Visit Bologna it always turns out to be a surprising experience for all those who see it for the first time, thanks to the many monuments and places of interest concentrated in this city. This guide will help you organize your visit, so you can decide what to see in Bologna and what to do.
What to do in Bologna: itineraries and things to see
Are so many places of interest in Bologna which we recommend you visit. It doesn't matter if you have little time available, this guide will help you understand what to see in Bologna in one day without giving up the most important things.
What to see in Bologna: places to visit
1 Piazza Maggiore
Piazza Maggiore it is the splendid living room of Bologna. Lively, full of people at all times of the day, it showcases architectural jewels such as the Basilica of San Petronio with its characteristic rough and unfinished façade, the Sala Borsa in Liberty style, inside which a futuristic multimedia library has been created. Medieval and Renaissance palaces, including the Re Enzo Palace. The square is the favorite meeting place for tourists and citizens; in the past it was the center of the city's politics. Here you will also find the Palazzo Comunale, recognizable by the statue of Pope Gregory VIII placed on the central portal. Inside remember to visit the Farnese Hall, very impressive indeed.
2 The two Towers, Garisenda and degli Asinelli
Symbols of Bologna known throughout the world. These three monuments are located at the entrance to the city, on the Via Emilia. Definitely worth adding to the list."Bologna: things to see".
3 The Neptune Fountain
La Neptune Fountain work by Gianbologna. Located in Neptune Square, between the town hall and the Palazzo del Podesta. It is one of the most beautiful fountains of the sixteenth century.
4 The Porticoes of Bologna
One of the features of Bologna they are the porticoes, whose total length reaches 40 km: unique in Italy, and perhaps also in the world, whose origins date back to the Middle Ages and the foundation of the university. Under the sumptuous portico of the Pavaglione, A few steps from Piazza Maggiore, trade in fine silks took place; The portico of the Church of Santa Maria dei Servi instead, the restorations and the very long porticoed walkway that goes up there shines hill of San Luca it amply repays the effort of the hike.
Churches of Bologna, basilicas and monasteries not to be missed
5 Basilica of San Petronio
La Basilica of San Petronio it remained unfinished according to the original project it should have had the dimensions of St. Peter's Basilica. However, it remains the sixth largest church in Europe, one of the most important in the Christian community.
6 Basilica of San Domenico
La Basilica of San Domenico it dates back to 1200 and contains several very important works by Michelangelo.
7 Sanctuary of San Luca
Il Sanctuary of San Luca also called Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca, stands on Colle della Guardia, and is visible from almost all points of Bologna. Majestic building, it is one of the most fascinating Sanctuaries in Bologna together with the Church of San Giacomo Maggiore and St. Stephen's Basilica. It is also possible to reach the very long porticoed walkway that goes up hill of San Luca.
8 St. Stephen's Basilica
Not far from Garisenda and Asinelli Towers, also reachable from the beautiful Corte Isolani, there is the St. Stephen's Basilica, call of the “seven churches“, although, in reality, there are four remaining churches, set one inside the other, and built between the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries. Don't miss the splendid Romanesque cloister.
9 Saint Colombano
Saint Colombano it is a church complex made up of a series of buildings aggregated over the centuries, starting from the XNUMXth century. In the recent restoration, a thirteenth-century parietal crucifixion attributed to Pisano council, a medieval crypt and a 21th-century burial. Inaugurated on 2010 June XNUMX, the Complex houses the collection of ancient musical instruments donated by the Maestro Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini, consisting of around ninety pieces including harpsichords, spinets, clavichord pianos and a collection of wind and popular instruments dating back to the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries. It also preserves the specialized library of the Bolognese musicologist Oscar Mischiati.
10 Church of Santa Cristina della Fondazza
La Church of Santa Cristina della Fondazza that we see today was built in 1602 by Giulio della Torre, architect of the circle of Domenico Tibaldi. The single nave interior stands out for the narrowness of the presbytery, which becomes a sounding board capable of transforming Santa Cristina in an architectural musical instrument, where the sound spreads with astonishing acoustic clarity. Precisely from this characteristic was born the myth of the "musician nuns": in the hall behind the apse area the nuns sang protected from prying eyes and their voice, through two grates placed above the main altar, propagated without echo and without refractions up to the entrance. Closed and reopened several times, following the Napoleonic expropriations, with the Unification of Italy the Church of Santa Cristina it became a military warehouse and the convent a barracks. Since 2008, once the restoration work was completed, it was reopened to the public as an auditorium for classical music and the Gregorian chant school.
11 Chapel of Santa Maria dei Carcerati in Palazzo Re Enzo
Inside the restored Chapel of Santa Maria dei Carcerati, built in 1371 by order of the papal vicar Anglico de Grimoard and used for the spiritual comfort of those imprisoned nearby Captain's Palace, the English artist David Tremlett he created one of his wall drawings, combining the art of the past with current abstractionism, perpetrating a sense of continuity and rupture at the same time, which characterizes many interventions in the region.
David Tremlett he is a sculptor who prefers to sculpt the wall with colours, massaging them on the walls as a support for his abstract works, which arise from a deep emotional and design relationship with the chosen place and its pre-existing structures; his geometric and essential shapes vibrate through colors and light, always in harmony with the architecture that houses them and which is at the root of his artistic conceptions.
