Bologna to me is one of Europe's most vstly underrated or neglected cities - said to have more medieval structures than any other city center (when I was there the tourist office map said this) the center is just so so fine - lots of arcades to walk under if as not unusual at that time wet.

Parma was a nice surprise to me as well - really nice town to wander around in for a few hours or a day.

Also loved the Certosa de Pavia - an elaborate monastery complex out in the country - a great few-hour stop when going north.

Mantua was another city that I really loved - the palace and large lake and neat old towns.

Well a few places that do not get all that much ink here that you may want to investigate stopping by.

Ted...

You can probably guess my "vote" would be for Bologna, I really enjoyed my week there in 2010 and the food is fantastic.

I also found it to be a good base for day trips via train. I believe there are excellent train connections (regional & inter-city & hi-speed trains)in Bologna. One memorable day trip was to Modena, (we went for lunch at a specific osteria) and another day trip to Ravenna to see the mosaic tile work.

I also have a recommendation for a food tour (visits to a cheese factory/proscuitto factory/balsamic vinegar producer & an incredible lunch at an organic winery) in that area if you are interested.

March is not optimal for Piemonte, and while Torino is just wonderful, it really can be quite cold there. Emilia Romagna is your best bet, with our without a car. Ravenna is a spectacular world class sight with very few peers, and I would urge you to include it.

There is a lot of terrific advice on Chowhound about touring Emilia-Romagna region with a car and making the most of its food bounty, almost all of which is found outside the city of Bologna. It is not hard to have a car in Bologna if you pick the right lodgings at the edge of the city's walls, or to spend some time in Bologna and then rent a car to go exploring. However, if you only have a handful of sights you want to see in Bologna, you might want to spend just a minimum of nights there without a car, and then rent one and move on.

Be aware that Bologna is a business city with high hotel rates during trade fairs and a scarcity of rooms, so book early. Also be aware that the towns of the Emilia Romagna are not touristic and are still tied to a traditional clock with the exception of Bologna, so "day trips" that have you heading out in the morning at 9am to catch a train to some other town, where you walk to the center of town and thus arrive at 11.30am, leave you with essentially 60 minutes or 90 minutes before things close.

If you don't mind some sort of modified road-tripping in the region with a car, it can not only be better for sightseeing, but also enables you to see marvelous out of the way places in the Emilia-Romagna hills like Brisighella, Torrechiara, Vignola and more. With a car, you can also take advantage of some of the region's extraordinary "alberghi ristoranti" -- restaurants with rooms -- such as Amerigo, Da Ivo, and others. Again, check Chowhound.

It is worth staying some nights right in beautiful Parma because some of its most interesting historic attractions are only open in the mornings. I can recommend Hotel Daniel, which has an exceptionally good restaurant and parking.

If you are ultimately headed up to Milan, passing through Mantova is also a good idea.

You can do all this by train or car or a combination of both.

One of the major reasons most people visit Emilia-Romagna is food. If you are wearying of food-obsessed travel then the E-R is also a fabulous place for art and history. Bologna has an excellent museum of painting and several quite important historical sights associated with its university and Jewish history. Ferrara is the same, although smaller. Ravenna is without peer. Parma has the additional dimension of music, including the nearby towns that are important to Verdi fans. Modena has world heritage architecture (also where Pavarotti learned to sing). The beachside town of Rimini is a shrine to Federico Fellini, plus has startling sights dating back to Roman times. All these are just the highlights.

If you drive beware the legendary fogs and early morning ice in March. Some of your travel days are still in winter.

These are all excellent suggestions.

I very much like the idea of seeing a number of smaller cities and less frequented towns on daytrips by car.

(One of our most memorable N Italian weekends was spent just outside Cremona, from which we saw a number of historic and utterly untouristy Lombard towns. The wet and foggy weather did not deter us one whit!)

And yes, we are very keen to find and sample good food.

Have you thought of spending some days in the Campania region? Think about Positana, Amalfi and Naples? We spent 2 weeks over christmas in Italy last year, traveling through Campania, Emilia Romagna and the Tuscany region. You can easily set base at Sorrento and visit the Amalfi coast with a car. Bologna has gotten great train connection to other towns like Parma, Modena, Ferrara and Verona. So doing day trip from here is easy and cheap. You can read up more on my Italy trip report at my blog. http://www.travelathousandmiles.com/italy/

Styrx: Those are very fine photos. I did not realize that the public architecture of those northern cities is so fine.

