Parma
Looming over the manicured lawns and modern fountains of Piazza della Pace, this monumental palace is hard to miss. Supposedly named after the Spanish…
Must-see attractions in Emilia-Romagna
Ferrara
Ferrara's monumental cemetery, designed by Borso d’Este in 1461, is an off-the-beaten path gem in Ferrara. Two snaking, semi-circlular arcades frame the…
Ravenna
Roman ruins aside, this is Ravenna's oldest intact building, constructed over the site of a former Roman bathing complex in the late 4th century. Built in…
Emilia-Romagna
Moved to its new home north of Bologna in 2014, this is a must-see museum for Lamborghini-lovers. Tour the 9000-sq-metre space on your own, checking out…
Basilica della Beata Vergine della Ghiara
Reggio Emilia
Reggio's most important church was built in 1596 to honour the miracle of a deaf and blind boy named Marchino who regained his voice and hearing after…
Ravenna
A museum with a difference, this religious gem is on the 2nd floor of the Archiepiscopal Palace. It hides two not-to-be-missed exhibits: an exquisite…
Emilia-Romagna
Day-hikers can scale Pietra di Bismantova (1047m), a stark limestone outcrop visible for miles around that's popular with climbers and weekend walkers…
Ferrara
Ferrara's art gallery, housed on the 1st floor of the late-15th-century Palazzo dei Diamanti, is the perfect spot to contemplate the genius of the 16th-…
Rimini
This Roman triumphal arch, the oldest of its kind in northern Italy, was commissioned by Emperor Augustus in 27 BC and stands an impressive 17m high on…
Bologna
Standing sentinel over Piazza di Porta Ravegnana, Bologna's two leaning towers are the city's main symbol. The taller of the two, the 97.2m-high Torre…
Ferrara
Only Lucca in Tuscany can claim a more complete set of walls than Ferrara, though with a total circumference of 9km, Ferrara's are longer and among the…
Ravenna
The €1 entry here (unique among Ravenna's Unesco sites) is no reflection of the quality of the artistry inside. The baptistery's breathtaking dome mosaic,…
Parma
Flanked by a harmonious trio of buildings – the duomo, campanile and baptistry – Parma's cathedral square is one of the city's most elegant public spaces.
Emilia-Romagna
Measuring 270m by 60m, the Piazza dei Martiri is Italy's third largest after Piazza San Pietro in Rome and Venice's Piazza San Marco. Over 50 columns…
Bologna
The palace that forms the western flank of Piazza Maggiore has been home to the Bologna city council since 1336. A salad of architectural styles, it owes…
Parma
Rebuilt to original plans after WWII bombing, this stunning theatre is almost entirely made out of wood. The great Monteverdi, frustrated by the theatre's…
Bologna
On the 2nd floor of Palazzo Comunale you'll find the art gallery Collezioni Comunali d'Arte with its interesting collection of 13th- to 19th-century…
Basilica Santuario della Madonna di San Luca
Bologna
About 3.5km southwest of the city centre, this hilltop basilica occupies a powerful and appropriately celestial position overlooking the teeming red-hued…
Bologna
Impressive in its breadth of coverage of historical eras, this museum displays well-documented Egyptian and Roman artefacts along with one of Italy's best…
Abbazia di San Pietro Apostolo
Modena
Reconstructed between 1475 and1518, the San Pietro Apostolo monastery is one of the city's most important Renaissance relics and notable for several…
Bologna
With all the Ferraris and Lamborghinis around, it's easy to overlook Motor Valley's two-wheeled contribution to world-class motorsports. Ducati sits right…
Rimini
Legendary Italian film director Federico Fellini's restored hometown theatre, where he watched films as a child and developed his passion for cinema, was…
Bologna
The city's main art gallery has a powerful collection of works by Bolognese artists from the 14th century onwards, including a number of important…
Emilia-Romagna
Opened in 2012, this family-friendly museum – run by Carpigiani, Italy's most famous gelato-machine manufacturer – traces the history of frozen desserts…
Bologna
Housed in Palazzo dell’Archiginnasio, the fascinating 17th-century Teatro Anatomico is where public body dissections were held under the sinister gaze of…
Emilia-Romagna
Flanking the east side of Piazza dei Martiri, this muscular palace houses three museums. The Museo della Città has archaeological exhibits and an…
Modena
Legendary tenor Luciano Pavarotti's final home is prettily perched in the Modenese countryside 8.5km southeast of the city. The building was turned into a…
Bologna
All roads lead to pivotal 13th-century Piazza Maggiore, flanked by Basilica di San Petronio, Europe's sixth-largest basilica, and a series of impressive…
Modena
Modena's oldest balsamic vinegar producer (since 1605) is also one of the best and most dependable to visit, with six one-hour English tours daily (9.30am…
Emilia-Romagna
Located 1.6km west of town, this remarkable stone-and-brick church, the oldest in the Valle del Lamone, dates at least to the 10th century. It's perhaps…
Ferrara
The outstanding feature of the pink-and-white 12th-century cathedral is its three-tiered marble facade combining Romanesque and Gothic styles on the lower…
Modena
Maserati's sleek showroom displays a few oft-changing cars (historic and new), several engines and body frames, a scale-model of the brand's evolution and…
Rimini
As the Latin inscription states, 'With citizens' money and the ingenuity of Luigi Poletti in 1857' Rimini's Teatro Galli was inaugurated in the 19th…
Bologna
This exhibition space encased in a Renaissance mansion is frequently the site of blockbuster temporary art shows, which range in price from €6 to €14 …
Ricci Oddi Galleria d'Arte Moderna
Piacenza
Piacenza’s hidden secret is this modern art collection amassed by local aficionado Ricci Oddi in the early 20th century. Well lit and cleverly laid out…
Modena
Tucked down an alley along the left side of the cathedral, the duomo's side-by-side museums operate like two exhibitions within the same space. Musei del…
Emilia-Romagna
Verdi's 56-room villa, where he composed many of his major works, is 5km northwest of Busseto. Verdi lived and worked here from 1851 onwards and literally…
Emilia-Romagna
Though not all that old by Italian standards (it was erected in 1850), the dramatic panoramas afforded by Maghinardo Pagani's clock tower are spectacular…
Ferrara
This palace was once owned by Giovanni Romei, a top administrator to the Este clan – and his importance shows in the architecture. The austere brick…
Parma
This 2018 addition to Parma's cultural landscape houses the relocated works of Amedeo Bocchi, a 20th-century Parma-born artist whose painting owes a debt…
