Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
LAY OF THE LAND
Bologna is 105km (65 miles) north of Florence and 210km (130 miles) both
south of Venice and southeast of Milan.
Flights, including
eurofly
's (www.eurofly.it) new summertime
direct flights
from New York, land at
Aeroporto G. Marconi
(
%
051-6479615; www.bologna-
airport.it),
8km (5 miles) north of the city. The
bus to the train station
(
%
051-
290290; www.atc.bo.it),
a 15-minute ride, runs about every quarter-hour from
6:05am to 11:45pm.
Trains
arrive from and depart for the following major Italian cities almost
hourly: Florence (60-90 min.), Rome (3-4 hr.), Milan (1
1
⁄
2
-2
1
⁄
2
hr.), and Venice
(1
3
⁄
4
-2
1
⁄
4
hr.).
The center of Bologna is Piazza Maggiore, about a 15-minute walk down Via
dell'Indipendenza from the train station (or take bus no. 25 or 30). Since old
Bologna is densely concentrated within the ring roads that follow the lines of its
old walls, most everything of interest lies within a 10- to 15-minute walk from
this central square.
Following Via Rizzoli, which skirts the north end of the piazza, you come to
Bologna's famous leaning towers, and from there Via Zamboni leads northeast
toward the university and the Pinacoteca Nazionale; Via Ugo Bassi runs west from
the piazza to Via del Pratello and its antiques shops and
osterie;
and Via degli
Orefici takes you southeast into the midst of Bologna's colorful food markets and
toward the San Stefano church complex.
The
main tourist office
(Piazza Maggiore, 1, in the Palazzo Comunale;
%
051-246541; www.bolognaturismo.info; daily 9am-8pm)
has two annexes. The
branch office in the train station will book rooms Monday through Saturday
8:30am to 7:30pm. The airport office is open Monday through Saturday 8am to
8pm, Sunday 9am to 3pm, and can not only book rooms but also advise travel-
ers about how to get into the heart of Bologna. For
information on museums and
such,
visit
www.comune.bologna.it/bolognadeimusei
and
www.provincia.
bologna.it/cultura.
For tourism information on the region, visit
www.emilia
romagnaturismo.it.
ACCOMMODATIONS, BOTH STANDARD & NOT
In a city devoted to students and their needs, you can be sure that there are many
non-standard accommodations. I'll give three cheers to the
tourist office,
which
has posted on
www.bolognaturismo.info
the complete, searchable database, not
just of hotels but of B&Bs, residences,
affittacamere
(rooms for rent), and apart-
ments in Bologna—as well as
agriturismi
(farm stays) in the surrounding area.
Unlike most local websites, this one includes all the details you need to make an
informed decision: phone numbers, number of rooms, amenities, prices, and,
where available, websites.
And what will you find here? Everything from modest folk charging
€
20 to
€
40 per person, to hosts who feel their accommodation's size, beauty, or location
is good enough to charge
€
100 per person. In a very, very general sense, I'd say
rental rooms and B&Bs tend to go for
50 per person in this region,
though, again, it depends on the place. Regarding style, there is no norm. I've
stayed in B&Bs and rental rooms that were just the spare bedroom in a modern
€
30 to
€