Bologna: see also
Museums and art galleries of Bologna
12 National Art Gallery
La National Art Gallery is located in the convent of Sant'Ignazio, hosts the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna. To be included in the list "What to visit in Bologna".
13 Picture Gallery of the Shameful Poor
The exhibition itinerary, following the order of the old inventories of the collections and allowing transparency to resurface, is that of the collection created by the administrators of the Poveri Gognosi in past centuries to embellish their residence.
The current exhibition is aimed at recovering the history of the paintings, as well as that of their author's artistic practice: who commissioned them, for what purpose, how they were reused by Poor Shameful and how their perception of time has changed.
14 Museum of sacred art of the Piratello Sanctuary
In the wing of the gallery which formerly constituted the distribution walkway between the cells of the ancient Convent, a small Museum of Sacred Art, which preserves objects of worship and liturgical furnishings related to Madonna del Piratello and it is among the most interesting museums of Bologna. Among the most valuable objects are two splendid polychrome stained glass windows from the 400th century, probably made to a design by Guiduccio from Imola. Particularly interesting are the paintings depicting i four Evangelists (attributed to the school of Guercino) and some ancient manuscripts, including one autographed by Blessed Jeremiah Lambertenghi, founder and first Superior of the Piratello Convent. Also preserved are a precious collection of wooden ex-votos, as well as four terracotta high reliefs (by professor Italo Costantini of Assisi, 1971), a collection of casts reproducing the image of the Madonna del Piratello and ancient and precious liturgical vestments, together with various sacred furnishings.
15 Museum for the memory of Ustica
The museum preserves the remains of the plane, recovered, transported and reassembled in the large spaces of the former ATC warehouses, renovated by the architect Gianpaolo Mazzuccato which are offered to the public in the artist's permanent installation Christian boltanski.
16 National Museum of the Toy Soldier “M. Massaccesi”
Currently arranged inside Villa Aldrovandi Mazzacurati, it was established with the public display of the collection of Mario Massaccesi (1920-1981), who was its inspiration and first director. Today it holds thousands of specimens, rare examples of military modeling, dioramas, war-game equipment. The museum organization, which rotates unique pieces of particular collectible value, allows for a substantially educational journey capable of providing a complete account of the history of the toy soldier in two centuries of Italian and foreign production. They range from specimens of antiquarian value, of wood, fabric, tin and other materials, up to the historical reconstructions of today. Among the oldest pieces are the 'Adam Schweitzer' from 1820, the 'Ammon di Furth' (1880-1910), the 'Pellerin d'Epinal' (1870), the 'Heyde', the 'Lucotte', the ' Gebruder Schneider' (1903-1904).
17 ATC Bologna historical collection
La ATC Bologna historical collection, preserved in the suggestive location of the former warehouse-workshop of the Tramway that once connected Bologna a Pieve di Cento e malalbergo, documents the development of local public transport in Bologna between the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries. It is made up of archival funds, including theATC Historical Archive, of a photographic archive with around 7.000 images, of a library with around 600 titles, of material documentation made up of around 250 memorabilia (objects representing company processes) and of 31 historic rolling stock (trains, trams, buses and trolleybuses) dating back to 1887 and 1994. The materials and documents thus allow scholars, researchers and in particular educational institutions to become aware of the origins of city and provincial public transport. (ed currently closed)
If you have more time to dedicate to visiting the city of Bologna, we suggest other activities that will complete your trip.
- Take a walk in the Quadrilateral: already in ancient times it was a point of reference for trade and artisan activities. Even today it is a highly commercial area full of shops of all kinds.
- visit Morandi Museum: a visit to the house of Giorgio Morandi it's a must if you plan to stay more than one day in Bologna. It has become a museum containing his most important works.
- Visiting the Bologna Fair: this is the Bologna exhibition center. Different types of fairs are hosted throughout the year.
- View the King Enzo's Palace and that of the Podestà.
- Visit theArchiginnasio, a little more decentralized, towards Galvani square, permanent seat of the university starting from the second half of the 500th century, with the marvelous Sala dello “Stabat mater".
- Visit Casa Carducci in Bologna.
18 Theaters of Bologna
- Arena of the Sun
- Municipal Theater of Bologna
- Theater of the Baraccano Conservatory, Bologna
- Small theater of Villa Aldrovandi-Mazzacurati, Bologna
- Small theater of Villa Altieri, Bologna
- Alessandro Guardassoni Theatre, Bologna
- Eleonora Duse Theater former Brunetti Theater, Bologna
19 How to get to Bologna
Bologna is easily reachable by car, train or plane; in the last case, reaching theBologna airport, Bologna Airport Borgo Panigale, you can quickly reach the center by taxi or bus.
20 How to get around Bologna
Those arriving by plane or train will find frequent bus services to the centre. Those arriving by car can take advantage of the underground car park in Piazza 8 Agosto (railway station area), or the one in Porta San Mamolo, both just over ten minutes away on foot from Piazza Maggiore.
21 Where to eat in Bologna
Especially in the centre, in Bologna, you will find many typical taverns. If you are wondering what to eat in Bologna, here are the dishes of traditional Bolognese cuisine that you must taste: tortellini, lasagna Bolognese, passatelli e tagliatelle with ragu.
22 Where to sleep in Bologna
The best area to look for yours hotels in Bologna it is undoubtedly the historic center. Sleeping there will allow you to visit the places of greatest interest directly on foot.
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