Coach & Minibus Hire in Italy

Bologna and the Food Valley by Minibus

Bologna is a city for wandering under porticoes, and the best plan keeps the vehicle at the edge of the centre. What makes it a great base is everything around it: Modena, Parma, Ferrara and Ravenna are each an easy drive away.

The centre and your minibus

According to the coach-operator association ANAV, tourist buses stay out of the old centre between 7 in the morning and 8 in the evening, every day of the year, unless they are going to a hotel; the hotel passes the number plate to the City so the vehicle is authorised. That summary dates from early 2025, so the operator confirms the current rule with the City before your trip.

Your group can step down at Porta San Mamolo, where a stop next to the neighbourhood market gives you as long as 20 minutes. Deeper in, Piazza Malpighi gives five minutes, but only with a day ticket paid online beforehand and a prescribed route in and out.

Minibus rear seating and luggage space
Minibus rear seating and luggage space

Parking while you explore

During your walk, the vehicle can wait at the Autostazione on Viale Masini. Tourist buses can reserve a place there, and reserving a day or more in advance earns the lower tariff; without one, space depends on what is free on arrival. Outside the historic centre, tourist buses may use the city's bus lanes. Many streets have a 30 km/h limit, so short hops take a little longer than the map suggests.

Flying in to Bologna

Stops worth making in Bologna

  • Ravenna (day trip) — Early Christian mosaics (UNESCO), east of Bologna.
  • Modena and Maranello (day trip) — Modena's Duomo and the Ferrari museum at Maranello, west of Bologna.
  • Santuario della Madonna di San Luca — Hilltop sanctuary south-west of the city, reached by road or on foot under the porticoes from Porta Saragozza.
  • Piazza Maggiore, Basilica di San Petronio and the Due Torri — In the historic centre, which tourist coaches may not enter from 07:00 to 20:00 except to reach hotels. The set-down stop at Piazza di Porta San Mamolo and the ZTL stop at Piazza Malpighi are the nearest coach stops.

Easy pickup points

  • Bologna airport area (Borgo Panigale)
  • Fiera district
  • Università / Zona Universitaria
  • Stazione Centrale / Via Indipendenza
  • Centro Storico / Piazza Maggiore

Days for food lovers

Modena is about an hour away, and Maranello with its Ferrari museum about 1 h 5 min. Parma takes roughly 1 h 30 min, Ferrara about an hour. Ravenna's mosaics are around 1 h 20 min east, Imola about 50 minutes. Rimini and San Marino make a longer outing, about 1 h 45 min and 2 h 5 min.

Closer to home, the sanctuary of San Luca stands on its hill to the south-west. Your minibus can drive up, or the more energetic can walk the long portico from Porta Saragozza and be collected at the top.

What travellers ask us

How do we get from Bologna airport into town?

It is a short hop: roughly 11 km, or 25 minutes on the road, from the Guglielmo Marconi terminal into the centre. The Marconi Express monorail also runs to Bologna Centrale.

Can we combine Bologna with Florence or Venice?

Yes. Florence is about 1 h 45 min away, Venice's Piazzale Roma about 2 h 15 min and Verona about 2 h 5 min, all comfortable day trips.

We are attending an event at BolognaFiere. Is it far?

No. BolognaFiere sits in the north-eastern part of town, handy for the A14 and the tangenziale; the Palazzo dei Congressi shares the site.

How long may the driver work on a long day?

Under EU rules, nine hours of driving on most days, with a 45-minute break after four and a half. On a two-city day, plan the route with that in mind.

More trips we arrange

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