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Emilia Romagna - Advice or suggestions please.

Tim W

100+ Posts
Following a Email link that looked too good to be true, I find myself with two return flights from London to Bologna for £10 each way. I have 10 days leave, and would ask experts on the area for suggestions.

I've spent a week in Bologna - and would certainly be happy to stay there again, but was wondering about other possible bases. Two of the places we visited last time were Parma and Ravenna, and I liked both a great deal. I am currently thinking about the possibility of Ferrara - not been there and it looks intriguing.

Although I am comfortable driving in Italy, I am equally happy just using public transport.

All advice gratefully received.

TimW
 
Plenty of great options and good regular train routes allow for easy day trips.

Ferrara excellent, and easy to join the locals on bicycles as it's flat, mostly blocked off to cars (and when you encounter them the cars appear very cautious / careful)

Parma / Modena both have charm

Bologna rewards repeat visits and food shopping very good indeed. Some nice hills to the south

Ravenna has obvious historic appeal, but seemed nicely relaxed as well

Faenza ceramics might appeal

The only place I wouldn't recommend is Forlì. Fascist era architecture, as disappointing for food as anywhere I can think of (outside of tourist hotspots). A couple of events we lucked on were lovely but isolated positives. We're normally 'off the beaten track' tourists, but this was the first instance where actively selecting an untouristy location didn't work.

With 10 days, you could consider a single change of base e.g. 4-5 days in Ferrara and 5-6 in Bologna
 
Thanks Ian,

It was on your recommendation that I visited Bologna (and Turin) in the first place - and loved both.
I may well split the trip between two destinations - particularly as I have a relatively early flight back - so Bologna itself might be sensible.
 
We stayed in Ravenna for several days this past December. We really liked Ravenna. From there we traveled down the coast. There were some pretty little towns such as Cessenatico, but they are beach towns so not much going on this time of year. However, I will say the towns had nice Christmas decorations.

I would highly recommend a day trip to Rimini. We were surprised at its size and all the sights.

Another day trip would be to San Marino. Bring your best walking shoes and be prepared to climb, but well worth it for the historical sights. The only negative was the number of junky tourist shops. Of course you just walk past them, but they kind of detract from the look of the central area.
 
You would be in the heart of cheese and balsamic vinegar production -- a couple of hours to visit (early morning for the cheese) and lots of good products in the sales shops. We stopped at
Acetaia Villa San Donnino and Latteria Sociale La Grande as we were traveling, but lots of other choices.
 
I have stayed in both Modena and Ferrara and enjoyed staying in both towns (different years). I would happily return to both for another stay. Public transportation gave me many options to while there. If you enjoy ceramics, I highly recommend a visit to Faenza where you will find the amazing Museo Internazionale delle Ceramiche / International Ceramic Museum! It is an entire day experience. I took a train from Modena for my visit there.
 
I would choose Modena but it's all win/win around that area. I love Modena because of the Albinelli market and the restaurants (Osteria Francescana is the #1 in the world and there are many others).
The piazza and the duomo are quite beautiful and still home to groups of older gentlemen on bicycles talking the day away. Easy train connection from there to Parma or even Mantua.
Emilia Romagna has an embarassment of riches.
 
We're planning a similar two-week trip in September. Here's what we decided to do: Bologna (with a visit to Modena), Mantova, Padova, and Ferrera. We're renting apartments and spending three or four days in each location. We've been to Bologna before but wanted to spend more time there; ditto with Padova, which we visited only on a day trip with our sons while we were staying in Vicenza. Parma and Ravenna were also considerations, but we've spent several days in both cities, whereas we've never been to Mantova and Ferrara. One consideration for us this time was that we wanted a car-free trip, and the train service looked really manageable. Mantova and Ferrara also look highly walkable and/or accessible by bicycle. We're still holding open a possible day trip to Ravenna from Ferrara to see the fabulous mosiacs again.

As Jan noted above, there is so, so much to see and do in this area.
 
We had the best meal of our lives at Osteria Giusti in Modena. I'm desperate to get back there but haven't been able to make it happen, so please, go in my place and then describe the meal! You can get half portions so you can try more things!
 
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Ditto on Giusti in Modena. A very nice experience and well worth booking way in advance.

I am heading to Ferrara for the first time this spring, so I can't offer advice yet. It is nice to see others here have the same idea. :)

Mantova is the definition of a "hidden gem". Such a lovely relaxed town, off the main tourist track, and some very interesting food.
 
Parma and Modena are both beautiful and have lots going on, can rent bikes to get around, there are plenty of foodie tours you can sign up for in the those areas. I liked Ravenna a lot and the coastal towns of Cesenatico and the surprising canal town of Comacchio. Near Parma is Fontanellato, which appealed to us as we loved Eric Newby's books (he describes Fontanellato in Love and War in the Appenines). It's a charming place with a castle but nearby is the world's largest labyrinth (a fun outing) with an exceptional private art collection at the end of it (Franco Maria Ricci). The castles in the countryside south of Parma and Modena are spectacular (UNESCO site)
 
Comacchio definitely appealed, but we never got out that far from Ferrara.
 

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