Any Bologna-philes?

[maggiethecat]

Have choice of apartments on via indipendenzia or santo stefano (near piazza delle sette chiese) - both are nice, similar price, but get feeling that santo stefano might be a nicer area?

No advice but I'm very jealous. I saw an episode of a Rick Stein programme about Bologna and it looked fab. It's definitely high on my list of places to visit.

funny, someone at work mentioned rick stein in bologna when i told her i was going.
Arghhh, the decision making is killing me - both nice flats though

I would recommend a trip to the university’s museum (of weird and wonderful stuff). But I don’t know the streets despite having visited many times as my sister lives nearby...

that sounds good - i have an 11 yr old who loves weird and wonderful.
anything else that you'd def recommend?

Food! Go with elasticated waistbands. That Rick Stein programme was good if you can find it online anywhere. Wandering around the town - going through the arches/behind the palazzo podesta. Any motor sport fans you can get to Imola (where ayrton Senna was killed) or Modena (Ferrari factory) easily by train (+ onward public transport for Modena). There are A Lot of churches, and if art is your thing you’ll find good stuff but be selective. I think there are walking tours you can book into which would be a good way to explore hidden corners. The city centre is quite compact and you’ll quickly get your bearings.

I would go for Santo Stefano. Via dell'Indipendenza is very long, so closer to the train station is not really nice and even further up near Piazza Nettuno it can still be quite noisy.

By staying in that part of Bologna, you will feel all the magic, the city has to offer.

Bologna is gorgeous, it is called
Bologna la Dotta , for the intelligence and the university
Bologna la Grassa, for the food
Bologna la rossa, either for the red color of the houses or the communist tendency, as in against the Church .

You should climb on one of the towers, go up to San Luca (there is pizzeria there so you can have lunch and then take the bus back.
Other places to eat are trattoria valerio www.trattoriavalerio.com I used to live near by , have an ice-cream at the very famous Gelateria gianni www.trattoriavalerio.com, find a place to eat "tigelle" .

As in any city in Italy and Spain, be careful with your bag.
Enjoy it , you will LOVE it!

Jen, def going with empty tummies!
King, was tending toward S Stefano. The other flat is gorgeous too but the area perhaps not as nice as SS.
The preferred flat is near Osteria infidele and at weekend seems to be a bit noisy but hopefully won’t be too bad!
Can’t wait!

Now I really want to go! Was it easy to find reasonably priced accommodation?

Think there are lots of apartments - we did Airbnb so chose something to suit our budget.

Any other tips please? Travelling without dc and want to make the most of our 36 hours or so. Is the food park worth the trip?

The church of Santa Stefano is beautiful

Sorry- Santo Stefano

For something very weird and wonderful head to here - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/CorpusDomini,,_Bologna

Go inside, ring the bell on the door to the left and someone will let you through......

Have noted the suggestions , is the welcome card worth the money?

I’ve spent time in Bologna and the surrounding area. I love Italy, but I’ve got to be honest- I wasn’t that jazzed by Bologna. There is very good food and yes, some good museums. There are also lots of shops to explore - including excellent bookshops (Bologna is a bit of a publishing hub in Europe). It could be all the covered walkways which puts me off the city (which are a godsend if it’s raining!), but it’s just not as picturesque as other Italian cities and towns. It is however located in an excellent position, within easy reach of lots of great towns/ cities, so a good base for exploring. It is close to Ferrara, which is an absolute triumph of renaissance architecture and a bit of an undiscovered gem. There are also few tourists there and affordable places to eat and drink fab wine. I would definitely plan day trips if I were in Bologna for more than a couple of days. Venice is also not too far by train.

Enjoy

Oh just seen you’re there for 36 hrs so ignore me- plenty to keep you occupied in the city for such a short trip. As you were!

Santo Stefano is much nicer and quieter, via Indipendenza is much busier with traffic, lots of big shops etc. Have a fantastic time, amazing city!

Thanks for the tips. A vibrant city to spend a few days, probably needed longer than we stayed but enjoyed the architecture and museums and just strolling around. Tower was worth the climb, fascinating public library of all places, museums with creative exhibits, churches that seem so austere outside but interesting inside including San Stefano. Bologna Welcome card provided free entry to many places including the tower and a walking tour (probably best to take this early in your trip so you can choose where to revisit later) and felt like good value. My favourite food was probably gnocco fritto (fried bread parcels) with burrata cheese and roasted veg as an appetiser. Very moreish! Gelateria Gianni was a hit (Bologna Ride was tasty!) eaten in the shadow of the towers. So much choice of eateries and foods including vegan and vegetarian restaurants.

We visited some kind of medical museum which was weird and fascinating. Not sure if that's the university museum that pp mentioned. Also fabulous food. Would love to go back.

I love all of Emilia Romagna!

If you're hiring a car drive out to Milano Marittima and have lunch al fresco under the pine trees. Gorgeous place!