through the city. It’s only from the Arco Meloncello onward that you leave the city and head up the hill to the church. You can get to the Arco Meloncello by taking bus line 20.

One more tip: Be sure to bring a bottle of water and a snack — there are no cafés or restaurants at the top.

Quadrilatero

Right next to Piazza Maggiore lies the Quadrilatero, a wonderfully lively neighborhood in the historic district.

Since the Middle Ages, the narrow alleyways have been home to countless small shops, artisan workshops, and market stalls of every kind. It’s lively, it’s loud, and it’s 100 percent Italy.

There are jewelers, street food stalls, bakeries, historic pharmacies, and fruit and vegetable vendors — all mixed together in a colorful jumble.

But what the neighborhood is best known for is its enormous variety of food and dining options. Whether you just want a sandwich to go or a proper sit-down meal, the Quadrilatero has everything your stomach could desire.

Now you know what’s waiting for you in Bologna — hopefully you’re feeling excited about a city trip! Here are a few more practical travel tips to help with your planning.

Getting to Bologna

Bologna’s airport is well connected to major European cities, with carriers like Ryanair and Eurowings operating routes from destinations including Berlin, Cologne, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Munich, and Düsseldorf. The flight time from most of these cities is about an hour and a half.

How to get from the airport to the city

Bologna’s airport is called Guglielmo Marconi and is located just 10 kilometers from the city. It’s not particularly large, which makes it super easy to navigate.

By shuttle train

Every seven minutes, the Marconi Express shuttle train runs to Bologna’s main train station, right in the old town.

You’ll find the platform on the first floor of the airport, in the departures area. The ride to the center takes less than eight minutes. Tickets cost around **9 euros** and you can buy them at the machine at the stop.

By taxi

Alternatively, you can take a taxi to your accommodation. A ride to downtown Bologna costs around **23 euros**, depending on where you’re staying.

The best time to visit Bologna

Thanks to the many arcades, Bologna is honestly a great destination in almost any weather. The covered walkways provide shelter from rain and snow in winter and from the sun in summer.

That said, summers can be seriously sweaty — intense sun and temperatures around 95°F make July and August the least comfortable months to visit.

There isn’t much going on in the city then anyway, since students are on semester break and many restaurant owners take their own vacations.

January and February, on the other hand, are the rainiest and coldest months. In January it can even snow, which affects traffic.

The **best time to visit Bologna** is May and June, as well as September and October. You’ll enjoy pleasant temperatures and relatively stable weather with little rainfall.

Where to stay in Bologna

Most visitors only spend one or two days in Bologna, so it’s definitely worth booking accommodation in the old town.

Most of the attractions are there anyway, and it’s very well connected to the airport.

Because Bologna is traditionally a university city, there’s plenty of budget accommodation available — hostels and small guesthouses are easy to find.

Quality in this price range can leave something to be desired, though. For that reason, I’d recommend spending a little more per night and going for higher-quality accommodation instead.

Truly good hotels with top ratings in the old town are few and far between, but you’ll find many highly rated vacation rentals.

Generally speaking, vacation rentals in Bologna offer much better value for money than hotels. That’s why I’ve included some great options in the recommendations below:

The best food and top restaurants in Bologna

Bologna is famous not only for its towers and its ancient university, but also for its outstanding food.

Excellent restaurants, markets, and delis offering tastings can be found throughout the city.

Food is taken very seriously here, which is why food tours are extremely popular. If you want to combine sightseeing with culinary delights, we’d highly recommend it.

Culinary tour of Bologna

For an even more personal experience of Italian cuisine, a cooking class with a local family is a fantastic option.

Cooking class with a host family in Bologna

But if you’d rather explore Bologna’s food scene on your own, here are our top recommendations — the best local dishes and where to find them.

Tagliatelle al Ragù Bolognese

First things first: spaghetti bolognese doesn’t exist in Italy. It may taste good elsewhere, but it’s not an Italian dish.

In Bologna, the local ragù — the famous meat sauce — is served exclusively with fresh tagliatelle pasta. If you’re thinking “spaghetti, tagliatelle, it’s all just pasta” — don’t let an Italian hear you say that. There’s a world of difference!

Tagliatelle are ribbon-shaped and originally come from the Emilia-Romagna region, where Bologna is located. The original recipe is even kept on file at the Bologna Chamber of Commerce, which specifies that tagliatelle must be exactly 8 mm wide.

Mortadella sandwich

Everyone knows mortadella, but did you know that this delicious sausage comes from Bologna?

The original recipe uses exclusively pork, and the flavor is completely different from what you find outside Italy — especially here in Bologna! There are various varieties, for example with pepper or, highly recommended, mortadella with pistachios.

Mortadella sausages are on display in butcher shops all across the city, with everyone competing to have the tastiest one. Always look for the **IGP quality label** — it means the sausage was produced locally and according to very specific standards.

Our tip for the best mortadella: You’ll find the most delicious mortadella at the deli Salumeria Simoni. Here you can either buy a whole mortadella or simply have a sandwich freshly made for you.

Fresh tortellini

This delicious pasta with a meat filling also originally comes from Bologna.
Since the 1970s, the recipe for tortellini has been registered with the Bologna Chamber of Crafts — but tortellini itself has been eaten here for centuries.

Forget cream sauce or pan-fried versions. In Bologna, that’s practically a mortal sin.

Here, tortellini are served exclusively in chicken broth, made by hand beforehand following grandma’s and great-grandma’s recipe.

My tip for delicious tortellini: Tortellini can be found in every restaurant in Bologna, but the most well-known spot for them is Bottega Portici, which has even been awarded a Michelin star. Here the tortellini are cooked right in front of you and are also available as takeout in a thermal container.

Lasagna

Another incredibly delicious pasta dish you simply can’t miss on your trip to Bologna is lasagna. It comes in many varieties, but the traditional baked lasagna with meat sauce originates right here.

It’s a staple of Sunday dinners, and every family in Bologna has their own recipe. Plenty of béchamel sauce is a must, a generous amount of Parmesan is non-negotiable, and the lasagna must consist of at least six layers.

The pasta sheets come in two varieties: the classic wheat version or one made with spinach, which turns them green.

Our tip for delicious lasagna: You can enjoy a very tasty lasagna at the popular Osteria Bottega, just a few minutes’ walk from Piazza Maggiore.