Hey Jason,

Personally, I’d still opt to stay in Bologna, as the zoning area is the historical centre. For example, the area just behind the train station, the more modern part of the city, there’s quite a bit of parking and accommodation there and it’s about 15/20 minutes into the centre – likewise for a few other areas on the outskirts. Similar for the other cities in the region, the walks are quite short from the centre and I felt fine walking around after dark. For Parma and Modena, the trains are pretty decent too, but for the smaller spots yeah a car will make a huge difference.

My top three, in order would be (excluding Parma and Modena)
Brisighella – as it’s a bit different, more of a Tuscany village vibe and as it’s quite small, it wouldn’t need to be a full day. It is a 1-hour drive each way though, so depends if that kind of place is your interest, but scenery wise it’s great and theres some nice small places to eat and wineries in that area.

The mosaics and architecture in Ravenna would make it a must visit for me, they really are spectacular, and then you aren’t far to spend a couple of hours in Commachio, for the canals there and maybe dinner on route back.

If you are already doing Bologna/Modena/Palma I’d personally say skipping places like Reggio Emilia or Rimini isn’t a problem, as they are all relatively similar in architecture, and I don’t really rate the beaches too much for Rimini. San Marino is obviously a cool day trip, for the fact you can go to another country and it is spectacular, but for the smaller forest towns, I think they would be a bit of a hassle for a day trip and perhaps not worth it IMO.

Safe travels!
Dan

Also – if you had to choose 3 day trips using Bologna as a base – what would they be? Note that Parma and Modena are already a given. Late 20’s – massive foodie, love nice scenery, wineries etc

Thanks!

Hi Alex,

Sadly I didn’t make it to Forli or Cesena, I hoped to go to the latter from Cesenatico but always seemed to be transport problems when I was around the area. I spent some time in Foreste Casentinesi, Ridracoli Dam and Bagno di Romagna, which I touched on at the end of on my Po Delta Article (https://www.danflyingsolo.com/comacchio-emilia-romagna-po-delta/) but haven’t had a chance to write anything in depth about the hills yet. Don’t worry, there was plenty wine tasting, cycling and of-course food tours! I’ve had four visits to Emilia Romagna, and fell behind on my content there, I criminally haven’t even written an article about Bologna alone yet :)

Thanks, and safe travels!

Hi Glynnis,

Have a fantastic time in Italy. While trains are pretty good, the connections to some of the smaller spots aren’t ideal, so I do recommend hiring a car yes, it will make it much easier, though try to seek accommodation that provides parking options, especially in any cities where on-street parking is scarce.