As Easter is early this year, your second week coincides with school holidays (not just in Italy) and sghts will be more crowded. So it's not low season.

There is a big trade show in Bologna the week just before Easter this year, so you'll want to get in & out of there prior to Monday the 25th if you go there, or else pay triple the normal room rate for hotels (I would suspect same for apartments).

Yikes! Thanks for the info. I wanted to spend time in Rome - but maybe we should cut back on Rome and get to Bologna early, to avoid this surge in demand.

LowCountryIslander - I would definitely like to hear more about your food tour recommendation. I'll be in Northern Italy this coming early October.

Diggie...

Here is the except from my 2010 Bologna trip report about the food tour experience I had:

Italian Food Days Tour:
There were several activities for our week in Bologna I booked prior to arriving and this was one. I found this tour listed on Trip Advisor as the number 1 activity to do in Bologna and after reading the reviews posted there and a few on Fodors I thought this sounded like a great option. We were not disappointed and it turned out to be one of, if not the best, days we had in Bologna. The Italian Food Days website is here:
http://www.italiandays.it/

This tour was all the website promises and more…seriously, if you are in the Bologna area and are “into” food…please, do yourself a favor and spend the money on this tour. We paid €135 per person and as good fortune would have it, we ended up being the only 2 people on the tour the day we went, so it turned out to be a private tour for us. I’m sure it would be great with several other people, but believe me, the guide, Alessandro Martini had no problem filling in quiet times in the mini-van with really interesting information.

Alessandro met us at our apartment at 7:30am…yes, that early, but the reason was because we needed to get to the parmigiano reggiano factory in time to see the milk arriving and the cheese being made. Yes, we were standing on the production floor watching the 25 vats being carefully tended to by the cheesemaker. This was fascinating and now when I see the price of “the real deal” parmigiano reggiano cheese, I know why it is so expensive. We not only got to taste the parmigiano reggiano we also got to taste the warm fresh ricotta cheese that was made just hours before. The fresh ricotta with little chunks of parmigiaono regiano tossed in, sounds weird, and tasted wonderful was the best breakfast a girl could ask for.

After the cheese factory we were off to an acetaia were the Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena (traditional balsamic vinegar) is painstakingly produced. To think the amount of time and effort and not to mention the amount of money these balsamic producers go through to produce such a small annual amount of vinegar it’s no wonder the cost of the product is so expensive. We were able to taste 12 year, 25 years and 100+ year old vinegar and as you might imagine the older it was the better it tasted.

The next stop on the tour was a Prosciutto di Modena factory. Wow! An entire factory floor of hanging pork. Again, the process to produce this tasty treat is mind-boggling, but I, for one, am glad this process continues, because quite frankly I do enjoy some pork products!

As if all this wasn’t enough, the final “leg” of the tour was a lunch stop at the Corte d’Aibo (http://www.cortedaibo.it/eng/index.html), which is an organic winery and agritourismo. All I can say is that when Alessandro tells you it will be a “light lunch” do not under any circumstances believe him! This lunch was a feast that put us in a food coma! For us, because the day was so incredibly foggy, we could not enjoy what must be the amazing view from this winery, but that did not stop us from indulging in a fantastic meal. We started with a sparkling wine and a meat and cheese plate…6 different meats and 6 different cheeses! Honestly, we thought that was plenty for lunch, but then another wine arrives at the table, this time a barbera made with no added sulphates and a huge dish of the best cannelloni I have ever had, stuffed with a combination of veal and pork and bathed in a béchamel sauce this dish was superb. Then a 3rd red wine appears on the table, which I can’t remember the name of because we were so taken with the barbera, we didn’t want to stop drinking that one! Just when we were ready to say, “Basta”, a beautiful coffee pannacotta arrives. I thought, there is no way I can eat this, but one spoonful and I was hooked, I could not stop myself and the thought occurred to me that I really wanted to lift the plate up and lick it clean, but don’t recoil in horror, I refrained! Now we are saying there can’t be any more, when our faithful mini-van driver, Fabrizio, (also known as “the food pusher”) appears in the dining room doorway with a plate full of apple strudel and cookies! We did not indulge in that sweet treat, but we did ask for 2 cups of espresso that appeared instantly like magic and once we had taken the last sip of espresso Fabrizio appears again with a bottle of grappa and kindly tells us the way to get the last drops of espresso from the cup is to fill the cup with grappa and have a coffee “infused” digestive “treat”, not be outdone the crowning touch of the whole meal was a little glass of the local nocino, a green walnut liquor that I could have easily had more of.

