Modena
- about 20 to 35 min
A food stop: the Mercato Albinelli market and balsamic vinegar, plus the cathedral beside its tower.
Tip: Check the market's opening hours before you go, and finish at the cathedral.
Weather: Modena
Day trips from Bologna
Regional trains make the neighbouring cities easy. Ravenna, with its Byzantine mosaics, is the fifth classic and takes about an hour; if you go, book the mosaic sites in advance, as travellers recommend.
Ferrara
- about 30 to 50 min
A Renaissance city with the Estense Castle as its best-known sight.
Tip: Walk the old streets and let the castle be the single stop with a ticket.
Weather: Ferrara
Parma
- about 1 h
Another food town, with a cathedral and baptistery worth the trip.
Tip: Plan the cathedral and baptistery around lunch.
Weather: Parma
Rimini
- about 55 min to 1 h 15 min
The Adriatic seaside, with Roman history in the Tiberius Bridge.
Tip: Fast trains cut the trip to about 55 minutes; slower regional ones take longer. Look at the type of train when you buy.
Weather: Rimini