In a subway Hot Take Travel, Adam Miller pays tribute to his less visited favourites italian city that was discovered as one of the TikTok’s the hottest destinations for 2026.
My great Italian love affair began at a wedding. Or, to be more precise, because of a wedding.
I just watched my friends get married in a fairytale ceremony in Tuscanyand I wanted to end the dream trip with a city break.
Everyone else in our party had the same idea: recover from four days of drinking Prosecco with downtime, dolce vita style. But as they were going straight Florencetwo of us split up to go to Bologna.
As we said our goodbyes after some of the best days we’d had in years, I began to regret our decision – maybe we should have followed the bandwagon and gone to Florence, widely hailed as one of the most beautiful cities IN Europeto soak up culture, history and the best bacon in the country.
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However, I had been stationed in Bologna. My well-traveled sister said it was her favorite city in the world before she died suddenly in 2002, but I never got the chance to ask her why. A quick Google of ‘things to do’ didn’t make it much clearer.
I will always choose a city break over a beach vacation or sitting by the pool in a fancy villa.
I need to be constantly stimulated – I love the rush, the smells, the knowledge you can encounter in a meal, an exhibition or a performance that changes something fundamental about who you are.
In life, I have very little structure – my daily schedule would strike terror into the hearts of many. But if I’m going to a city, I want a solid plan.
I want a list of galleries, museums, churches, dinners booked well in advance and barely a minute unaccounted for. Depending on whether you are type A or type B, I may very well be your nightmare travel companion.
What can you do in Bologna?
One weekend away with me and you’ll need to book another holiday just to recover. So what would I do in Bologna?
Google told me that the ‘must see attractions’ are Piazza Maggiore, the Basilica of San Petronio, the Two Towers and the Basilica di Santo Stefano (Seven Churches).
I had never heard of anything listed, and at first glance, I wasn’t particularly excited about them.
Bologna looked beautiful in the photo, its red buildings set against the backdrop of the Apennine hills and mountains, but still, I wasn’t necessarily counting the days.
I have been to Italy more times than I care to remember and I love Florence, Rome, Venice, Milan, Verona, Siena, Lucca, Pisa and Bergamo.
Claiming Bologna as your favorite city in Italy seems like a bold statement – let alone your favorite in the world – but after one night there, I had to agree with my sister.
I can’t name too many cities that I want to keep coming back to, but this one is at the top of the list. I already have a flight booked for another trip later this month.
Florence, Rome, Venice – all live up to their reputations. Vatican City is so impressive, it made me cry; There are few joys in life more magical than walking along the canals of Venice. And Florence is, of course, filled with magnificent buildings and incredible art and history.
But apart from their creative wonders, they all have one thing in common: they are tourist traps.
Getting into anything worth seeing can be claustrophobic, with huge crowds and long lines. They are also extremely expensive to eat, drink and exist.
I would never stay in Florence again, knowing that Bologna is only 40 minutes away by train.
Bologna taught me a valuable lesson about city breaks and what makes a city truly special.
Yes, there are beautiful tourist attractions, absolutely worth seeing, but more than anywhere else I’ve been, Bologna has a unique spirit.
It is historic and cosmopolitan. Among its many nicknames, Bologna is often referred to as La Rossa – ‘The Red’ – for the terracotta buildings that have been its quintessential design for centuries.
The streets are lively throughout the day and night, with locals chatting in bars and cafes. We were there for two nights – Monday to Wednesday, outside the school holidays – and it felt like a weekend in any other city.
This may sound unpleasant, like the turbulent streets of the UK after a men’s football match in England, but it is nothing like that.
Bologna is bustling, yes, but it never loses its class – no matter which way you go or how many Aperols (which cost around €5 each, wherever you go) you see poured along the way.
Another of Bologna’s other nicknames is La Grassa: ‘You make them fat.‘
I’ve been to many food capitals –New York, Tokyo, Paris, Singapore– and I live London which, it must be said, has some of the best on the planet.
But Bologna? It’s wall-to-wall the best food I’ve ever had, the kind of meals you have to book weeks in advance in London for half the price.
The city’s famous dish is Tortellini in Brodo – meat-filled pasta served in soup. I’d love to tell you all about it, but I suffer from turophobia: a phobia of cheese.
My travel buddy had plenty, though. While all I can report is that it looked incredibly fancy (and I wish I had eaten at least 10 servings based on the looks of it alone), he ate enough for the two of us.
Every road is dressed with incredible cuisine. We were lucky to get recommendations from a friend of a friend who lives in Bologna. She directed us to various cheap eats such as Plant marketwhere we ate a grilled toastie alla Norma that I still think about every day.
She promised we would find ‘the best gelato in the world’ at Cremeria Cavourand she was right.
But the real magic of Bologna is in its simplicity. Everything feels so smooth and easy. Eating, drinking, exploring – everything is easy compared to Florence, Venice or Rome.
It’s one of the only city breaks I’ve been on where I felt truly rejuvenated afterwards.
I can’t imagine staying anywhere else in Italy for a city break now, especially when the Italian train service is so cheap and efficient. Florence is nearby, Venice is only 70 minutes away, and tickets can be as cheap as £13, so it’s also a great stopover destination.
I already told you I’m coming back, so what are you waiting for?
A version of this article was originally published in March 2026.
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