Now that we could barely move it was time to decide if we wanted to purchase any of the wines. The barbera was just too good not to take, so we purchased 4 bottles of that along with a panetonne the chef was “whipping” up for the upcoming holidays!

You can imagine the ride back to Bologna was a quiet one, with our eyelids resting at half-mast. We enjoyed ourselves immensely and thought it was a great way to explore a bit of the region outside Bologna. And, now the Corte d’Aibo winery is on our radar for possible future stay in the country-side of the Emilia-Romanga region!

You like architecture? You absolutely can not beat Vicenza! Charming town. Beautiful Palladian buildings. Teatro Olympico - one of the most wonderful things I've seen anywhere.

I think I'm going to have to cut back on Rome to fit this all in.

Marcy/ LCI: That food tour sounds like something R would love! And you give a wonderful account of the day - I can almost smell and taste all those flavours

Another vote for Bologna. Great food, architecture, ease of walking/transport and amazingly beautiful people. Probably the most attractive and well dressed place I've ever been.
We recently spent 3n in Bologna with a day trip to Venus.
We could have easily used a few more days.
I have a few photos on FB if you want to take a look.

My advice - take Bologna in slowly
Enjoy!

bmking - i must stop reading threads like this as they add yet another area of Italy that i MUST visit.

Ted...

That food tour was a major highlight of that particular trip. Now I'm thinking I need to go back to Bologna!

Low season for Milan and Rome stops around the 15th of February so be prepared for crowds and long lines with the Easter vacation groups that begin the last week of February!
My son studied a semester abroad in Turin the year before the Olympics. My husband and I went over to visit him and we loved the city along with the Piedmont area especially Asti. There are some wonderful museums,shops and restaurants.

Hi Tedgale,
We always travel in mid-March, and find it to be a fabulous time to be in Italy. The weather is warming up, the trees and flowers are coming out, and the crowds have not yet swelled.

If you want to go south, I would suggest including Paestum as a wonderful, little-known destination.
We stayed a few days at il granio dei casabella a few years ago in Paestum, as part of an easy train trip south from Rome, with stops in Ponpeii, and Herculaneum. You could just as easily include some warm time on the Amalfi coast, or Sorrento which is lovely in March. Paestum has a series of incredible Greek temples which you could walk to from granaio, and their restaurant was divine - artichoke season, and the delicious buffalo meat and cheese which hails from the area. We didn't have time, but the area around Paestum also looks interesting. We stay in an apartment in Rome, and often take these little 2 or 3 day trips, leaving most of our stuff in Rome, and traveling light by train.

If you want to go north, a visit to Tarquinia to see the extensive painted Etruscan tombs is always worthwhile. You didn't mention Assisi, but spending a night or two there can be a magical experience in the off-season. A few years ago we rented a country villa in the Euganean Hills in the Veneto in mid-March. It is a beautiful area with many lovely little towns (eg. Monselice, Este) within an easy drive or local train ride. Ravenna and Bolonga are simple day trips, as are Padua, Verona, Vicenza, and even Venice! Once again, the local specialities are delicious.

Hope it helps - have fun planning!

I agree with the other about Bologna - but you'd have to be sure to be out of there at least several days before that trade fair starts. I've noticed that with major festivals, trade fairs, etc that the prices go up and the crowds swell not just the days of the events themselves but several days before and after.

I think Verona would be a fabulous base from which you could do day trips (by train - car also but train works great for this) to Ferrera, Modena, Vicenza, Padua, Venice, etc. If you spend some time in Milano day trips from there that are really worthwhile include Bergamo and Parma (which I was under impressed with but the rest of the world seems to love it, I thought Bergamo was ten times more interesting but you never hear it even mentioned here). Actually from Verona you could even do a day trip to Bologna. Perhaps consider a few days in Rome at the begining, the bulk of your time in Verona with all those day trips, and then a few days at the end in Milano.

Here are some of my trips reports from those areas. Photos are at www.pbase.com/annforcier - the Italy photos are in several different galleries.

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/italy-lombardy-veneto-emile-romagna-and-a-little-bits-of-the-lakes.cfm

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/isabels-summer-trip-photos---to-italy-vienna-and-budapest.cfm

I'll second LCI's recco of Alessandro's food tour. It was a highlight of my stay in Bologna, as well. I'm with you, LCI -- all of this Bologna talk is making me want to go back!

