Walking
tours
Walking tours of Bologna leave from the Informazioni e Assistenza
Turistica (telephone number: (051) 246 541) tourist office
on Piazza Maggiore, every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at 1030
hrs. Another tour leaves Neptune’s Fountain on Sunday and
Monday at 1100 hrs and at 1500 hrs on Tuesday and Thursday. These
tours take approximately two hours and include Piazza Maggiore,
the Archiginnasio, the Basilica di Santo
Stefano and the Due Torri. The cost of
each tour is €13 and no prior booking is necessary. Alternatively,
private guides can be booked from the Associazione Guida d’Arte
(telephone number: (051) 421 0809; fax number (051) 421 4653), and
costs €65 for three hours.
BicycleTours
Two-hour cycling tours of Bologna, the Bike in Bo
(telephone number: (051) 649 5043) tours, leave from the Informazioni
e Assistenza Turistica tourist office on Piazza Maggiore,
on Friday at 1800 hrs and Saturday at 1600 hrs. There are two routes
on offer – one focuses on the town and another takes visitors
further afield. The cost of the is €20 and includes bicycle
hire and insurance. It is possible for visitors to arrange tours
at times other than the standard Friday and Saturday slots.
Excursions for half day
Parma
Standing on Via Emilia, and approximately 90km (56 miles)
northwest of Bologna, Parma became an important trading colony during
Roman times. Today, it is the second most populour city in Emilia-Romagna,
after Bologna. Although justifiably famous for its tangy cheese
and sweet cured ham, Parma is much more than Italy’s glorified
larder. Home of Verdi and resting place of the
renowned violinist, Nicolo Paganini, Parma boasts
a fine musical tradition and is home to one of Italy’s most
important opera venues, the Regio Theatre (telephone
number: (0521) 218 685).
The city has enjoyed an intense period of artistic and architectural
development during the long reign of the Farnese dynasty (1545-1731).
Apart from the magnificent Romanesque Cathedral and Baptistry,
there are some exceptional frescoes by Correggio
and Parmigianino in the Church of San Giovanni
Evangelista. Meanwhile paintings by Fra Angelico,
Leonardo da Vinci and El Greco are found in the National
Gallery (telephone number: (0521) 233 309; fax number:
(0521) 206 336), which is located inside the Palazzo della Pilotta
and also contains the magnificent Farnese Theatre.
Trains depart for Parma from Bologna’s central station every
hour and takes approximately 45 minutes. The Ufficio Informazioni
ed Accoglienza Turistica tourist office is located at Via Melloni
1/b (telephone number: (0521) 218 889; fax number: (0521)234735;e-mail:
turismo@comune.parma.it
and is open Monday to Saturday 0900 hrs-1900 hrs, Sunday and holidays
0900 hrs-1300 hrs.
Excursions
for a whole day
Florence
The artistic orgy of Florence (Firenze) is one of the
key reasons why Bologna has so often been overlooked by visitors
to Italy. Tourists flock to Florence in droves. Situated approximately
80km (50 miles) south of Bolgona, just one hour by train, the city
lies at the heart of the Renaissance and is home
to some of the world’s greatest works of art, including Botticelli’s
Birth of Venus, Michelangelo’s David and
Masaccio’s Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise.
Architecturally, the gravity-defying dome of Brunelleschi’s
Cathedral and Giotto’s elegant Campanile
dominate the skyline but every nook and cranny of Florence
holds a surprise. From the Ponte Vecchio to Santa
Croce, the city dazzles with genius. Florence is easy on
the eye but often hard on the feet. Any visit should include a cappuccino
in one of the famous piazzas or a picnic in the Boboli Gardens,
surrounded by gargoyles and the local cats. |
