i'm following up on a post about an october trip to italy. i want to spend 4 days in the venice area and 3 days somewhere nearby. i have never been to emilia-romagna, but keep hearing amazing things about the food!

does anyone know how long it would take to drive from bologna to venice?

is it easier to fly into venice or bologna (from NYC)?

any hotel recommendations in bologna (or surrounding area)?

which towns in emilia should we absolutely see? we'd probably spend a day (not enough, i know) wandering bologna, and two days in nearby towns.

thanks so much!

Hi tx

>does anyone know how long it would take to drive from bologna to venice?

Go to www.viamichelin.com or www.mappy.com for routes and driving times.

>is it easier to fly into venice or bologna (from NYC)?

Both are equally inconvenient.

You might find the Bologna part of my trip report helpful.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

There are a few direct flights from NYC to Venice. There are no direct flights to Bologna. However, with so few direct to Venice, you must often get connecting flight anyway. With an airline like Air France, you could fly into Venice and out of Bologna, connecting through Paris in both directions.

I remember reading here a few months ago that the Bologna airport was under major construction and they were redirecting flights. Is that all over?

Delta has a nonstop to and from Venice daily.

The construction for a new runway at the Bologna Airport should be over on Friday, July 2nd. Meanwhile the flights are served by Bologna-Forlì.

Txtree, nice towns near Bologna include for example Ferrara and Ravenna (famous for its mosaics). While I found Ferrara most charming, Ravenna (aside from the mosaics) seemed a bit dull. Both can easily be done in a day. But my real love is Bologna, so if you do decide to stay there for an extra day, I'm sure you wouldn't regret it.

Whatever you decide, I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time!

Bologna to Venice will take hour and half. just drove it. In addition to the other suggestions on flights, BA has directs to London daily and you could connect to NY.