If we arrive in Rome on Sat March 16, I cannot see leaving Rome before Wednesday. If we arrive in Bologna Wed PM, we'd be challenged to be out of Bologna "well before" the trade show starts.

I'll check accommodation today to see what prices are like etc. We generally prefer flats or B&Bs to city hotels.

If it can't work out smoothly, I'd rather plan a totally different itinerary than make unwelcome compromises, either with the Rome portion or with the Northern leg.

One option, I suppose, is to use Florence or another adjacent city as a base and make 1 or more day trips by train to Bologna - it's only an hour away.

If it hasn't been mentioned already, check out Antica Casa Zucchini b&b in Bologna.

If you can't get into an affordable stay in Bologna, I would pick Modena over Firenze, because those fast train tickets from Florence to Bologna are pricey. At that point, you might as well spring for the higher hotel rates in Bologna.

Also, from Modena you can easily visit Parma, Reggio nell'Emilia and Mantova. Even getting to Ferrara isn't so bad from Modena, and Ravenna is doable if you are motivated.

I'm not sure why you are opting for a train-tour stay instead of a car-tour stay. As good as the train connections are in and around Bologna, you are still saddling yourself with train schedules and slogs to and from the train stations to the historic centers. There are lots of lovely places to stay with a car, including right at the edges of a Bologna or Parma or Modena or Ferrara if you prefer to be able to eat in city restaurants at nights.

Apart from higher hotel rates, you will not have anything compromised if you stay in Bologna during a trade fair. For a few restaurants you will need to book in advance, but that is normal anyway.

But like I said, if you can't find a hotel stay you like in Bologna, the nearby towns make marvelous "bases" if you prefer that sort of travel. I would pick Parma or Modena if your main focus is going to be food, and Ferrara if your main focus is going to be sightseeing in Bologna and Ravenna.

We loved Bologna so much last year we are returning for a 5 night stay this July. We are staying here again: http://www.anticaresidenzadazeglio.it/

It is affordable at €100 a night, and they do have a parking spot I think they charge €10 a night for. It is just on the edge of centre historico (easy 5 mins walk to the main piazza) and therefore very easy to drive in and out of town from.

Enjoy!

If we arrive in Rome on Sat March 16, I cannot see leaving Rome before Wednesday.>>

Ted, since you are looking for new things to do, including presumably in Rome, I found this when I was researching the trip I'm doing to Rome in February with fellow students from my italian conversation class:

http://www.palazzovalentini.it/

I'm assuming that it's reasonably new as I don't remember seeing anything about it on either of our two previous visits, the last being a couple of years ago.

If i get a more of a move on than i usually do, i might even manage to report on it before you go!

I went to Palazzo Valentini during my week in Rome this past November and loved it.

Prior to planning for that November trip I hadn't heard anything about it either, but a couple months before going I posted a question here on Fodors asking for "off the beaten path" things to do in Rome and as I recall it was Fodorite Brit-in-Ischia who mentioned Palazzo Valentini to me. I'm not 100% certain, but I believe it's been open for about 2 years.

Jamikins...glad to hear you are going back to Bologna.

sadly I'm not in charge of where we go on our afternoon excursions after spending the mornings learning italian, but I'm trying to point our teacher in the direction of things like the Palazzo Valentini that I'd like to see!

Yes, I read LCI's account of Palazzo Valentini.
Thanks to others for location and accommodation recommendations.

I've spent the day researching places to stay. As predicted, several nice flats are booked up; all seem to raise their rents for that period.

I have made a fallback booking for a well-reviewed hotel, I Portici, near the train station. I can cancel it if I find something better.

(Just BTW, re: train fares: I can get same-day return tkts Florence-Bologna for E 18!)

If you end up staying at I Portici, do not eat in its restaurant.

Re train fares, that's great if you want to book your train tix in advance to get the lower fare independent of weather and other considerations. You can still change your mind, although at that point you lose the discount. If you are 'day tripping' to Bologna from Firenze, some of the city's most interesting sights are only open in the morning (Santa Maria della Vita for one, check others), most everything closes for the long midday lunch break, and Thursday afternoons, most all stores and shops are shut. (This is also true of Parma if you are day-tripping there from anywhere.)

LowCountyIslander - Thank you so much for the info! We can't wait to try it all.

goldenautumn: Very useful information. I'll take your word for it but I'm surprised about I Portici's restaurant - it's Michelin-starred, isn't it?

