Bologna

Bologna is a town of 391,473 inhabitants in the province of Bologna, in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is the capital of Emilia-Romagna.

The municipality covers 140.73 km², with a density of 2,782 inhabitants per km².

The nearest airport is Bologna (BLQ), about 6 km away as the crow flies. Read our guide to the airport.

Where to park in Bologna

The learned, the fat and the red

Bologna is nicknamed "la dotta, la grassa, la rossa": learned for its university, the oldest in the Western world, fat for its cuisine, red for its brick buildings. Its 40 kilometres of porticoes are a UNESCO site.

What to see

Piazza Maggiore with the basilica of San Petronio and the Neptune fountain is the heart of the city. The Two Towers, Asinelli and Garisenda, lean over the old town. Visit the Archiginnasio, the old seat of the university with its anatomical theatre, the complex of Santo Stefano with its seven churches, and walk the long portico up to the sanctuary of San Luca on the hill.

Food

This is the home of tagliatelle with ragù (never spaghetti), tortellini in broth, lasagne and mortadella. The Quadrilatero, the old market area, is perfect for tasting.

A short history

Etruscan Felsina, then Roman Bononia on the Via Emilia, Bologna is home to the oldest university in the Western world, founded by tradition in 1088. In the Middle Ages rival families raised about a hundred towers, of which some twenty remain. A free commune and then, from 1506, the second city of the Papal States, it joined the Kingdom of Italy in 1860.

Events and festivals

In summer the Cineteca screens restored films for free on a giant screen in Piazza Maggiore, during the festival Il Cinema Ritrovato and beyond. On 4 October the city honours its patron San Petronio. The Children's Book Fair, in spring, is the world's most important; Arte Fiera opens the art year in winter. On New Year's Eve a giant effigy, the Vecchione, is burnt in the square.

Around Bologna

Modena and Parma for balsamic vinegar and Parmigiano, the Ferrari museums in Maranello, Ferrara and Ravenna are all close. Bologna airport and a high-speed hub linking Milan, Florence, Rome and Venice.

Getting there

Bologna is the main rail junction of Italy: high-speed trains reach Florence in under forty minutes, Milan in an hour, Venice in an hour and a half, Rome in about two. Marconi airport is linked to the central station in a few minutes by the Marconi Express monorail. Motorways from Milan, Florence, Padua and the Adriatic coast all meet here.

Bologna on the map

Nearby towns

All towns in the province of Bologna →