Kilometres of covered walkway run along the streets here, vaulted and columned, built over centuries so the medieval city could grow outward and upward at once and let out the rooms above. They carry a world heritage listing as a monument in their own right. The longest climbs the hill to the sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca in an unbroken arcade, the longest portico in the world and one of the strangest walks in Italy: an hour uphill under a roof, past hundreds of arches, arriving at a church with the whole plain behind you. The centre below is compact and deeply lived in. Piazza Maggiore opens in front of the basilica of San Petronio, whose facade was never finished and still wears bare brick above the marble, and whose floor carries a long meridian line laid by Cassini to track the sun through a hole in the roof. Behind it the Quadrilatero keeps the old market lanes of fishmongers and delicatessens, and the Archiginnasio holds a wooden anatomical theatre from the university's early home.
Bologna sits at the crossing point of Italy's fast rail network, which puts Florence, Milan, Venice and Rome within easy reach and makes it an unusually good base, while the airport connects to Bologna Centrale by an elevated monorail that covers the gap in minutes. Italy is in the Schengen area, so visitors from outside the European Union are held to a short-stay limit of ninety days within any rolling period of half a year, and the passport stamp has gone: the Entry and Exit System records fingerprints and a facial image at the first crossing instead. A separate online travel authorisation for visa-exempt visitors has been announced and postponed more than once, so check the official European Union page. The currency is the euro. Rooms cost less than in Florence or Venice, though the trade fair calendar spikes prices without warning, so it is worth a moment to compare flights and hotels for Bologna and check the fair dates before fixing yours.
Where you stay decides your evenings. Around Piazza Maggiore, historic hotels stand within sight of San Petronio and put the whole centre on foot. In the university quarter along Via Zamboni, guesthouses and small bed and breakfasts sit among the student bars, inexpensive and noisy in equal measure. Near the basilica of Santo Stefano, boutique hotels look onto the courtyard of its linked churches in one of the quietest corners. Around Bologna Centrale, mid-range business hotels put you a walk from the centre and a step from the platforms.
As a city break this works almost entirely on foot, and the porticoes make the weather irrelevant, so what repays booking is a food tour, a pasta-making class and a fast train rather than a hire car; the historic centre is a restricted traffic zone read by cameras, and the monorail handles the airport anyway. One booking needs care. The medieval towers at the crossroads are not the view they used to be: the Garisenda is fenced for a major stabilisation project and has never been climbable, while the taller Asinelli has been shut since that work began, with no confirmed reopening and estimates running years out. The official replacement is the clock tower on Piazza Maggiore, and it is stricter than it looks. Booking is compulsory, admissions are timed several times an hour, latecomers are refused without a refund, and the same ticket covers the art collections in the palace below, which keep their own separate hours. Closed shoes are required, there is no lift, and the summit terrace is reached by a narrow stair after signing a waiver on the spot. Beyond that, fast trains reach Modena for balsamic vinegar and motoring museums, Parma for ham and cheese and Ravenna for its early Christian mosaics, all within Emilia-Romagna, with Florence well under an hour away, so you can check food tour and day trip options around Bologna and keep a long lunch in the plan.
Season matters more here than a food city suggests. Spring and autumn are the comfortable months, and autumn brings the trade fairs that fill the rooms. Summer is hot and heavy in a city with no sea breeze, and through August a good many restaurants and shops close for the holidays, which is a genuine problem when eating is the reason you came. Winter is cold, foggy and easy on a budget, and the arcades come into their own. One correction before you order, whenever you arrive: spaghetti bolognese is not a dish here. The city's ragù is served with tagliatelle, the egg pasta made to hold it, and the other local classic is tortellini floating in clear broth rather than sauce. Order either properly and you will understand why Italians call this place the fat one. Personally, I would walk up to San Luca in the morning, eat slowly at the far end of a long lunch, and give the afternoon to doing nothing under an arcade.
Q: Can you climb the towers in Bologna?
A: Not at present. The Garisenda is fenced for stabilisation and has never been open to climbers, and the taller Asinelli has been closed since that work started, with no confirmed reopening. The clock tower on Piazza Maggiore is the official alternative, on a booked and timed slot.
Q: What should you know before climbing the clock tower?
A: Booking is compulsory and the slot is timed, so arrive a few minutes early, because latecomers are turned away without a refund. There is no lift, closed shoes are required, and the top terrace involves a narrow stair and a waiver signed on site.
Q: Is there really no spaghetti bolognese in Bologna?
A: Correct. The local ragù goes with tagliatelle, the egg pasta made to hold it, and tortellini in broth is the other signature dish.
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