(We tend to eat in smaller and less "flash" places anyway)

We had a successful trip to Emilia Romagna, despite absolutely FOUL weather: 3 nights in Bologna at a great apartment, then 4 nights in Modena.

We had planned to stay 2 nights in Modena and 2 nights at the celebrated Trattoria Buca di Zibello, which now offers rooms. We cancelled the latter during our trip, when I found the region's gastronomy did not interest me nearly as much as the history, art and architecture. (We prefer not to eat meat, which I knew would be a challenge. It was.)

High points for me were Bologna, Mantova and Ravenna. One step down but still absorbing were Modena and a jaunt we made to the area NW of Parma: Bosseto, Sovragna and Fontellenato.

Parma had a few high points - the Baptistery and the Teatro Farnese, despite its being a reconstruction. But it moved me least, overall.

THANKS TO ALL for their advice, which proved most useful in focusing my planning.

Here is a small album of Bologna photos that I have assembled.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10200446347017660.1073741827.1126123095&type=1&l=2ec2f37331

I have yet to address my photos of the other spots. I hope to do a proper trip report - we'll see if that gets done!

tedgale, that's an area that I'm very keen on seeing, along with so many others!

i liked your phots, especially the food ones.

would you mind posting links to your accommodations?

Certainly, my pleasure.

The apartment in Bologna was Masca Residence, in via Mascarelli. The website is: http://www.mascaresidence.it/

Here is my TripAdvisor review

“Great value, convenient location, fine amenities”

We rented for 3 nights and got a great rate, due to a last minute cancellation. During major trade shows, accommodation prices in Bologna can triple (including at this residence), yet we paid only 80 E/ night during the big March Book Fair.

The apartment was huge and well equipped for long stays: Ironing board, clothes drying rack, etc etc etc. The décor is a bit Spartan - a few knick-knacks would warm up the atmosphere. But the essentials were brilliant - including one of the most comfortable beds I have ever slept in. The kitchen and bath were brand new and, like the rest of the apartment, absolutely spotless. The nearby mini-supermarket supplied us with nice ingredients for breakfasts and one dinner.

Others have commented on the quietness of the apartments that face the courtyard. On reflection, I would probably opt next time for a unit that faces the street. Via Mascarelli is not noisy and I found the courtyard view a bit dead: I want to see some street life and be reminded I'm in Bologna, not at home!

The beautiful Maria Elissa, who met us and showed us over the apartment, is the epitome of kindness and hospitality. She had even prepared a package of brochures, to go with her restaurant recommendations and other tourist information. Her English, polished during her university years in Edinburgh, is excellent.

We were able to walk from the train station ( a leisurely 15 minutes, though you could walk it in 10) and also walked to all the major sites in the historic centre.

I have no hesitation to recommend these apartments to visitors, for short or longer stays.

The Modena hotel was Il Castello:
http://www.hotelcastello-mo.it

It is on the outskirts of the city, yet only 10-15 minutes from the centre and perhaps 10 minutes from the motorway.

The hotel looks like an old building but the interior is entirely modernized. I would describe the decor as granny-ish; this is not a modish hotel. However, the rooms are immaculate and well equipped, the grounds are lovely, the management is extremely solicitous and all the guests just seemed happy to be there.

Breakfasts, which are copious if a bit bland. are served in a large room on the main floor that doubles as the bar.

There is no restaurant, though they do serve pizzas and snacks in the bar in the evening.

Nice restaurants are within easy driving distance. We really relished the hotel's recommendation, Ponte Guerra - a modern place along the Via Vignolese that serves terrific food to a clientele mostly comprising long distance truckers! Don't be put off; this place is great and the atmosphere is quite civilized.

In Modena, we ate lunch at the celebrated Hostaria Giusti, behind the Salumeria Giusti. The atmosphere is soigné, the food is painstakingly faithful to traditional norms, the prices are not unaffordable but still rather outlandish.

We wanted to eat at the Antica Grama on the outskirts of Modena but the owner was ill and the restaurant did not open that week.

We also ate at a reputed traditional Bolognese trattoria, Dal Biassanot. It was perfectly adequate but made no strong impression on me.

We prefer to avoid meat and meat-free eating is a tall order in Emilia Romagna. Others might view all of these restaurants differently from us.

Thanks, tedgale.

they look like good places to stay if we're in Bologna or Modena.