Guided Walk Through the Medieval Centre, from Piazza Maggiore to Santo Stefano

What it is

Discover Bologna is the official guided walk through the historic centre run by Bologna Welcome, the city's tourist office. In two hours, with a qualified guide and a radio-guide system, you walk through the medieval heart of Bologna from Piazza Maggiore to the two towers. It is especially useful on your first day: it gives you the city's map in your head and tells you where to come back to at leisure.

The route

Bologna Welcome publishes this itinerary, which may change if a place is closed:

1. Piazza Maggiore. The central square, surrounded by the Palazzo d'Accursio, the Palazzo del Podestà and the basilica.
2. Basilica of San Petronio. You go in: the visit is included in the price.
3. Piazza Galvani. Next to the Archiginnasio, the old seat of the university.
4. Corte Isolani. A covered passage between palaces linking Strada Maggiore with Piazza Santo Stefano.
5. Strada Maggiore. One of the great arcaded streets of the centre.
6. Piazza Santo Stefano. The square in front of the Santo Stefano group of churches.
7. Piazza della Mercanzia. With the former seat of the merchants' court.
8. The two towers. The Asinelli and the Garisenda, seen from the outside.

Times and Spanish

There are departures every day in Italian and English. In Spanish, only on Saturdays:

• From 21 September 2026 to 28 February 2027: Saturdays at 15:30.
• From 15 June to 20 September: Saturdays at 16:30.
• From 2 March to 14 June: Saturdays at 15:30.

In Italian and English, from 21 September 2026 to 10 January 2027 there are departures from Monday to Wednesday at 10:30 (Italian only), on Thursdays at 15:00 and from Friday to Sunday at 10:30 and 15:00. From 11 January to 28 February 2027 they are reduced to Thursday at 15:00 (Italian only), Friday at 15:00 and the weekend at 10:30 and 15:00. Check the exact calendar when booking.

Price and booking

• General: €18.
• Reduced: €15 with the Card Cultura and for companions of people with disabilities.
• Free: under-12s, people with disabilities and holders of the Bologna Welcome Card.

It includes the guide, entry to San Petronio and the radio guide with disposable headphones (you can use your own wired ones, not Bluetooth). You book on the Bologna Welcome website; it can be cancelled or changed up to 24 hours before. Free tickets for people with disabilities are requested by email or at the information point in Piazza Maggiore.

Meeting point

The Bologna Welcome Info Point, at Piazza Maggiore 1/e. Arrive at least ten minutes early.

What to bring

Comfortable shoes and clothes suitable for entering a church: Bologna Welcome asks for modest dress in places of worship. Under the porticoes you walk in the shade and sheltered from the rain, so the walk can be done in almost any weather.

With children and accessibility

Children under 12 do not pay. Two hours of explanations can feel long to the smallest, although they like the squares and the towers. Bologna Welcome says the service is accessible to people with disabilities; ask for details by email when booking.

After the walk

Taking part gives you a reduced price on the guided visit to the Archiginnasio and its anatomical theatre. From Piazza Maggiore you can go up the Clock Tower, and a stone's throw from the towers is the Museum of the History of Bologna. If you have an afternoon free, walk under the San Luca portico to the sanctuary.