MiamiBeachMomma

Hubby and I will be finishing a cruise in Rome the first week of November and plan on extending the trip to see the Ferrari/Lambroghii/Pagani Museums & Factories. My husband is a car guy and wants to see it all.

We have been to Italy many time but never to Bologna region. We have been to Rome 2x but the last trip was about 13 years ago. Question is - Should we spend 2 nights in Rome/3 in Bologna? Should we nix Rome all together and spend 5 nights in Bologna? Any tips appreciated. Air back to the US already booked out of BLQ.

Thanks

Jean

If you want to see Ferrari, Lambo and Pagani (and some of Bologna, I hope), you'll need more than 3 nights in Bologna. There are two Ferrari museums: one in Maranello (near the factory) and one in Modena (near the train station, includes Enzo's first garage/office plus a modern museum structure). Just getting to all 4 locations takes time, esp. if you don't have a car.

A few general comments... FWIW... I'm merely a car enthusiast and not the fanatic my husband is, and I found the Ferrari company museum in Maranello underwhelming. Too many tour buses coming and going. Too many people crowding around (and touching!) the displayed cars. If you take the Ferrari factory "tour," all you see is the outside of factory buildings from a tour bus... no view of the assembly line and unless you're lucky no view of any new cars. But I really enjoyed the Enzo Ferrari museums in Modena... The Lambo production line is very mechanized. IMO you get a better view of the process on YouTube than you do in person... Pagani was my favorite factory tour. Very low production numbers and many cars are singularly customized, so you get the sense of a truly hand-made car.... At least until Covid, there was a Ferrari-sponsored bus that operated on a circuit: Modena train station to Enzo Ferrari Museum to Ferrari company museum in Maranello and back to the train station. I assume this is still offered, but you'd have to research...

annhig

MBM I agree entirely with Jean that if you/your DH want to have enough time to see at least one of the Ferrari sites you will need more than 2 nights. In fact unless you have an overwhelming desire or some pressing need to go back to Rome, I would suggest spending all your time post cruise in Bologna - you would not run out of things to see and do, even if you never went anywhere near the Ferrari museum or factory. Apart from Bologna itself, which is full of historical gems and fascinating areas, the centre of Modena is very well worth a visit and Ravenna is also only an hour away by train. 5 nights is barely enough. The Freccia Rossa trains from Roma Termini to Bologna central are very frequent and take just over 2 hours If you book well in advance you can get very good deals even on business class. [the Trreitalia App is very useful]

crellston

I agree with the above comments. Just stick with Bologna. We spent a month there pre pandemic and loved it. It is impossible to run out of things to do/see/eat in Bologna itself and even more in the surrounding region. Loved Ravenna, Dozza, Saluzzo and we were looking at returning for a week later this year to take in some of the foodie places like Modena and Parma but normal life seems to have gotten in the way!

We had some friends join us for a week when and he was a car fanatic , saw the Ferrari Tour in the tourist office in the main square and off he went. He enjoyed the factory tour but enjoyed the added extra of a Ferrari driving experience even more. His enjoyment waned somewhat when his wife found out how much he paid for the experience.

I was more tempted by the Ducati motorbike factory and riding experience but manage to resist. Most of these places are reachable by train from Bologna fairly easily. We even went to Florence for a day by train. Beautiful city but absolutely heaving with tourists.

Southam

Adding to these good points about Bologna, the more than 30 kilometres of archways shielding the sidewalks, the ancient university, the history of opposition to papal rule, the lofty siege towers and, most significantly, its devotion to good eats, all make it a fine place to spend time. Look up the efficient tourism office for more evidence.

annhig

Hi Crellston,

I'm always interested in places less visited and I see that you mention Dozza and Saluzza in your post. Dozza I found [in fact I found two, one just to the north of Bologna, the other about an hour by train ti the south east], but Saluzzo I can't find at all. Not anywhere near Bologna anyway. Any clues? Are the worth visiting?

MiamiBeachMomma

Thanks All!! I am convinced - 5 nights it is. Any other recs are welcome !!

plambers

Be sure to look up INternational Greeters. We met a dad and his son in Bologna for a tour and a fantastic greeter in Ferrara.

MiamiBeachMomma

Starting to hammer out itinerary for the 5 nights. I booked a hotel in Bologna. Thinking about renting a car for the day trips. Dropping Pagani for lack of enough time. Ferrari and Lambo will be 2 of the 5 days. Any more advice??

