Emilia Romagna

Emilia Romagna by Louise

In May I joined Typically Holidays on a short break to explore the lesser-known Emilia Romagna region of Italy.

After a short 2-hour flight from Stansted we landed in Rimini where we were met by our private driver for the 1 hour transfer to Ravenna.

Nestled in the enchanting historic centre of Ravenna we checked into the ‘ Exclusive ApartHotel La Reunion’ for a 1-night stay. After a traditional lunch we explored the city on foot, Ravenna is Famous as the "City of Mosaics," this Emilia-Romagna gem houses eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is perfect if you love history, art, and authentic Italian food, offering a much more relaxed, local feel than other Italian hotspots. Our tour finished in the indoor food market for a cooking class to make (and sample!) the local piadina flat bread. 

On our second day we headed to Bologna – the culinary capital of Italy. We met our guide who took us to see what the capital of the Emilia-Romagna has to offer, from the bustling main square (Piazza Maggiore) to famous Two Towers (Le Due Torri). A visit to Bologna would not be complete without a cooking class, so we finished our day making the traditional Ragù alla Bolognese.

Plenty of food later we headed back to our minibus for the transfer to Cesenatico where we checked into the Grand Hotel da Vinci which would be our home for the next 2 nights. Cesenatico is a renowned seaside resort on the Adriatic Coast, located between Ravenna and Rimini.

Our third day we took the short transfer to the coastal city of Rimini. Our walking tour took us from the main city gate - Arch of Augustus to the Borgo San Giuliano, an ancient, colourful fishing village. Here, picturesque narrow alleys feature stunning murals dedicated to director Federico Fellini and his masterpieces. We finished our time in Rimini at La Marianna, a historic restaurant and former trattoria located just steps from the Tiberius Bridge, specializing in traditional Rimini seafood.

As our time in Italy comes to an end the last few hours were spent at leisure in the seaside resort of Cesenatico, from the Leonardo Canal Harbour and charming pedestrian-friendly cobbled streets to the soft sand beaches.

After a wonderful 3 nights I felt this region of Italy is highly underrated, it’s perfect for those looking for a truly authentic and less touristy experience. Whilst we visited all the towns and cities by road the rail network in Italy is excellent with Bologna being the main transport hub.