Gastronomic Bologna

Welcome to Bologna – we hope you brought an appetite. After arriving in the city by plane, train or automobile, make your way to your city-centre hotel and check in. As tempting as it might be, don’t tuck into the city’s food scene just yet – we’ve put on a welcome dinner for you this evening in an authentic local restaurant. 

Kick the day off with a classic Italian breakfast of espresso and sweet pastries – or eggs, fruit and cereal if you’re easing yourself in – before meeting our Local Insider for the start of this morning’s food tour. You’ll pass through the buzzing central market, virtually unchanged since the Middle Ages, and stop by traditional pasta makers, where the stories told by the nimble-fingered nonnas are as full-bodied as the tortellini they sell. By this time, you’ll be more than ready to break for lunch, which is at your leisure. Afterwards, you’ll meet our Insider again for a walking tour of the city’s must-see architectural sights, including the Fountain of Neptune, the magical Santuario di Santa Maria della Vita and the historic Two Towers. Feeling inspired by the pasta makers you met earlier? Get hands-on with an optional cooking class.

Loosen your belt another notch, as the rest of the Emilia Romagna region is on the menu today. After breakfast, you’ll be met by our Insider and driven through the Italian countryside, stopping first at a Parmigiano Reggiano dairy. Walk among enormous, pungent wheels of cheese, and discover the history and artistry that goes into making it. You might even want to pick up a wedge or two to bring home! Next, it’s on to Parma, home to that famous melt-in-the-mouth cured ham, where you're free to find yourself some lunch before regrouping for a wine tasting in Castel del Vetro. On the way back to Bologna, you’ll stop off at a traditional Balsamic Vinegar manufacturer in Modena, where you’ll get to sample a variety of the sweet, sticky condiment that’s over half a century old. 

If you can fit it in, there’s time for one last breakfast before checking out of your hotel – and lugging that food-laden suitcase to the airport.