Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Trip Report Three Days in Bologne

My husband and I (both retired) took a five-city tour of Italy in Sept-October. Bologne was the fourth stop (after Milan, Venice and Florence) and we only had three full days. But we feel that we had a good introduction to this beautiful city.

We arrived by train from Florence – only a 30 minute ride. It was easy to get a taxi to our hotel, which only took 10 minutes. We stayed at the Hotel Metropolitan where I was able to book an apartment, which is located in a separate building from the main hotel – only a 5 minute walk. It was well situated, only a few minute walk to the main Piazza (Maggioria). It appeared to be furnished by IKEA with a palette of gray, white and black; it had a kitchen, two big screens, a nice modern bathroom, desk and a sofa that looked like it pulls out to a trundle bed. I was disappointed that the WIFI was not secure. These apartments are situated on a side street that is very noisy, even though no cars pass through. Because of that, I would not recommend it (unless you're a heavy sleeper). Better to have a room in the main hotel. The staff was very nice and helpful and the breakfasts were excellent.

For our first day, I had reserved tickets for a 2-hour walking tour of the historic city center. It was led by a terrific guide from the city tourist office. She was very informative and entertaining and it wasn’t too large of group. It cost only 15E per person. Before you sign up for costly tours, check the city tourist office in any city or town you’re visiting. In many cities we've visited (e.g. Lyon) i have found excellent tours/guides this way.

While waiting for the tour to begin, we had lunch at a small bar/café called LaLinea, located under a portico bordering Piazza Maggiora where the tourist office is. It was very good and inexpensive for a simple lunch. It cost $14E for two sandwiches, a bottle of water and a coffee. Service is slow-ish They have one or two servers for about 20 outdoor tables.

We had our first Dinner @ Buca Manzoni, only a block from our hotel apartment. It cost 31 Euro for 2 including One vegetarian meal and pasta bolognaise. No wine/desert. Very good. We saw a lot of big tables inside for 8-10 people. At every restaurant we’ve been to we’ve noticed a lot of people being turned away because the restaurant was booked. It’s really essential to make reservations in advance for dinner– not weeks, but a day or two at least.

Day 2:

We had breakfast at the hotel 15E pp.- which was really good. We took the Hop on/off bus that took one hour @ 16E each.

We had Lunch at La Linea again. Good and inexpensive, then we went to the Museum of History of Bologne. They offer a digital tour of Bologne – you can choose from three tours: Roman Bologne, 17th Century, or Medieval. You purchase 14 or 25 minutes. The interactive, digital tour is somewhat elementary, but worth watching. Then tour rooms that take you from Etruscan times to present day bologna. Audio guide is included and there are Cards in English in each room, but all descriptions on the walls are in Italian.

We walked around cutting through Piazza Maggiori. Already on a Friday late afternoon, it was getting more crowded. Maybe it’s a happening place on weekend nights. I went to a hair salon I found on Google that’s near our hotel, Martina Studio on Via Parigi. $22 for wash and blow dry. (The hair dryers in hotels are lousy). And my husband went to a barber (Spettiniamoci, located next to our hotel): 15E for a beard trim. His cousin, who was in the shop, is a sommelier and made a reservation for us at the restaurant where he works, nearby- Trattoria dal Bissanot -. A family restaurant in biz for 60 years. I’d say it was ok, but not great.

All restaurants are packed and reservations are a must (at least in October). We never ate inside as the only seats available were outside. Fortunately, the weather was ok.

Day 3

We walked around what is referred to as a “hip” area of town along via del Pratello, but I didn’t see anything too hip or interesting about it. We then returned to LaLinea AGAIN for lunch. The waiter smiled and told me what I wanted to order.

We then took our second City Tourist office tour – of the UNESCO Porticos, costing 15 E each. Helena was a terrific guide and we learned a lot. You’ll understand more about the city’s history after this introduction.

That evening, we had our final dinner at Buca Manzoni again – because it’s a block from our hotel/apartment and they had one table left that we could reserve 2 hours in advance. It cost 44.50 Euros for 2 mains, one salad, 1 water, 1 dessert. Excellent.

I write this at the end of our trip that also included Milan, Venice, Florence and Lucca. Bologne and Milan were our favorite stops – mainly because we could get a feel for the life there. Bologne, with its universities and food scene was energetic and interesting to learn about. Our three-day visit was a good introduction to the city. Had we had more time, we could have taken day trips to Modena, Ravenna and Parma - all interesting cities to visit. We hope to return and enjoy the region.
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The Porticos of Bologne.