Jean

Is your hotel inside Bologna's ZTL? If yes, driving out and back could be "challenging," to put it mildly. If yes, ask hotel about parking nearby, driving directions in/out and the process for avoiding ZTL citations.

Which Ferrari museum... Modena or Maranello? Or both?

For the cost of renting and parking a car, plus the ZTL issues, I'd train to Modena and use taxis to reach the museums.

crellston

sorry annhig, I completely missed your post for some reason! SaluzzO not SaluzzA is in the Cuneo region of Piedmont. You are correct , nowhere near Bologna though did find it on Google maps. We visited when staying at a friends villa up that way. We did a few day and overnight trips around the area - Barolo, Asti. Beautiful areas to explore that seemed mostly to be visited by Italian rather than foreign tourists. Amazing wines!!!

crellston

Agree with #10 . I would avoid renting a car for day trips. I ended up with a €60 ticket for what I am still not sure! I paid it as it seemed easier than arguing with the Italians and the rental company and likely incurring additional fees etc. Trains + taxis or tours are the way to go I would think.

MiamiBeachMomma

We are staying at Hotel Corona d'Oro - a good friend recommended. Reviews are generally good with some negatives. Any other hotels I should consider?

Hubby wants to do both Ferrari museums - Modena and Maranello.

As for the car rental - heeding the warning - train and taxi it is. (Over the summer we rented last minute in both Naxos and Mykonos and it was the best decision! )

Are taxis using apps in the region? Like Uber?

Jean

There is a shuttle service that circulates from the Modena train station to the Enzo Ferrari Museum (Modena), to the Ferrari museum in Maranello and back to the Modena train station. You can actually walk from the train station to the Enzo museum... about 10 minutes.

We used the shuttle pre-Covid when the service was more frequent. The way the schedule works now, you are in Maranello during lunch time but with little time to do much more than grab a snack. The shuttle makes it an easy day but perhaps a bit too structured.

https://www.vivaraviaggi.it/happy_ci...happy_circle=6

MiamiBeachMomma

Would it make more sense to do the Enzo Museum on same day with Lamborghini? Google says its a 20 minute drive apart. And come back another day for Maranello?

MiamiBeachMomma

Would it make more sense to do the Enzo Museum on same day with Lamborghini? Google says its a 20 minute drive apart. And come back another day for Maranello?

Jean

I refrained from commenting when you asked the same question last week because I didn't quite know how to answer, but I'll try....

IMO, much depends on how much you enjoy each museum/factory compared to the others, how much time you want to spend at each, etc., which you won't know until you get there. We've visited Maranello and the Enzo museum on the same day, and on another trip visited each again on separate days. We went to Lambo on yet another trip, another day. I enjoyed the Enzo museum more than the Ferrari museum, but the EM is tiny in comparison. It's a much more low-key experience. We've had very nice lunch stops in Modena without doing any planning, but I don't much like the area immediately around the Ferrari museum in Maranello, and lunch there has been forgettable. I'm not a car nut but appreciate seeing beautiful cars, and I got little to nothing out of the Lambo factory tour. I did enjoy viewing the later Lambo models in the museum, but I'm not a big fan of the early designs so it was a plus/minus. We both thought the Ferrari "factory tour" in Maranello was a waste of time and money. You ride around the manufacturing compound in a bus and look at the outsides of buildings. No photos allowed, no getting off the bus, no assembly line. I don't think Maranello would require an entire day, but I also don't know your level of enthusiasm for Ferrari.

crellston

I am not a fan of Lamborghini design whereas I consider Ferraris to almost be mobile sculptures , especially the older models. One of our neighbours recently took delivery of a Lambo SUV - what an ugly car. Worse still, he had it painted in camouflage colours. Yuk! When were were in Bologna, our friend took the Ferrari factory tour and paid for the optional extra of an hours drive which he still talks about years later.Apparently they took him to roads where he was allowed to "unleash" it. I guess if you don’t own one, it is the next best thing.

Jean

LOL. Lambo SUV... oxymoron.

MiamiBeachMomma

Thank you @Jean and @crellston - that helps!!
I already know I am going to enjoy the Enzo Museum more than the modern/F1 museum - (not sure about hubby.) I am a fan of all vintage cars!
Will consider al this advice - I have to figure out what tickets I have to buy in advance and what I can buy on the fly.