Firenze-Bologna-Firenze 250 km

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: TestDriveFirenze, Piazzale Galileo 2 km from Piazzale Michelangelo in the toll parking with the blue lines in front of the entrance to the Park Palace Hotel, 50125, Florence Italy

You will find us at Piazzale Michelangelo, Florence in the toll parking with the blue lines near the statue of David.

Duration: 10 minutes

Pass By: Tollbooth Impruneta, Via Cassia, 49B, 50023 Impruneta FI, Italy

You will enter the motorway at Firenze Impruneta towards Bologna and drive about 120 km on the motorway

Stop At: Piazza Maggiore, Bologna Italy

iazza Maggiore is located in the very centre of Bologna. In the past, the square underwent many changes and was embellished with important buildings: the Basilica di San Petronio, Palazzo dei Notai, Palazzo d'Accursio, Palazzo del Podestà and Palazzo dei Bianchi.

It was built where there once was just a grassy area. In 1200, the Municipality started purchasing houses and land to build a square that would homage the importance of the city and gather all city activities (commerce, trade and various kinds of services) at the same time.

Originally, the square came to be known as curia Communis or platea Communis and it was given its current name of Piazza Maggiore during the 16th century even though, between the expulsion of the Austrian army and 1944, it was named after the King of Italy Vittorio Emanuele II. So it was just after 1945 that the square and surrounding territory became officially known with the current name of Piazza Maggiore.

Duration: 1 hour

Pass By: Torre Prendiparte, Piazzetta Prendiparte 5, 40126 Bologna Italy

Lying in the very heart of the town, but well hidden among an entangled maze of alleys and narrow streets, Prendiparte is one of the few towers still standing – there were about 100 in the centre of Bologna – and one of the very few still towering over the roofs. Many others, having been damaged through the centuries in battles and family feuds, have disappeared within luxury private courtyards or hide inside more recent buildings.

Stop At: Basilica di San Petronio, Piazza Maggiore, 40124 Bologna Italy

The Basilica of San Petronio stands on Bologna’s main square, Piazza Maggiore, and is likely to be one of the first sites you’ll visit in town. It is the Bolognesi’s most beloved church, a symbol of the city today as it was in the past, when it was used as a public space rather than a merely religious one.

Here are eight interesting things to know about San Petronio (as we Bolognesi simply call it) to enhance your visit.

Despite being Bologna’s most important church, San Petronio isn’t the city’s cathedral, which stands nearby on via Indipendenza (the Duomo di San Pietro). It’s dedicated to the patron saint of the city, Petronius, who was the bishop of Bologna in the 5th century.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Basilica di San Domenico, Piazza San Domenico 13, 40124 Bologna Italy

The Basilica di San Domenico has a wealth of history and art – more than any other church in Bologna. St. Domenico of Guzman, the Spanish founder of the Order of Preachers (also known as the Dominican Order or the Dominicans), arrived in Bologna around the year 1200 and purchased San Nicolò delle Vigne church and vicarage, where the Basilica now stands. After his death in 1221, the monks decided to build a bigger church, where they could honour St. Domenico. His remains are preserved in the chapel of San Domenico inside a marble ark. The marvellous ark is considered one of the finest examples of Italian Plastic Art and is embellished with sculptures made by Nicola Pisano on the urn (1267), Alfonso Lombardi on the predella (1532) and G.B. Boudard on the antependium (1768). It's surmounted by a magnificent marble cymatium modeled by Niccolò da Puglia, also known as "dell'Arca", in 1469-73.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Piazza Santo Stefano, Via Santo Stefano, 40125 Bologna Italy

Piazza Santo Stefano is one of the most peculiar places in Bologna. Even though it is mainly considered as a square, it is not properly this: Via Santo Stefano widens to create this peculiar area that leads to the monumental group of buildings named after the same Saint. From Piazza Santo Stefano the ancient road to Tuscany may be taken. This group of churches is mainly known as “seven churches” as it is formed by seven holy buindings built and renovated during different periods, mainly on behalf of the patron Saint of Bologna, St. Petronio.

Apart from giving prominence to these churches, the square allows visitors to see the beautiful buindings surrounding it: on the left side Casa Berti, whose frescoes were made by Gaetano Gandolfi, Palazzo Isolani and the 15th century Palazzo Bolognini Isolani that hosts Corte Isolani, a court that leads directly to Strada Maggiore; on the right side, the 16th century Palazzo Bolognini Amorini Salina. At present, the square is often used to host cultural events and concerts.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Test Drive Firenze, Piazzale Galileo, Viale Galileo Galilei, 50125, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy

The tour ends when we started

Duration: 10 minutes