Visiting Bologna: a journey between the past and the present

Bologna is a city with many souls: they are different from each other, but harmoniously balanced. Visiting this city – which has more than 2,000 years of history – is a journey between the past and the present.

Bologna is the seat of the oldest university in the West; the university was founded in 1088 and still attracts students from all over the world. With its exhibitions and museums, Bologna is a lively place for art and culture. It is a cradle of good food and pleasant living, and its history is 1,000 years old. The city was founded by the Etruscans, populated by the Celts, occupied by the Romans, and subsequently grew, thanks to the spinning and exportation of silk.

A quiet, but bubbling place. Hard-working, but pleasure-loving as well. As a political centre, is it as vital now as it was in the past: Bologna was the first Italian city to abolish the slavery of serfs, in 1256, with its Liber Paradisus (Book of Paradise), the act with which the municipality freed almost 6,000 serfs.

Bologna has always been a crossroads of peoples and traditions: whether you are here for work, tourism or family reasons, it will be able to accommodate you and make you feel at home.

We have collected a few pieces of advice to help you plan your visit to Bologna:

WHAT TO SEE IN BOLOGNA

Bologna is a city that has more than 2,000 years of history. It is the seat of the oldest university in the Western world, where art and culture are still quite lively. It is the cradle of good food and pleasant living.

DISCOVER BOLOGNA

WHERE TO EAT IN BOLOGNA

Bologna la Grassa (the Fat One) is the home of tortellini and lasagne, and a byword for good cuisine and conviviality. There are all sorts of restaurants here, ranging from trattorie with traditional menus to places for demanding gourmets. Are you in Bologna and wondering where to eat?

RESTAURANTS YOU MUSTN’T MISS

DISCOVERING THE HILLS OF BOLOGNA

For many centuries, the hills of Bologna were crossed by pilgrims and merchants on their way to Tuscany. Here there are old hermitages and sanctuaries, and the starting point of lovely hidden paths surrounded by vegetation, including the famous Via degli Dei.

WHAT TO SEE ON THE HILLS

TREKS AND WALKS IN BOLOGNA

Itineraries in which history and nature are closely interwoven, and allow us to rediscover a past that has been partly forgotten but is still present in the place names, among the rocks and mountains that have been crossed for more than 2,000 years by the peoples that lived and flourished there.

IDEAS FOR EXCURSIONS

Antico podere san luca

Are you planning to visit Bologna and looking for an apartment that is out of the city’s turmoil but close to everything?

The Antico Podere San Luca is on the hills, five minutes by car from the centre of Bologna and at a short distance from the most important paths in that area, and from restaurants and holiday farms where you can enjoy the local food and wine. You can opt for the Bed&Breakfast formula or a short-term lease. If you wish to obtain more detailed information, please click on the button below:

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