barbmc

My husband and I are traveling to Bologna this summer for about 6 days. Have never been to Northern Italy. I have been reading the forums and have ideas on what to do. However,I still have a few questions.

Is it easy to get from the airport to the center of the city? Is it wise to pick Bologna as our "point of stay" for all 6 days and then take day trips out to Florence, Venice, Parma, etc.?

Any help will be appreciated. Thanks

111op

There's a bus between the city center and the airport. A schedule can be found on the web (I forget how -- try Googling or looking at the Bologna airport website (if there's one)). Otherwise taxis aren't very expensive (I seem to recall under 20 euros for last year).

Day trips Florence and Venice should be easy. It's one hour between Florence and Bologna -- and probably longer between Venice and Bologna. I don't know about Parma.

Last year I flew into and out of Bologna and I went to Florence and Venice, and the train connections were easy.

HowardR

111op is correct about the transportation options. The airport is about 5 miles (or is it 5 kilometers?). Either way, a cab isn't that expensive.
Bologna is both a wonderful destination in itself and a convenient starting point to reach other destinations.

Michael

Bologna is very convenient for other destinations, but I would not consider Venice or Florence as day-trip destinations. You might be interested in my report:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...p;tid=34607146

DejaVu

Florence is an hour away by train, so yes, one could daytrip there easily. But if you want to spend extended amount of time in Florence, you may want to consider spending a night or two there to save yourself the travel back and forth.

Venice is about 2 1/2 hrs away from Bologna by train; you can do it as a daytrip (and I did once, on an impulse, while staying in Bologna) but you have to be pretty organized about what you want to see, as it will be a full day. Take earliest train out, and I wouldn't recommend going to San Marco first thing since that's what all the tourists do. Again though, it's not the best way to do things--however, if you have a limited amount of time and simply must have that Venice visit, it can be done.

barbmc

Thanks for the responses. For day trips out of Bologna, do you need to purchase train tickets in advance or because they are relatively short trips...just the day before or day of the trip?

DejaVu

I've always bought my tickets there in Bologna train station day of trip. There are automated ticket machines that take credit cards and make it very easy. I'd recommend looking at the Trenitalia website though to see the schedule in advance.

If memory serves, the bus from the airport lets you off at the train station. If so, then you can just scoot in and go ahead and get your tickets then if you know for sure what day and time you want, if you'd prefer not to buy them morning of.

I have taken the bus from the airport and it worked fine; I do remember it coming and going from the train station then (in '99), although I'm not sure if it still does. There is a taxi stand at the train station to take you to hotel, if you'd rather not figure out how to take a bus for that leg.

nonnafelice

When we were in Bologna last year, we took several day trips by train. We found it worked well to buy our tickets for the next day's trip when we returned each evening. For short trips you are not tied to a specific time, so you can use the tickets on any train. But if you have the tickets in hand, you don't have to worry about getting caught in a long line at the window and missing the train in the morning.

I also printed the Trenitalia schedule for each city we wanted to visit before we left home and took it with me so I could easily refer to it for train times each day. Often your hotel will do that for you too.

You can see my trip report here:
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34692313

espagnabound

Holy moly. The one place you must go if you are daytripping out of Bologna is Ravenna. I'm surprised nobody mentioned it.

The great thing about making Bologna a base is that you get to eat in Bologna!

You should get a map -- sorry if that sounds condescending -- and look at the towns near Bolgona. Then do a few Internet searches for the names you find. A lot of them are really fascinating, even though you've never heard of them and most people never go there.

In the summertime, you can fight your way into the most famous Italian cities -- and they are famous for a reason -- or you can go to many Italian places and see art and churches like you've never seen in your life and have a great time that somehow feels a lot more special and relaxing.

Think about going to Modena. Ferrara. Faenza.

111op

If I remember right, the Bologna-Ravenna train connection is not the most convenient. I could be wrong, but I remember thinking about it and deciding not to go in the end. In any case, Ravenna is not the most convenient place to get to, if I remember right.

Then of course, I only had about 3.5 days, and I didn't stay in Bologna at all. I was more concerned about seeing Florence and Venice (even though I had already visited prior).

ira

Hi Barb,

I recommend making Venice an overnight visit.

You can fly into Bologna and out of Venice or Vice Versa.

Marija

The train connection Bologna to Ravenna is about two hours, no train changes. I highly recommend Ravenna as a daytrip from Bologna. We spent five nights in Bologna and took only one day trip to Ravenna on a Sunday.

Catbert

If you like to read, John Grisham's The Broker will get you excited about your trip (and the great food you will be eating).

Holly_uncasdewar

The bus from the airport into town leaves from right outside the airport's main entrance, regularly, about every 20-30 minutes. Buy your tickets from the driver, 4.50 E. as of last month. Makes a few stops in town, including P. Maggiore, before stopping at the train station. Walk from P. Maggiore to/from train station is roughly 15 minutes, depending on your speed, of course.

I agree with the others about spending a night or 2 in Venice rather than making it a daytrip. Having spent 2 nights in Faenza last month, I would have to recommend giving that a pass, with your limited time. Ravenna should be at the top of your list for daytrips, and plan to get there early, as there is much to see.

DejaVu

I daytripped to Ravenna from Bologna and can highly recommend it also. But you would probably want to rank it 3rd after Florence and Venice if you've never been to the other two before and wanted to go. I'd recommend some prelim reading on Ravenna, since the highlights there are the Byzantine buildings/mosaics and you'd want to go informed.

Train to Ravenna is easy. But sometimes (not always) there IS a change. It's simple though; you get off when the train stops completely (I forget the name of the teeny station where that happens) and then wait for the next train and get on it. I sort of remember that station had only two platforms so you just went to the other one. Easy.

Ferrara is also quite nice, as someone mentioned.

espagnabound

http://www.faenza-faience.com/citta.cfm

HowardR

An easier day trip from Bologna is nearby Ferrara.